Fingerboard Radius – How Does It Affect Magnet Stagger?
Your Instrument's Fingerboard Radius is an important part of your instrument, especially when it comes to selecting Pickup Magnet Stagger!
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Learn, Modify, Create.
Demystifying Humbucker Color Codes
Learn how to match different manufacturer's humbucker color codes with our easy guide.
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The Correct Way To Remove Metal Filings From Pickups
Learn how to efficiently and safely remove metal filings from your guitar (or bass) pickup's magnets!
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A TrueTone Lounge Conversation With Lindy
This week, Lindy spoke with Zac Childs of TrueTone Lounge to discuss the creation of the business - from rewinding old pickups to inventing new designs, to where we are as a company today.
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4 Unique HSS Strat Wiring Tips For More Versatility
In this article, we discuss Strats with a Humbucker in the Bridge (HSS)! There are a few tips and tricks for interesting HSS wiring, so read on!
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5 Powerful Ways To Coil Split Your Humbucker
Today, we're discussing some exciting and unique ways to approach Coil Splitting with Humbuckers!
READ ARTICLE Tone-Talk, Ep. 88
Lindy Fralin sat down for a fun and informative interview with David Friedman and Marc Huzansky of the Tone-Talk Podcast. Check it out here: LISTEN ON APPLE PODCASTS
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Reverse Pickup Polarity The Easy Way With Multiple Leads
This is the last installment of our Phase and Polarity series. If you want to read more, check out these previous articles: Part 1: Reversing Phase with Single Coils Part 2: Reversing Phase with Humbuckers A few weeks ago, we discussed how to reverse your pickup’s phase by examining the different properties that combine to create the pickup’s overall phase. […]
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6 Powerful Ways To Wire Up A Tone Pot
There are many ways to wire up a tone pot, and it can be confusing deciding which one to choose. Different eras of wiring produce different tones, as Modern wiring sounds different from ’50s wiring. We’ve wired up tone pots on our best-selling Telecaster Control Plates and Prewired Pickguards in many different ways. Today, we’re only going to focus on […]
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Install Your Telecaster Pickups Like a Pro With These Simple Tips!
Installing Telecaster Pickups can be a tricky business. Installing the Bridge pickup alone can give you sweaty palms. Even worse, if those sweaty palms lead to a slip, you can nick a coil wire and kill your pickup. At Fralin Pickups, we’ve seen it all. We’ve seen the mangled coil wires from the mounting screws and punctured coil from the […]
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Learn how to choose between 250K and 500K Pots now!
We frequently get asked about pot values when a customer orders one of our Prewired Telecaster Control Plates or Prewired Pickguards. Pot value has a significant impact on your instrument’s final tone; it’s essential to choose wisely. We mainly get asked how to choose between 250K pots and 500K pots. Let’s dig in! CHOOSING BETWEEN 250K AND 500K POTS: When […]
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5 Push-Pull Pot Mods You Should Know
Push-Pull pot mods are a quick way to add new tones and a fresh new take on your guitar. Push-Pull modifications can open up a new world of tonal personality for your favorite instrument. We’ve noticed that our customers love getting push-pull pot modifications installed on their Prewired Pickguards and Prewired Control Plates. We thought we include our top 5 Push-Pull Pot Mods […]
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How to Reverse Pickup Polarity Part 2: Humbuckers
Note: this two-part article was originally one article, and I edited it into two parts for clarity and brevity. If you want to learn more about Polarity in general, read Part 1. Reversing the polarity of a Humbucker is a relatively simple task when compared to a single-coil pickup like a Stratocaster or Telecaster pickup. When changing the phase of […]
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How to Reverse Pickup Polarity, Part 1: Single Coil Pickups
This is Part 1 of a 2-part series on reversing pickup polarity. This article focuses on Single Coil Pickups. For Humbuckers, see Part 2. Needing to reverse your pickup’s phase is something you most likely never want to encounter, but it’s an essential skill to have. If you are reading this article, you most likely experienced the ‘Out of Phase’ […]
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What’s The Difference Between ’50s Wiring and Modern Wiring?
