Tele pick-up

[Twang46]

Does anyone know of a pick up that will fit in the standard neck rout of a Tele that sounds close to a Filtron type pick up ?
I know you can rout out enough room for a proper pick up but would like to keep it looking like a "standard" Tele if possible

Cheers

Dick.

[cockroach]

I would guess probably only a standard sized single coil, or stacked twin coil humbucker or twin blade thinline humbucker pickup would fit in the standard sized Tele neck pickup factory routed recess (I assume we are talking about the odd, almost triangular shaped hole?)

Whether any of these would sound close to a Gretsch Filtertron or similar - goodness knows.

I've seen various Fender and Squier Teles with optional standard sized and mini- sized humbuckers, P-90's, and De Armond Dynasonic style single coils, but the genuine Gretsch Filtertrons, and similar types are quite deep, wide and generally bulky in size by comparison- more the size of a standard humbucker. (I used to have a Gretsch Duo Jet with these pickups) The old single coil Gretsch pickups on the old Anniversary models were a bit less deep, I had an Anniversary too years ago- and I had the pickups etc built into a custom solidbody when the truss rod broke and the Anniversary became unusable and almost impossible to repair economically.

I think you would definitely have to rout a larger wider, deeper recess to fit one of these.

Why not buy a cheap Squier Tele (I have an Affinity 'base model' which is quite modestly priced new, and more so secondhand I would think..) and enlarge the scratchplate pickup hole and the existing body recess and experiment with that first?

Remember also that most Gretsches with Filtertrons were large bodied semi- acoustic archtops like the Country Gentleman, 6120 etc, and the small bodied Duo-Jets and Jet Firebirds with Flitertrons were actually hollow, not solid like a Les Paul- this might also affect the sound, and the Filtertron might not give the same sound with the completely solid plank body of a Tele type guitar.

Hope this helps.

[51 Relic]

Hi
Small shot in the dark have you tried contacting "TV Jones Pick Ups " I am sure the contact number would be listed in Guitarist Magazine on on line .They make great Filtron Gretch pickups in many different sizes and mountings They might even sell a Tele bridge to fit the Filtron size pickup i think Fender a few years back made a great Tele type guitar with filtron pick ups called a telesonic

Cheers Nigel

[Twang46]

Hi John
Thanks for your thoughts, I'm probably moving away from my initial thoughts on the Tele for the very reasons you mention ie :- uncertain results even when fitting a "real" Filtertron (especially when you can get a Squire with humbuckers already fitted quite cheaply) I have a beat up old "Stratalike" in the shed I could experiment with I suppose

Nigel
Thanks for your comment, I've been around the manufacturers but some of the prices I've been quoted are a bit steep

To muddy the waters even further, I've tried a couple of Ibanez "Artcore" models & they are ex guitars with great pups for not that much money (comfortably beating the Chinese Gretsch's on both price & performance as well as quality of construction)

Now in my usual state of "confused.com"

Cheers

Dick.

[RUSSET]

If I remember right, the Squier Classic vibe '50s Tele already has a humbucker sized rout under the scratchplate, for the neck pickup, but actually has the usual single coil tele pickup fitted.

Tony.

[cockroach]

Also quite a few Squier and other copies of Strats have that 'bath tub' routed cavity under the scratchplate- I think it's a manufacturing convenience- one body cavity routed size fits all sizes and combinations of pickups on the scratchplate- so all bodies are the same, and no need for different routed holes for different guitar models and pickup types.

I may look for a cheap Strat copy some time with one of these single large rectangular cavities as I've often thought about bodging up a Strat copy with three old humbuckers I've got lying around in my bits and pieces box!