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Picked up a sweet MIJ 80's Tele Custom a few months ago. Candy apple red double bound body, maple neck with rosewwod fingerboard.

The original Japanese pickups had to go. Great guitars...mediocre pickups. So this morning I had a little time to make it better.

Had a Custom Shop Jerry Donahue bridge pickup that MJ wound me last year so I put it in a 60's Tele bridge plate with compensated brass saddles and installed the whole assembly. Went right in without a hitch, except: the original Japanese bridge was lower somehow than the 60's USA Fender bridge I'd installed the compensated brass saddles in.

The strings were almost 1/4quot; off of the neck with the saddles set as low as they would go!

So I removed the neck and added a shim to raise the neck up to the strings and all was well again.

What to put in the neck position? Well, I planned on putting the Tele ala Strat neck pickup MJ wound for me, but when I removed the pickguard I was stunned to see that the previous owner had fibbed to me about the guitar being all original and that he had routed it it for two Strat pickups!

Believe it or not I had a nice Tele pickguard in white pearl already on hand AND: it was routed for a Strat neck pickup!

So I mulled it over a little between a APS-2, Antiquity Surfer or Antiquity Texas Hot. I went for the Antiquity Surfer - my favorite Duncan Strat pickup.

I held the polepieces of a standard Surfer against the polepieces of the Jerry Donahue and and saw that they repeled. Not good...no chance of humcancelling when combined with the JD.

Then I held a RW/RP Surfer against the JD and saw that they were attracted. Good!

Now I had to guess whether I'd have to reverse the black and white wires of the Surfer or not in order for it to be in phase with the Jerry Donahue.

I guessed that I would have to reverse them so I wired the black wire of the Antiquity Surfer to the switch and the white wire to the back of the volume pot: ground.

Put just the low E string on it and tuned it up to pitch. I used just one string just in case I had to remove the neck pickup again. But I didn't. When the selector switch was set in the middle the pickups were in phase.

So how does it sound? Fabulous!

As usual, the Custom Shop version of the JD is a little more complex and textured than the stock version...and the stock version is one of my favorite Tele pickups! So you know the CS jerry Donahue is happening. It's also a little brighter than the stock version which is, IMO, another plus.

And the Surfer sounds great...as always. Like one of the best vintage Strat pickups on the planet! I went for a 6.3K pickup, BTW.



Like you need another guitar!!!
Im just pulling your leg buddy!

NICE! I love it whan a guitar comes together like that!!!

I didn't know you were a fan of the compensated saddles, which ones do you use? I would have thought that you would like the Duncan Antlquity saddles!!! Anyplans to put a middle pickup in it? Just asking...I don't care for 3 pickup tele's but a lot of guys do!

Im glad you like it Lew!

Thanks Christian. Yes, as a matter of fact, this guitar does have the Duncan Antiquity saddles. I ordered a set a while back to compare to the Stew Mac and Allparts compensated brass saddles.

They're great. I have compensated brass saddles in all three of my Teles.


Originally Posted by LewguitarThanks Christian. Yes, as a matter of fact, this guitar does have the Duncan Antiquity saddles. I ordered a set a while back to compare to the Stew Mac and Allparts compensated brass saddles.

They're great. I have compensated brass saddles in all three of my Teles.You have a set of Tele saddles from Duncan that are Compensated? I have a set of the Antiquity saddles, but mine are not compensated.

Wow! I must be wrong. I did buy a set last year. Wonder what I did with them?


Originally Posted by LewguitarWow! I must be wrong. I did buy a set last year. Wonder what I did with them? Does Duncan sell compensated saddles? I really wanted a set when I got these from MJ and I got a good price on them (I think) so I bought a set...after a while it really bugged me not beeing in tune so I got a set from Stew-Mac...they are thicker that vintage Tele saddles but they stay in tune very well, and because they do not have clear coat on them they are aging quite nicely!

BTW...check your PM's Lew


Originally Posted by LewguitarPicked up a sweet MIJ 80's Tele Custom a few months ago. Candy apple red double bound body, maple neck with rosewwod fingerboard.

The original Japanese pickups had to go. Great guitars...mediocre pickups. So this morning I had a little time to make it better.

Had a Custom Shop Jerry Donahue bridge pickup that MJ wound me last year so I put it in a 60's Tele bridge plate with compensated brass saddles and installed the whole assembly. Went right in without a hitch, except: the original Japanese bridge was lower somehow than the 60's USA Fender bridge I'd installed the compensated brass saddles in.

The strings were almost 1/4quot; off of the neck with the saddles set as low as they would go!

So I removed the neck and added a shim to raise the neck up to the strings and all was well again.

What to put in the neck position? Well, I planned on putting the Tele ala Strat neck pickup MJ wound for me, but when I removed the pickguard I was stunned to see that the previous owner had fibbed to me about the guitar being all original and that he had routed it it for two Strat pickups!

Believe it or not I had a nice Tele pickguard in white pearl already on hand AND: it was routed for a Strat neck pickup!

So I mulled it over a little between a APS-2, Antiquity Surfer or Antiquity Texas Hot. I went for the Antiquity Surfer - my favorite Duncan Strat pickup.

