Oil City: the 'Big Block' range.

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OilCityPickupsOilCityPickups Frets: 9984
in Made in the UK tFB Trader

For some while I've been making my 'Big Block' Masterwound single coil pickups for selected customers as a fully 'custom shop' option ... shortly they will be going up on my site so they will be easier to order. 
Above is the 'Classic 60s' Tele: a standard 60s output, plain enamel wound, alnico 5 Tele pickup, with a proper steel baseplate ... in a humbucker shell ... so it will drop neatly into pretty much any guitar you fancy.

Available shortly: The Gain-Plus, a tribute to the cutting and jangly tones of a certain US guitar and bass manufacturer ... and the Blues-Block, classic Strat neck tones ... again, in a humbucker shell. 
Professional pickup winder, horse-testpilot and recovering Chocolate Hobnob addict.
Formerly TheGuitarWeasel ... Oil City Pickups  ... Oil City Blog 7 String.org profile and message  

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  • Winny_PoohWinny_Pooh Frets: 7732
    Slanted poles look nice. Kinda like the MM Valentine sig
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  • OilCityPickupsOilCityPickups Frets: 9984
    tFB Trader
    Slanted poles look nice. Kinda like the MM Valentine sig
    The slanted poles are functional: in order to get a proper Tele balance for the tone. The actual angle of slant is pretty important, as is the big chunk of steel sitting under the magnets  :-)

    Professional pickup winder, horse-testpilot and recovering Chocolate Hobnob addict.
    Formerly TheGuitarWeasel ... Oil City Pickups  ... Oil City Blog 7 String.org profile and message  

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  • FunkfingersFunkfingers Frets: 14323
    Slanted poles look nice. Kinda like the MM Valentine sig
    The slanted poles are functional: in order to get a proper Tele balance for the tone. The actual angle of slant is pretty important, as is the big chunk of steel sitting under the magnets  :-)

    Being the age that I am, I associate that idea with the Ovation Deacon.
    Be seeing you.
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  • lovestrat74lovestrat74 Frets: 2489
    Hmm.. wonder what that would look like in the Strat bridge position..  B)
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  • FunkfingersFunkfingers Frets: 14323
    Hmm.. wonder what that would look like in the Strat bridge position..  B)
    Probably better if the metal housing is in the same plating colour scheme as the rest of the Stratocaster.



    Meanwhile, an obvious question for the OP. Is the Big Block format going to be available with your other T style pickups inside? e.g. Wapping Wharf with its coil tap for dual output levels, Kayman, Alligator et cetera.
    Be seeing you.
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  • OilCityPickupsOilCityPickups Frets: 9984
    tFB Trader
    Slanted poles look nice. Kinda like the MM Valentine sig
    The slanted poles are functional: in order to get a proper Tele balance for the tone. The actual angle of slant is pretty important, as is the big chunk of steel sitting under the magnets  :-)

    Being the age that I am, I associate that idea with the Ovation Deacon.
    Same generation as me then :-) Funkfingers said:
    Hmm.. wonder what that would look like in the Strat bridge position..  B)
    Probably better if the metal housing is in the same plating colour scheme as the rest of the Stratocaster.



    Meanwhile, an obvious question for the OP. Is the Big Block format going to be available with your other T style pickups inside? e.g. Wapping Wharf with its coil tap for dual output levels, Kayman, Alligator et cetera.
    If the demand is there, I don't see why not. There are some physical limitations to the coil dimension so that it fits nicely within the cover ... but that aside from that, it's a Masterwound, so you can have all the bells and whistles.

    I'm a huge single coil fan, so I will be trying to bring some of the lesser known SC designs within the grasp of those with a couple of humbucker routs to fill. 
    Professional pickup winder, horse-testpilot and recovering Chocolate Hobnob addict.
    Formerly TheGuitarWeasel ... Oil City Pickups  ... Oil City Blog 7 String.org profile and message  

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  • FunkfingersFunkfingers Frets: 14323
    Available shortly: The Gain-Plus, a tribute to the cutting and jangly tones of a certain US guitar and bass manufacturer 
    This cannot be allowed to slip through unnoticed.

    In which physical format(s) will the Gain-Plus be offered? A coil tapped dual output level variant, perhaps?

    Then, when you have done six impossible things before breakfast, is there chance of miniaturising a series-linked pair of Teletronix LA-2A compressors?  :3
    Be seeing you.
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  • mr-macmr-mac Frets: 200
    edited June 2018
    Could actually be interesting in a 335 type guitar instead of a p90 sized bucker (which i often think don't do p90 thing as well as I'd like).
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  • FunkfingersFunkfingers Frets: 14323
    mr-mac said:
    Could actually be interesting in a 335 type guitar 
    Good thinking, Batman. 

    I have an unfinished Hamer XT Echotone project. Its neck/Rhythm position pickup is a Duncan SH-1N with an A4 magnet. I cannot settle on a bridge/Treble pickup. I quite fancy a TV Jones Classic in there but this will require special mounting adapter brackets.

    One of these new-fangled pickups could suit the Hamer XT's mostly maple construction.
    Be seeing you.
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  • OilCityPickupsOilCityPickups Frets: 9984
    edited June 2018 tFB Trader
    mr-mac said:
    Could actually be interesting in a 335 type guitar 
     I quite fancy a TV Jones Classic in there but this will require special mounting adapter brackets.
    .

