Andyjr1515

Great - you posted this while I was posting mine

OK - I think I now understand the question but the answer is 'it depends'. First a couple of things that are relevant, because the answer can be different in each case: - In some pickups, the slugs themselves are individually magnetised - In other pickups (such as the Entwistles above), the slugs get their magnetism from the bar magnets stuck to the bottom of the pickup. The slugs themselves are not permanent magnets - put them near or against the bar magnets and they will become magnetic; take them out and they will not be magnetic. In the case that the slugs themselves are magnetised: The length of the slug is irrelevant - the strength of the magnet is determined by the amount it has been magnetised in manufacture (the gaussing process). So, all other things being equal, the longer slugs will be the same magnetism as the short slugs. In your diagram, however, you have increased the distance from the strings of the four middle slugs. So in your above example, the longer slugs will usually be the same magnetism as the shorter outer ones, but the pull on the strings will be less. In the case of non-permanently magnetised slugs with bar magnets again, it depends. If all the slugs use the full depth of the bar magnets, then, again, there will be no difference at all from the length difference of the slugs - only, again, the effect of the distance from the top of the slug to the string. However, if any of the slugs are lifted so that they are not fully covered by the depth of the bar magnets, then there will be a slight change in the magnetic field - although generally not great enough to be audible - until and unless they are raised to the point that they have been lifted away from the bar magnets altogether. Ref your question on the diagram, Same distance from strings = same pull Longer slugs 'more mass', but gaussed to the same level of the others = same pull

Looks great, Mick

Love the diorama, by the way

Like all these kinds of things, @PaulThePlug, never try these sorts of things unless you are sure, but generally a screw slug is fitted for just that. On a standard coil the slugs are nowhere near the windings. The windings are usually round a plastic bobbin and the slug holes are drilled in the centre of the bobbin. That said, they can be very stiff to turn at first because the hot wax they are generally dipped in holds them firmly - and many a guitar and bass top has been scratched by an errant screwdriver slipping on a suddenly released screw. So good advice not to do it unless you are sure, but for a slightly different reason

Screw slugs on electric guitar pickups are much more common than on basses (although you do see them on both) and are generally used to balance the volumes across the strings. But, in essence, yes, the closer the poles are to the strings, the stronger the signal and therefore the volume. And, to a lesser extent, the tone can be affected too. However, as far as my experience goes, the distance of the main pickup coil to the strings has a much larger impact on signal strength than that of raised poles.

Splendid job. Kudos!

Absolutely splendid build and result

Bear in mind the hypocrisy here - in that I have pretty much modded every bass and guitar I've ever owned BUT: If it was a bass you already had, I would be inclined to suggest to try to learn to love the maple. If it was a consideration of buying one and the look is more important than the playability or sound, I would suggest buying a different bass. Yes, it's doable, but it is quite likely to end up looking like a dog's dinner. As folks above have said, the surface at each fret position would need to be scraped or sanded down to the wood and, even then, there is no guarantee that the stain would soak in evenly. And it would always look like rosewood-stained maple. Replacing a fretboard is quite expensive. Having it done can be very expensive. Decent rosewood is expensive in itself and then there is the fret slotting, fitting, levelling, recrowning and polishing and final full set-up (it is likely that the sit of the frets would be different). I think I would be surprised if a commercial luthier would consider it for less than £300 and quite probably a fair bit more. And it might not sound the same, and it might not play the same. And it would decimate the re-sale value.

You can use cutters (best if they are ground down like fret pullers) but you do tend to still have a stub left over. Decent tang nippers will shear the whole tang off flush with the bottom of the fret. But it's pennies on the scale - both methods will work.

Hmmmm....I don't think Chris Alsop does them. I think I got mine from Tonetech. When I have a moment, I'll have a check. All I remember was that they were quite expensive...but I wouldn't be without them.

Very nice. What timber is it?

This is going to look really nice

I do the same except I don't use any solder - just the soldering iron

Hi @Norris Anyway - this ^^ Fret pulling pincers have to be flat-ish shallow and sharp. So pretty much any budget set of end pincers, held closed and flattened/slimmed on a grinding wheel will do nicely. But why bother with that when you can get a pair already done from the excellent Chris Alsop web site for less than £12 https://www.chrisalsopguitar.co.uk/shop/guitar-tools/fret-pullers-and-fret-cutters Nut files have to be decent quality. I also use Hosco and have never regretted it.

Sorry to hear this. Had a very interesting chat with him at the Bash. A knowledgeable and friendly man. Thinking of his family and friends...

Looking good!

Fabulous!

Got to be worth an arty farty or two Ready for packing up and sending back:

"That's a nice colour..." said MrsAndyjr1515 as she walked past. Trust me...praise indeed! For natural timbers, Tru-oil slurry and buff remains one of the easiest, cheapest and most effective finishes. This is after slurry and buff 2. Slurry and buff 3 will be this afternoon and then first thing tomorrow morning it will be ready to be packed up and shipped off back to @PaulThePlug, who has waited VERY patiently for it to come back to him

My guess is laser. Do I get a prize if I'm right???

That's crackingly good building

Trust me...been there, done that. And more than once...

This will get better than this after a few proper slurry and buffs and after I've sanded down some of the areas that still have a trace of the Ibby primer coat - but it's not bad with just the rough 'reveal' coat. Some of the burns were quite deep and so there remain a few darker patches, but it's much better than it was and there's a limit to how much wood I should sand away

And so to cutting the new chambers. @PaulThePlug has given me loads of photos and accurate measurements of the positioning so this morning was all about marking on the body the centre-lines and corners of the pickups and then the outline of the two halves of the P pickup, including a 1mm clearance at the sides and ends: On point worthy of note for other builders is the lugs on these types of pickups. The lugs are offset. And the radius of the lugs is actually MUCH bigger than you think. Including the clearance I had to use a 14mm drill!! Surely not???? Yup So first job is the drilling the radii for the lugs and corners: Then roughing out part-depth and up to the line with a large forstner bit: Followed by tidying up of the edges exactly up to the external pencil line with mallet and chisel to create an accurate and smooth run for the router bearing: And finally routing to depth: And new chamber done: Next and pretty much final job is sanding down and a quick slurry-and-buff, which I should be able to get done by the end of tomorrow