Pickguardless strat

[danimal997]

Hi I just bought a strat body with 3 single coils that are rear routed and I'm waiting for the neck to arrive. I was wondering what is the best way to install the pickups since there is no pickguard.

 

[DslDwg]

First things first - great score! That is a beautiful body.

Couple different ways you could go with no pick-guard.

You could wood mount them directly to the body.

Or there are companies that make single coil mounting rings like these:

 

[Cagey]

Given a choice, I always use the mounting rings. There's no tone advantage to wood mounting, and it generally looks like a bargain-basement installation. I don't care if Mr. VanHalen did it - that doesn't make it right, pertinent or effective. Hell, he put cigarettes out in one of the pickup routes. Does anybody suppose that made the thing sound better? Plus, if you need to adjust height (and you do), it's a real pain in the shorts without mounting rings. I've done the wood mount thing a number of times for myself and others, and what I learned from the experience is: don't do it. 

 

[Surf n Music n Ski n Bike]

I don't care if Mr. VanHalen did it - that doesn't make it right, pertinent or effective. Hell, he put cigarettes out in one of the pickup routes. Does anybody suppose that made the thing sound better?

It might of, I here ash has a nice sound so a little extra ash could equal a little better sound  :doh:

 

[danimal997]

hahaha nice one. I read some reviews of the mounting rings(stew mac) interfering with the volume knob.

 

[Cagey]

hahaha nice one. I read some reviews of the mounting rings(stew mac) interfering with the volume knob.

I don't know what anybody would have put together that would have that problem, unless maybe they drilled the pot holes themselves and put them in the wrong place. I assemble a lot of guitars here and have never had an issue with the rings, other than a couple/few times where the pickup cavity routes were too big. Then, I get Doug to machine me something over-sized. Still doesn't run into the potholes. They'd have to be incredibly/uncomfortably close for that to happen.

Check out this Tele...

That has several examples of Doug's work - the bridge and both pickup rings are his. That humbucker ring is oversized, and you can see that even with my close placement of the volume knob there's no interference whatsoever but I can still reach it with my pinky. Anything closer than that and it would become almost unplayable.

 

[Jumble Jumble]

If you have an SSS strat, and you have them drill the volume hole in the normal place, then putting one of those rings over the bridge pickup cavity will interfere very slightly with the volume knob if you use a standard strat knob. Skip to 16:30 on this video to see:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVvRXUF63Rw

(That's a Warmoth body, yes)

 

[Cagey]

Interesting. I've never run into that problem. But, I'm sorta wracking my brain trying to think of a rear-route build where I didn't drill the holes myself, so that may be why I didn't think it was a problem. I went looking around, and it's true - that volume knob is pretty close. But, usually there's a pickguard involved so rings wouldn't be an issue.

 

[Kostas]

... if you need to adjust height (and you do), it's a real pain in the shorts without mounting rings...

I have a different experience. I put the screwdriver on the screw and adjust the height, it can't be easier than that.

Personally I do it strictly for aesthetic reasons, single coil rings look weird to me.

 

[line6man]

Unfortunately, there really is no attractive way to do single coils without a pickguard, unless you have direct mount singles with no flange on the base. Direct mounting traditional Strat-style single coil doesn't look right, as the base is exposed, showing the rather delicate wiring, and leaving a V-shaped gap between the pickups and the laminate top. Using mounting rings, however, is the epitome of trash in the vast majority of cases.

Personally, I would go for direct mounting, but that's just me.

If it isn't too late, and your budget allows, consider having Warmoth route for the EMG style single coils with no flange at the base. Then select pickups that fit the geometry.

 

[Cagey]

Personally I [wood mount pickups] strictly for aesthetic reasons, single coil rings look weird to me.

I understand, and you're certainly not alone. I'll do it and do a good job, but feel the opposite about it. To me, it leaves the guitar looking unfinished.

 

[AutoBat]

single coil rings almost always look weird to me. i'd direct mount 'em all.

 

[swarfrat]

I'd find another use for that body. SSS requires a pickguard by law, and the single rings look especially dorky.

 

[croquet hoop]

Unfortunately, there really is no attractive way to do single coils without a pickguard, unless you have direct mount singles with no flange on the base. Direct mounting traditional Strat-style single coil doesn't look right, as the base is exposed, showing the rather delicate wiring, and leaving a V-shaped gap between the pickups and the laminate top. Using mounting rings, however, is the epitome of trash in the vast majority of cases.

Personally, I would go for direct mounting, but that's just me.

Same here. I'd try to find a good way (= stable and adjustable) to mount the pickups directly before using mounting rings.