Pickup selection on three-pickup models

soundmasterg · Post by **soundmasterg** » Fri Feb 09, 2007 10:33 am

Paul you've got old Dynasonics and DeArmonds just sitting around? Would you consider selling them? I love those old Dynasonics.

My friend Dave Stephens from Stephens Design Pickups (www.sdpickups.com) loves to get his hands on older pickups like those to see how they were made and get specs on them so he can come up with interesting and easy to make new designs based on them. I'm sure he'd love to have a chance to look at what you have if you were willing to lend them to him for a bit? They would come back in the same condition they came to him in if so.

ricardo_vicente · Post by **ricardo_vicente** » Fri Feb 09, 2007 12:11 pm

Well, folks, I eventually let this one particular eBay auction go by. Somebody over here in mainland Europe got a great-looking solid red (some former colour of the year?) 1984 340/6 for a decent enough price.
As for me, a new 340 or 330 now would mean letting another guitar go. Still weighing up the decision, but you all got me very interested in the 340.
I shall continue to keep an eye on what comes up on eBay and elsewhere.
Thans again for all the feedback.

brammy · Post by **brammy** » Fri Feb 09, 2007 12:38 pm

I see on Ebay:
OVERWOUND ALNICO Liverpool Filtertron
Any thoughts ?

(Paul: thats a beautiful 325/6... IMO the darker red FG always looks better than the lighter shades)

brammy · Post by **brammy** » Fri Feb 09, 2007 12:44 pm

Does anyone know anything about these?

OVERWOUND ALNICO Liverpool Filtertron

http://cgi.ebay.com/OVERWOUND-ALNICO-Liverpool-Neck-Filtertron-Tone-R15_W0QQitemZ180083895671QQihZ008QQcategoryZ22670QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Fri Feb 09, 2007 1:14 pm

I've got some old Dynas and DeArmonds, but they're all slated for projects on down the line...sorry, Greg.

How's the BB, BTW?

winston · Post by **winston** » Fri Feb 09, 2007 1:44 pm

Kent,

I have purchased many pups from guitarfetish. I have not tried these particular ones but this fellow is bang on with his descriptions. Worth taking a chance I would say.

soundmasterg · Post by **soundmasterg** » Fri Feb 09, 2007 4:44 pm

Well I'm sure they'll be great sounding projects with those pickups Paul! I'll have to find some for myself but vintage ones are spendy these days on ebay.

The Blue Boy refinish on my 230 is progressing. I'm going to post pics once it is done. I've got 6 thin color coats, and 4 coats of clear on it at the moment and will be wet sanding this weekend. Next week if all goes well, some more clear will be added. It looks georgeous btw, and thanks again for mixing up the paint! I have to drop fill on the fingerboard where some finish chipped out when the new binding was added. I'm thinking of spraying the final wash clear coat on the fingerboard so it will look more uniform but am not sure yet. I don't want to have to re-sand and crown those still good frets to get the lacquer off them.

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Sat Feb 10, 2007 5:50 am

Sanding a bit more to get the fretboard ready for the washcoats is time well-spent, and careful work on the fret tops to get the final varnish coat off them is also a snap, especially considering the results obtained when the entire board--frets and all--is polished, which is how I do mine, BTW.

If you examine a factory-fresh Rick, you'll note that the frets have been levelled after the varnish has gone on, as a part of the polishing and detailing operation. This removes the varnish, but also precludes crowning the frets in the conventional way, as the varnish buildup on the sides prevents using a crowning file in the usual way. So, Rickenbacker frets tend to be flatter on top than other guitars. Result is a tiny amount of string buzz when played unamplified, but this goes away when the guitar is plugged in. Just another of those endearing Rick quirks!

brammy · Post by **brammy** » Sat Feb 10, 2007 8:35 pm

Thanks Brian. With "Liverpool" in the name they cant be all bad, eh? I'll give them a shot. My Gretsch Atkins Super Axe (which has been rewired, ie: none of the original phaser stuff) currently has TV Jones pups and I'm not happy with the sound. If nothing else these Liverpools will look cool in it.

Atkins Super Axe (mine is the forrest green color). This guitar has a really nice feel to it. Note the zero fret:

http://cgi.ebay.com/1977-GRETSCH-Atkins-SUPER-AXE-built-in-PHASER-Comp_W0QQitemZ140084429125QQihZ004QQcategoryZ119094QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

winston · Post by **winston** » Sat Feb 10, 2007 8:47 pm

Cool looking guitar Kent. That's the first time I have seen one of those.

That's a byproduct of living in a small town in Canada. Some interesting instruments just never seem to darken our doorsteps. However I was able to help somewhat with a testimony about guitarfetish pups. After hearing mine, Aitch bought some for one of his Strats as well btw.

ozover50 · Post by **ozover50** » Sun Feb 11, 2007 12:18 am

You bet I did..... great pups and awesome value!!

And the best part is, you get regular emails on the status of your order.... even after it's shipped. I can't recommend Guitarfetish highly enough!

Thanks again, BBM!

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Sun Feb 11, 2007 5:19 am

The Super Axe is one of Gretsch's ******* stepchildren. I love' em, personally, and the word on them is starting to get around to collectors, too. The one referenced above on Ebay is a really good guitar at a terrific price; these have nearly doubled in price the last three years or so. These guitars have built-in phaser and compressor, and if you find one with all the electronics working, it's a huge plus.

I'm not too crazy about that transparent charcoal finish on the maple, however. They actually stained the wood, instead of using a transparent color tint (Gretsch can be a bit weird in this way), and to me the result looks like badly-done kitchen cabinets.

Build quality on these is excellent, though.

Lore: If you look at those little square fret markers, they're actually numbered dice, and the number of dots on the dice add up to the number of the fret.

sloop_john_b · Post by **sloop_john_b** » Sun Feb 11, 2007 6:20 am

Paul: Not sure if you were aware, but some kind of limited reissue was done. It may have even been exclusive to The Music Zoo: http://www.themusiczoo.com/gretschguitars.htm#LTD

sowhat · Post by **sowhat** » Sun Feb 11, 2007 6:29 am

This one looks cool...

jingle_jangle · Post by **jingle_jangle** » Sun Feb 11, 2007 6:40 am

John, I'm aware. They're much more attractive in the walnut color, IMO...I also think Terada has a better time with stain than NY had back in the day. These look super, and I think it's their MSRP that has brought the Ebay asking prices down on these. The Ebay prices were approaching the $2500.00 mark. Olivia's, who listed the '77 above, is always on the high end, but hers is right in line now!

Sheena, that Bono Falcon is, I believe, the highest-priced Japanese-built guitar in the Gretsch lineup. I LOVE the color.

But the idea of playing a Gretsch of any color with "THE GOAL IS SOUL" boldly printed on the guard is a bit anathematic to me...