Humbucker question

[picker]

I recall reading somewhere that cutting off the shanks of the pole piece screws that protrude out of the bottom side of the pickup improves the sound. The article I read said something magnetic "eddy currents" caused by the protruding parts. Has anybody ever done that, or know what they are talking about?

[The Geoff]

I've done that, and seemed to perceive(!) a tightening up of the bottom end. It certainly didn't do any harm.

 

G.

[Guitarzan]

i have heard that, there are even more things you can do to a bucker. there is the half air mod some do to pickups to clean them up if they are bottom heavy.

 

[Guitarzan]

half air mod

[Werewolf by Night]

If you do this, be very sure not to get little tiny chips of metal debris into the coil; measure or mark the screws and remove them from the pickup altogether, do your work well away from the guitar as the pickup magnets will find any filings; remove the desired amount of material, lightly bevel the tip, and de-bugger the threads with a thread-file or die.

 

 

This is even more effective on P-90 "soap-bar" and "dog-ear" pickups that only have the screws threaded into the magnets underneath the coil for pole-pieces, and no "slug" polepieces; when the screws are too far down, or if much longer screws than necessary have been used, it effectively lowers the magnetic field here and there, weakening the perceived output, muddying definition and clarity, and messing up string-to-string balance in tone as well as volume.

[pinkjimiphoton]

i did the cut off the bottom of the polepieces trick on an old vintage paf i had once. in the end, it didn't really do much other than ruin the value of the pickup. it wasn't a very noticeable change even at 900% distortion and bonged outta my ever loving mind.