I could never find a string through bridge to match the string spacing exactly on the CS. I ended up plugging the holes in the back of the Cheesecake Deluxe and installing a rear loading Schaller roller bridge. Very nice bridge. A bit pricey but you get what you pay for. Get it installed right and you can install anything from 8s to 13s and still set the intonation. The saddles have a really long throw. Avoid cheap. Cheap is cheap because it IS cheap. Avoid sheet metal saddles too. They rust at the saddle height screws. The beefier the saddles the better the sustain and vibration transmission to the body.
http://www.therathole.org/guitar/gone/i ... /pics.htmlhttp://www.stewmac.com/Hardware_and_Par ... ridge.htmlIn comparison the economy model rear loading bridge may look nice and shiny those pot metal saddles break easily and seize up prematurely, especially if you sweat a lot while playing. That was the only design flaw with the CS series. The strings bend at an odd angle under the saddles also.
http://www.stewmac.com/Hardware_and_Par ... ridge.htmlAnother option would be an adjustable wrap around.
http://www.stewmac.com/Hardware_and_Par ... ridge.htmlAs far as P-90s go I had a set of GFS Mean 90s in one of mine and they were quite ballsy for a single coil. They could get pretty rude if you wanted them to but were still more articulate than humbuckers. They fit perfectly in a humbucker rout and use standard humbucker rings. Not bad at all for about $35 a pop. Not quite Duncans but to my ear not as 90-ish as the GFS either.
As with ANY pickup you'll want to dip them yourself. Even pickups touting they hare dipped could only be loosely referred to as dipped. I use a 30-70 ratio of bee's wax and paraffin. Too much bee's and the dipping is sticky, too much paraffin and the dipping can crack in cooler weather as paraffin tends to expand and contract more with temperature. Cracked dipping can easily break a hair thin winding.
Dip em at about 140F for about 20-40 minutes at a time with the pole pieced pointed down so the back plate is up. This allows air to escape easily and eliminates air pockets under the cover. Some people use rubber bands wrapped around the winding but I never have. Don't use a pot directly on the stove. Double boiler and keep a close eye on the temp, or a small crock pot works better which is what I use. Get the temp right before hand and no worries. Several times I will pull them out carefullyby the wires and let them hang there while most of the wax drips off. Don't use metal tongs as you can damage the outside windings. Set them back in but hold them at an angle a bit as you'll see bubbles coming out.
Then set them face up leaning at an angle on the screw tabs. This lets excess wax drain out the lower edge. With real P-90s and other flush mount pickups use a couple of pencils to prop one side of the pickup up. IMPORTANT! Let them cool on their own. The wax has to settle into the windings on it's own. Too fast and the outside cools much faster than the inside, contracts faster, and could cause a winding to break.
Don't ask me how I know, I don't want to talk about it. Losing an MMK is a painful experience. Once cool you can clean the wax off the top and sides of the cover. Now you can stand right in front of the amp and your pickups will just laugh at it.
I bought the matched set. You might even find them cheaper on eBay but beware of fakes. The Ch***se are notorious for this. Pick auctions that display the box also. A little less chance you'd be getting fakes.
https://reverb.com/item/1014697-gfs-mea ... set-nickelI use Ping or Shcaller (standard and mini) tuners almost exclusively but have on occasion used Grover Rotomatic Minis to get the screw holes lined up properly. I never go with the cheaper generics. One twist on the knobs and you can tell. They're sloppy, some grind, and some won't hold the string tension. Some you can't even get the tension right no matter how tight the screw is. That and the threads on the hardware and mounting screws are junk. Some ferrules refuse to seat or even thread on properly and the mounting screws sometimes snap. PITA. Save the grief, skip the cheap.
Login
Register
FAQ
Search
