Bridge pickup height adjustment issues G&L SC-3 1989
Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2011 8:40 pm
Hi All,
I'm almost embarassed to post this up but I'm afraid I'm going to have to concede defeat - I'm almost entirely sure I'm doing something incredibly stupid.
I've been trying to setup my G&L SC-3 strat (about a 1989 model) and I'm having real trouble adjusting the bridge pickup to the factory specifications ie. as per the manual.
Basically I've been through all the steps - maybe if I paraphrase what I've done someone will pick the flaw in what I"m doing...
1. Adjusted the bridge to be parallel with the body and to be approximately 3/16" above the level of the body under the correct string tension.
2. The string clearance offered by the nut is within spec and relatively low.
3. The truss rod adjustment is fine and within tolerance.
4. Adjusted the contours of individual string heights beginning with the bass E string which was set to 1/8"
5. Adjusted the micro tilt to .093" using the 6th string at the 22nd fret and .062" for the high E string.
6. Made sure the bridge was still parallel under the correct string tuning - a bit of an iterative process.
OK here is where I am having trouble.
Pickup height.....
I managed to adjust the high E string to .031" and the low E to .062" while the repective strings were fretted at the 22nd fret - but only for the bridge and middle pickups - and even then they won't raise quite high enough - but close enough. I really think these clearances seem gratuitously narrow - but I guess I was just trying to start out to the specs in the manual - which I found online.
The bridge pickup will not even approach anywhere near such a tight tolerance and there is a huge a gap.
Also I noticed the bridge pickup adjusters were stripped and I've had a real crap time trying to restore the threads using epoxy and release agent on the screw - basically the pickup adjuster is totally stuffed now but what I've noticed is that even if it was working perfectly the pickup wouldn't go anywhere near high enough. I think I can fix it up well enough if I have another attempt.
I am not the first owner of this guitar - some goose repainted it a different colour so I wonder now if there is any difference in design between the other two pickups and maybe they were rewired in the wrong positions?
I'm almost positive they are the original pickups because they have that characteristic G&L pole piece adjusment design with the concentric adjustment rings (for want of a better description).
I wonder if I should give up on this set of pickups and just buy some fender texas specials - except I don't know if they will have enough adjusment or whether they are of compatible dimensions - eg. will they fit in the slots and will the adjusment screws line up. Are they going to have enough adjustment in the height from the pickguard dimension?
Just hoping someone out there might be able to help me out - older G&L's aren't that common in Australia where I live - so not that many people are familiar with the guitar.
I'm almost embarassed to post this up but I'm afraid I'm going to have to concede defeat - I'm almost entirely sure I'm doing something incredibly stupid.
I've been trying to setup my G&L SC-3 strat (about a 1989 model) and I'm having real trouble adjusting the bridge pickup to the factory specifications ie. as per the manual.
Basically I've been through all the steps - maybe if I paraphrase what I've done someone will pick the flaw in what I"m doing...
1. Adjusted the bridge to be parallel with the body and to be approximately 3/16" above the level of the body under the correct string tension.
2. The string clearance offered by the nut is within spec and relatively low.
3. The truss rod adjustment is fine and within tolerance.
4. Adjusted the contours of individual string heights beginning with the bass E string which was set to 1/8"
5. Adjusted the micro tilt to .093" using the 6th string at the 22nd fret and .062" for the high E string.
6. Made sure the bridge was still parallel under the correct string tuning - a bit of an iterative process.
OK here is where I am having trouble.
Pickup height.....
I managed to adjust the high E string to .031" and the low E to .062" while the repective strings were fretted at the 22nd fret - but only for the bridge and middle pickups - and even then they won't raise quite high enough - but close enough. I really think these clearances seem gratuitously narrow - but I guess I was just trying to start out to the specs in the manual - which I found online.
The bridge pickup will not even approach anywhere near such a tight tolerance and there is a huge a gap.
Also I noticed the bridge pickup adjusters were stripped and I've had a real crap time trying to restore the threads using epoxy and release agent on the screw - basically the pickup adjuster is totally stuffed now but what I've noticed is that even if it was working perfectly the pickup wouldn't go anywhere near high enough. I think I can fix it up well enough if I have another attempt.
I am not the first owner of this guitar - some goose repainted it a different colour so I wonder now if there is any difference in design between the other two pickups and maybe they were rewired in the wrong positions?
I'm almost positive they are the original pickups because they have that characteristic G&L pole piece adjusment design with the concentric adjustment rings (for want of a better description).
I wonder if I should give up on this set of pickups and just buy some fender texas specials - except I don't know if they will have enough adjusment or whether they are of compatible dimensions - eg. will they fit in the slots and will the adjusment screws line up. Are they going to have enough adjustment in the height from the pickguard dimension?
Just hoping someone out there might be able to help me out - older G&L's aren't that common in Australia where I live - so not that many people are familiar with the guitar.