Were the Alnico IVs a drop in replacement for the stock Pups? I'm waiting for Tonerider to produce another batch of Alnico IIs, but they are 2-3 weeks away. But I'm otherwise ready to start building my ES-1F kit. I just don't want to do too much if I need to alter the body to accommodate Toneriders.
Yes, the Pitbull pups are standard humbucker size and the Toneriders just dropped in the kit rings.
The only 'watch it' is that the Tonerider tabs/wings for the height screws are a bit bigger than the Pitbull pup ones, and sometimes the cutaway for them in the body isn't quite large enough to allow the pickups to be positioned correctly. I filed the corners off the Tonerider tabs to make them a better fit, but you might want to enlarge the end of the pickup routs slightly. This is applicable to most aftermarket pickups compared to the kit pickups, not just Toneriders.
I find it best to position the pickups and rings after the strings are on for the first test fitting, so that you can best centre the pickup pole pieces with the strings. Just hold them in place with tape if you do the electrics first. I forgot to do this on this guitar, so they aren't quite as centred as they could be. I did a reasonable centreline fitting, but there's nothing like positioning them against the strings themselves.
I'm thinking of pulling the trigger on one of these as a bit of a pet project. They don't seem to be built as well as I hoped and looks like I have to be prepared to modify bits.
I want to use a clear finish with a green stain so hope I get a nice top piece of wood.
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