This is a very high-level overview of this topic. Different Tone Caps, Pickups, body woods, playing styles, etc. will all affect the outcome of your tone. ’50s Wiring vs. Modern Wiring – What Gives? If you have a Les Paul® or Telecaster Deluxe, chances are you have run into this thing called “’50s Wiring“. What is it? Is Modern Wiring […]
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Stratocaster Wiring – Tips, Mods & More!
It’s no secret that the Fender Stratocaster® is one of the most popular guitar models of all time. Because of this, we sell a lot of Strat pickups. Our most popular Strat models are our Clean & Clear Vintage Hot and our Thick & Dirty Blues Specials – they simply sound like a Strat should. Today, we’ve got some useful Stratocaster wiring […]
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Half Blender Pot Modification
Hey again! Today, we’re discussing the ‘Half Blender Pot’ modification. This variation of the popular Blender Pot modification is incredibly useful and simple to use – all that’s required is our Standard Blender Pot or our Push Pull Blender Pot. You might be asking “Half Blender….?” We’ll get into that, but first, let’s recap what a Blender Pot does: Standard Blender […]
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What does Overwinding and Underwinding a pickup do?
A question we get asked often is, “what does overwinding a pickup do?” or, “what does underwinding a pickup do?” It’s a simple question, with a slightly complicated answer. Fortunately, we know how to answer it without making your head spin. When making a guitar or bass pickup, one vital ingredient of the pickup is the coil. The coil consists […]
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The Nashville Tele Problem
Nashville Telecasters are an interesting hybrid of two of the most popular guitar styles out there. Nashville Teles offer a Telecaster body and feel, and Stratocaster pickup layout. By adding a middle pickup in between the Neck and Bridge pickups of a Telecaster, you can get more of that traditional Strat ‘Quack’ out of your Telecaster. Adding a Middle Pickup […]
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Fralin Pickups 30th Anniversary!
Well, we made it. 30 years strong! We’ve come a long way: from humble beginnings to now – one of the best-known guitar pickup makers in the world. Since 1989, we’ve been growing slowly and steadily, and we couldn’t be more proud of that fact. For 30 years, we’ve strived to provide our customers with hand-made pickups, concentrating on quality, […]
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Introducing: Lindy Fralin’s Push Pull Blender Pot
We’re excited. You should be, too. Lindy finally pulled the trigger on something he has always wanted – a Push-Pull Blender Pot. This custom pot can add a load of versatility to your Stratocaster®, Telecaster®, or Gibson®. Now, you can achieve more advanced wiring customization by adding a Blender Pot and a Push-Pull configuration. Lindy has been taking normal Push-Pull pots […]
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What is Wax Potting?