I held the polepieces of a standard Surfer against the polepieces of the Jerry Donahue and and saw that they repeled. Not good...no chance of humcancelling when combined with the JD.

Then I held a RW/RP Surfer against the JD and saw that they were attracted. Good!

Now I had to guess whether I'd have to reverse the black and white wires of the Surfer or not in order for it to be in phase with the Jerry Donahue.

I guessed that I would have to reverse them so I wired the black wire of the Antiquity Surfer to the switch and the white wire to the back of the volume pot: ground.

Put just the low E string on it and tuned it up to pitch. I used just one string just in case I had to remove the neck pickup again. But I didn't. When the selector switch was set in the middle the pickups were in phase.

So how does it sound? Fabulous!

As usual, the Custom Shop version of the JD is a little more complex and textured than the stock version...and the stock version is one of my favorite Tele pickups! So you know the CS jerry Donahue is happening. It's also a little brighter than the stock version which is, IMO, another plus.

And the Surfer sounds great...as always. Like one of the best vintage Strat pickups on the planet! I went for a 6.3K pickup, BTW.

Awesome Lew....I own the identical guitar as you in sunburst and mine is a basswood body(I think)...Mine is stamped Made In Japan at the lower heel of the neck....Mine is also very lightweight and a dream to play..Best of everything with it buddy...I redid all the electronics in mine and went with a Fender TS neck and the Nocaster in the bridge(The 10k one)....I see myself taking these pickups out and listening to you quot;againquot; on what you tryed and liked...

Nice score Lew. Sounds like a killer Tele. Have fun.


Originally Posted by the guy who invented fireDoes Duncan sell compensated saddles? I really wanted a set when I got these from MJ and I got a good price on them (I think) so I bought a set...after a while it really bugged me not beeing in tune so I got a set from Stew-Mac...they are thicker that vintage Tele saddles but they stay in tune very well, and because they do not have clear coat on them they are aging quite nicely!

BTW...check your PM's Lew

Exactly. And it's the Stew Mac set that I have in this guitar, not the Duncans. And that's why I had to shim the neck: to compensate for the extra thickness of the saddles. Now it all makes sense.

Lew


Originally Posted by LewguitarExactly. And it's the Stew Mac set that I have in this guitar, not the Duncans. And that's why I had to shim the neck: to compensate for the extra thickness of the saddles. Now it all makes sense.

LewYeah...I used the stew-mac sadles on my Tele, and it was close! BTW...on your Strat with the Tele lead coil...if you have an extra baseplate from a strat trem you really should think about drilling it out to put Tele saddles on a Strat bridge...I did that once, I loved it! It really sounded much more Tele to my ears, plus it looks cool as hell!

Sounds like my ideal idea of a Tele setup. I've always liked Strat neck pickups almost more than any other sound, so I'd definitely take that over the majority of tele necks.


Originally Posted by STRATDELUXER97Awesome Lew....I own the identical guitar as you in sunburst and mine is a basswood body(I think)...Mine is stamped Made In Japan at the lower heel of the neck....Mine is also very lightweight and a dream to play..Best of everything with it buddy...I redid all the electronics in mine and went with a Fender TS neck and the Nocaster in the bridge(The 10k one)....I see myself taking these pickups out and listening to you quot;againquot; on what you tryed and liked...

Mine is basswood too. I thought it was alder but when I removed the pickguard and saw the routing the guy did (neatly thank goodness! ) i knew it wasn't alder. Wasn't sure if it was poplar or basswood but it didn't really look like poplar so now I know it was basswood. First basswood guitar I've owned. Very deep. lively and resonant...probably not quite as bright as alder. Lew


Originally Posted by GearjoneserSounds like my ideal idea of a Tele setup. I've always liked Strat neck pickups almost more than any other sound, so I'd definitely take that over the majority of tele necks.

Man, I was playing this ax this morning and had a chance to crank it a bit. That Surfer neck pickup is fabulous! Just a gorgeous tone for clean chords...especially jazzy chords. I found my self trying to play like Wes Montgomery!

I've got them in four of my guitars now including this one and it sounds better in this guitar than any of my Strats. Sounds great with the Jerry Donahue too...though I think I'm going to try a alnico 5 Tapped Tele Hot just to see what it sounds like and how it compares to the A2 Custom Shop Tapped Tele Hot in my Strat.

I use my old issues of Vintage Guitar to pack pickups in when I ship them. (Curly says it adds quot;mojoquot;!)

But while packing up some stuff yesterday I came across an interview with Seymour at the end of a Roy Buchanan article and in it he says that he designed the Antiquity I Tele pickups to get Roy Buchanan's tone.

That was the one of the first things I thought when I put them in my Fender CS '53 Tele and plugged it in: quot;Man, this sounds like Roy Buchanan!quot;

Also, Seymour mentions that Roy used a nickel (?) under the middle string saddle so the allen screws don't need to stick out of the bottem of the saddle as much when the action is raised. He felt that it improved the tone.

I was joking with Curly yesterday that I was going to go to a coin shop and find a '54 Jefferson Nickel for my '54 Tele.

Maybe a '53 for my CS '53 too!

Pics??

Lew, how does the middle position sound with that setup?