Installing Pick ups

[JimBeed]

Well ive solved the tuner problems i was having and the replacement screws are coming tommorow, so theyll be done end of tommorow.
and well i need some advice as i see the next stage as being installing the pick ups into the body as not much else electronics wise can be done without them in.
Well do i pre drill some pilot holes for them in the cavities? or screw them straight into the wood, also the seymour duncan came with some rubber washer bits im guessing to raise the pickup up out of the cavity, should i do the same with the foam supplied with the powerbucker?
and also would putting copper foil shielding in the cavities be a good idea?
If ive missed any bits out then please explain them to me,
explanations on websites have been for replacing pick ups with better versions so they dont talk about the ways to freshly install pick ups into a new body.
However am i going about this the wrong way and need to put the neck on the body and the bridge first then the pickups and electronics? i just thought working the electronics out with just the body no neck attached would make the whole thing easier to work with, if im wrong please say what i should do,

 

[JaySwear]

what kinds of pickups? sounded like you were talking about singlecoils without rings, but the method would be different for different pickups. my p-90 had foam to put underneath, but i've gotten foam with different kinds of pickups as well

 

[Steve_Karl]

Strat pickups I presume?

If so:
String the guitar with at least both E strings, so you can see the location of those strings when installing the pups.
Put the pups in the holes routed for them and then line them up correctly and when they're in the correct place,
drop the screws in till they touch the wood, and give each of them a tap to mark the wood underneath.

Drill pilot holes, but do a test hole first in a scrap piece of wood to make sure you have the correct size bit.
Mark your depth on the drill bit with a piece of tape so you don't drill too deep.

Dremel moto tools are great for this kind of drilling.



Below are notes and measurements from when I did this but had to use longer screws than I needed.
I cut the screws down to .9" after I screwed them in one time to make sure that the hole was good.

Pickup routes are: ( generally for a strat )
.71 to .74 deep

Body is: ( generally )
1.74 - 1.75 Thick

So it's safe to drill .75
Pickup Screws should be no longer than: 1" and possibly as short as .9" or even .8"

JaySwear ... Yes ... let's not forget the foam ... even for strat pickups.

 

[JimBeed]

Ah, Sorry forgot to mention, if its any difference, well its a bass, and seymour duncan quarter pound jazz neck and a rio grande powerbucker bridge

 

[Steve_Karl]

Bass ... then you'll have to measure to be sure.