Wax Potting is an essential part of the pickup-making process. At Fralin Pickups, it is the last step of the manufacturing process before it goes to the shipping room. It is a delicate and vital technique that requires a good deal of attention to the details. We get asked all the time about Wax Potting. What is it? Is it […]
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How To Properly Set Pickup Height
Learning how to set your pickup’s height correctly is probably the most overlooked step in purchasing a set of pickups. It would be like buying a new car and not inflating the tires. Pickup height is a critical element of your guitar’s tone. Set too low, and your pickup is inefficient and weak. Set too high, and your pickup will […]
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Understanding Guitar Grounding
Practicing your guitar makes you a better guitar player. Understanding guitar wiring makes you a better Tone Wizard. And, properly grounding your guitar’s electronics makes your guitar as quiet as it can be. In today’s article, we will delve into the world of grounding: The basics, common myths, and best practices! THE BASICS: A Ground (or Earth) connection is a […]
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Using Resistors In Guitars – 101
When you think of tone shaping, a couple of items might come to mind. We all use pickups, capacitors (tone caps), and pots as tone shapers. However, using Resistors in a guitar can open up new tonal possibilities as well. A Resistor is a device with a measurable amount of resistance. Simply put, a Resistor impedes the flow of or “resists” electricity. One way to […]
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5 Essential Guitar Pickup Luthier Tools
In this article, we want to talk about five essential tools a luthier can use when installing and diagnosing pickups. These tools are tools we use all day, every day. The best part about them: they are all very simple to use (and inexpensive)! 1.) Magnetic Polarity Checker A Magnetic Polarity Checker is pretty crucial. If you don’t have one, […]
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4-Way Switching With A Push-Pull Pot
Recently, we’ve heard that certain 4-Way Switch manufacturers are not 100% compatible with the Fender Telecaster Control Plate. We’ve found that the switch swings too wide, getting blocked by the Plate itself. This prevents the switch from making full contact to all terminals, and thus not working correctly. Our 4-Way Switching mod will solve this problem. We’ve done some brainstorming […]
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How To Choose The Right Humbucker Lead
There’s a lot you can do with a humbucker pickup, wiring wise. Choosing the right Humbucker Lead will help you get the job done right. Humbuckers are a powerful tool in the guitar pickup toolbox. They have their own sound, and their own function: they don’t hum! (duh) They are also very versatile. You can wire them a plethora of […]
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How to Properly Install an Output Jack on your Guitar
Installing an Output Jack is an essential skill to have under your belt. Installing it wrong, however, can give you a literal headache. At Fralin Pickups, we wire Switchcraft® Output Jacks on our Telecaster Control Plates all the time. This guide will teach you how an output jack actually works, so you never need to Google a diagram again. To […]
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All About Dogear Pickups
If you’re ever looking at purchasing one of our P90‘s, chances are, you might have a Dogear Style P90. Dogear P90 Pickups have a few different qualities to them that might be confusing for some. We thought we’d take some time and shed some light on these qualities, so you can order with confidence. SHORT, OR STANDARD? One subject of […]
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Convert Your Tele Neck Into a 3-Wire Neck
Due to the popularity of 4-Way Switching, we get asked a lot about converting a Telecaster Neck Pickup into a 3-Wire Neck. In today’s lesson, we’ll show you how to convert the Neck pickup to work with 4-Way Switching. Please note the only time you need this Tele Neck Conversion is when you have a metal cover installed. If you […]
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8 Common Guitar Pickup Rookie Mistakes!
Lindy Fralin Pickups has been around for over 25 years, and in that time, we’ve seen all levels of guitar and bass player. From the bedroom hobbyist to the full-blown touring pro, we’ve all had to start somewhere. We’ve also seen all levels of guitar players make these simple mistakes, time and time again. This is our list of the […]
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Quick Tip: How to Install and Remove a Humbucker Cover
Installing and removing a humbucker cover is a pretty simple process, if you know what you’re doing. In this video, Tyler at the shop shows the complete process from start to finish, how to properly install a Humbucker Cover. Furthermore, we show you how to remove a humbucker cover safely and easily. Tools Needed: Humbucker Cover (Inside lightly waxed) Masking […]
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Watch Lindy Fralin Restore A 1967 Telecaster Bridge Pickup!
The BEGINNING: Lindy Fralin Pickups was started from a pickup repair and rewind business. It’s how Lindy started building pickups, and how he started designing new models. It’s the cornerstone of our business that helped turn us into the full-scale manufacturing shop we are today. We’ve repaired and rewound some of the rarest and most sought-after Fender® and Gibson® pickups out […]
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How Does Coil-Splitting Work?
Coil Splitting is a simple, usable way to add another dimension of tone to your guitar. You can essentially double your tone, with a flip (or pull) of a switch. You can use this to clean up a beefy humbucker or get your tone to “cut through” a lot more. If you want to understand what’s going on when you split […]
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How To Use A Multimeter with Guitar Pickups
The Multimeter is one of our most-used tools in our workshop. It’s used to test pickup continuity, phase, and resistance of our pickups. Within a few seconds, we can test a pickup to determine what might be wrong with the pickup. Let’s talk about how we use our Multimeters, and how you can use this powerful tool correctly! The Basics: […]
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How Do I Check My String Spacing?
