Lap steel project; which single coil?

U

Unsprung

New member
I've decided that I'm going to build my own lap steel guitar, starting with collecting the hardware and electronics, then buying the woods. At this point, I'm still too wishy-washy as to which single coil pickup to use. I'll be looking to use this more for original surf instrumental creations and some covers, as well as some country & western pickin'. For a pickup, I'm considering either a P90 (or a humbucker sized P90, such as a Phat Cat), a Tele bridge or Strat bridge pickup, or a Lipstick. For the bridge and tail piece, I'm thinking more along the lines of a Gibson style Tune-O-Matic/stop bar combination; possibly even just a wrap around stop tail piece.

Matt
 
Jason Lolar is well known for his pedal steel pickups, though I have to admit I've never heard them. Everything I have heard of his, however, is very nice. If you go with a humbucker sized P-90, go with the Lindy Fralin P-92. It's a P-90 in a humbucker sized package, but it's a split single coil (like a P bass pickup), so while it is 100% on the sound, it is also quite. Great pickups. You might also look into the Fralin Twangmaster, which is very similar to the P-92, but with alnico rod magnets instead of a bar magnet, which gives it a much more "Fenderish" sound. The Twangmasters are some of my absolute favorite pickups ever.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
I hadn't thought about Lindy Fralin's P92 or Twangmaster, when I asked the question. Although I'd mentioned the possibility of using a Gibson-style bridge/stop bar or wrap around stop bar, there's a Telecaster bridge that TV Jones recently came out with that would work well for what I'm wanting to build. The more I think about what parts to buy, I realize that I'm essentially going to be building a Telecaster in the shape of a lap steel guitar. With that in mind, and since this project will be of my own conception, design and crafting, I might as well find a wiring diagram for a Fender Esquire, and have a 3-way blade switch on my lap steel. Either that, or find a Bass VI switch plate, and do my Esquire-style switching that way.

Here is the TV Jones Telecaster bridge that I'd mentioned:
http://www.tvjones.com/cgi-bin/commerce.cgi?preadd=action&key=02-011-0100

Another possibility, for going with a P92 or Twangmaster:
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Custom-Shop-Parts-Hot-Rod-Telecaster-Bridge-?sku=360580

I'll also take another look at Jason Lolar's pickups, and see what he has to offer in the way of a humbucker sized P90.

Matt
 
Those bridges are overkill for a lap steel - you need neither height nor intonation adjustment capability.
 
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