     
    One of my humbucker sized Cow-Trons wouldn't
    Professional pickup winder, horse-testpilot and recovering Chocolate Hobnob addict.
    Formerly TheGuitarWeasel ... Oil City Pickups  ... Oil City Blog 7 String.org profile and message  

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  • earwighoneyearwighoney Frets: 3491
    They look great.  I'd be intrigued how they compare to a P90 sized HB.  I reckon the slant one would be cool reversed ie like a left hand tele bridge on a right hand guitar.

     I presume the Tele one would work best with 250k pots? 
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  • OilCityPickupsOilCityPickups Frets: 9984
    tFB Trader
    They look great.  I'd be intrigued how they compare to a P90 sized HB.  I reckon the slant one would be cool reversed ie like a left hand tele bridge on a right hand guitar.

     I presume the Tele one would work best with 250k pots? 
    Pot values will be as for the pickups they replicate ... ie 250k for Tele.
    Professional pickup winder, horse-testpilot and recovering Chocolate Hobnob addict.
    Formerly TheGuitarWeasel ... Oil City Pickups  ... Oil City Blog 7 String.org profile and message  

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  • FunkfingersFunkfingers Frets: 14323
    TheGuitarWeasel said:
    One of my humbucker sized Cow-Trons wouldn't.
    True but I would probably need something wound more like a "Plus", if you catch my drift. 
    Be seeing you.
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  • OilCityPickupsOilCityPickups Frets: 9984
    tFB Trader
    TheGuitarWeasel said:
    One of my humbucker sized Cow-Trons wouldn't.
    True but I would probably need something wound more like a "Plus", if you catch my drift. 
    It's a Masterwound ... you can have it to what spec you want :-)
    Professional pickup winder, horse-testpilot and recovering Chocolate Hobnob addict.
    Formerly TheGuitarWeasel ... Oil City Pickups  ... Oil City Blog 7 String.org profile and message  

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  • FunkfingersFunkfingers Frets: 14323
    TheGuitarWeasel said:
    Cow-Tron-H ... you can have it to what spec you want :-)
    I have pretty much rationalised myself out of the faux Chris Cornell signature 335 idea for my Hamer XT Echotone.

    Available shortly: The Gain-Plus, a tribute to the cutting and jangly tones of a certain US guitar and bass manufacturer
    To paraphrase Stephen Morrissey, how soon is shortly? Is the Gain-Plus at the prototyping stage?
    Be seeing you.
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  • OilCityPickupsOilCityPickups Frets: 9984
    tFB Trader
    Well I have made a half dozen or so for special order customers ... so if you wanted one ... it could be done now :-)
    Professional pickup winder, horse-testpilot and recovering Chocolate Hobnob addict.
    Formerly TheGuitarWeasel ... Oil City Pickups  ... Oil City Blog 7 String.org profile and message  

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  • FunkfingersFunkfingers Frets: 14323
    Where can I see pics and a basic specification, please?
    Be seeing you.
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  • OilCityPickupsOilCityPickups Frets: 9984
    tFB Trader
    If you hang on for about four days ... I will put up pics :-)
    14k bridge, 11k neck. High tensile hex bolt poles, ceramic magnets (wound with 44awg as per the original Hi Gain (However ... not copying the Hi Gain faults of breaking if you look at em wrong!)
    Professional pickup winder, horse-testpilot and recovering Chocolate Hobnob addict.
    Formerly TheGuitarWeasel ... Oil City Pickups  ... Oil City Blog 7 String.org profile and message  

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  • FunkfingersFunkfingers Frets: 14323
    not copying the Hi Gain fault of breaking if you look at em wrong!
    Quoted for truth.

    Last month, I was asked to investigate a non-functional pickup on a 330-12. After all of the usual checks, I decided to unscrew the offending pickup to look for physical damage or stray objects causing a short. Found nowt. Refitted the pickup. Two days later, it decided to start working again.
    Be seeing you.
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  • OilCityPickupsOilCityPickups Frets: 9984
    tFB Trader
    not copying the Hi Gain fault of breaking if you look at em wrong!
    Quoted for truth.

    Last month, I was asked to investigate a non-functional pickup on a 330-12. After all of the usual checks, I decided to unscrew the offending pickup to look for physical damage or stray objects causing a short. Found nowt. Refitted the pickup. Two days later, it decided to start working again.
    They love their 'traditional manufacturing methods', which in the case of their pickups, means driving a plain old brass wood-screw through the side of the pickup bobbin ... then chopping the head of with pliers ... soldering the hair thin 44awg core wire directly  to the tip of said screw ... and the output wire to the end that used to have the head. Heating up a brass screw in a plastic bobbin of course loosens it ... but there's no strain relief on that core wire solder joint buried away under all the windings ... it breaks REALLY easily ... leaving no option but a rewind.
    Professional pickup winder, horse-testpilot and recovering Chocolate Hobnob addict.
    Formerly TheGuitarWeasel ... Oil City Pickups  ... Oil City Blog 7 String.org profile and message  

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