String Spacing is a time-old question we get asked all the time – 49.2mm, 49.5mm, 50mm, 52mm – which one is right for my guitar? Today, we’ll talk about how to check your string spacing, and answer some basic questions you might have about string spacing in general. HOW IMPORTANT IS IT? Pretty important. The pickup’s magnets or pole pieces […]
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2 Tone Caps, 1 Push Pull Pot
Happy November! This month, we’re talking about a really cool simple Push-Pull Modification that allows you to choose between two cap values for your guitar. The 2 Tone Cap Push-Pull Pot Mod is great on a Strat or Telecaster, where you might have a Master Volume and a Blender Pot, but still want the capabilities of two Tone Caps. This modification […]
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How To Mix Single Coils and Humbuckers
Mixing Single Coil pickups and Humbuckers present a wide array of challenges to the average guitarist. HSS Strats, Telecasters, and other mixed-pickup guitars all have this problem, and most of the time, it goes overlooked by the guitarist. We get a lot of calls and spend a lot of time talking through this issue – there’s no one real solution […]
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Flipped Control Plate For Telecaster®
For October, we’re going to be taking a break from the usual electronics mods! (Whew.) Instead, we’re going to focus on a more practical mod for your Telecaster. Lindy first saw this mod being used by Bill Kirchen, and soon used this mod on all of his Telecasters. Introducing the Flipped Control Plate. This mod gives you easier access to […]
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Understanding D.C. Resistance For Guitar Pickups
D.C. Resistance, or a pickup’s Ohm reading, is not the “Holy Grail” of understanding a pickup’s output – it will give you a rough understanding. On occasion, we get a customer’s email stating that “their 8.2K Pure P.A.F. bridge reads 8K – What’s Wrong?” The answer is simply “Nothing at all.” There are a lot of variables that can make […]
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September Mod Of The Month: Phase Reverse and Blender
For September, we’re discussing a pretty cool trick that utilizes a Blender Pot and a Push Pull Pot. We’re going to utilize the Push Pull Tone Pot as a Phase Reverse switch – to reverse the phase of one of your pickups. Next, we’ll use the Blender Pot to blend between in-phase and out-of-phase tones. With this mod, you’ll be […]
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How Do Humbuckers Work?
We all know the sound – that pesky buzz that can ruin a perfect take in the studio, or distract your audience when playing live. We’re talking about 50-60 Cycle Hum – the annoying interference that can really have an effect on your playing and tone. Today, we’re going to talk about Hum: where it comes from, and answer our […]
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How Do Tone Capacitors Work?
The Tone Cap is an incredibly useful tone-shaping tool. Understanding the basics will help you choose the right tone cap for your style. There are a ton of variations of this simple component – from the super basic models to more boutique “oil and paper” versions – but which one to choose? Let’s dig in a little bit and figure […]
READ ARTICLE August Mod Of The Month: Push Pull Volume Kit
For August, we’re talking about the Fralin Volume Kit, or Treble Bleed Circuit. The Volume Kit is basically a Capacitor and Resistor tied together to solve a simple problem on your guitar – loss in highs when you roll your volume down. On traditional volume pots (250K’s are the worst for this), when you roll your volume down, your tone gets darker. […]
READ ARTICLE July Mod Of The Month: Blender And Gradual Tap Madness!
Last month we talked about our “Gradual Tap” mod. If you haven’t seen this, go back and check that one out – we’ll be using 2 of them in this month’s mod, coupled with another blender pot to get really cool tones out of your Les-Paul® style guitar. With this mod, you’ll need: A guitar with 2 humbuckers equipped with […]
READ ARTICLE June Mod Of The Month – The Gradual Tap
For June, we’re doing a nice and easy way to get a plethora of tones out of your humbucker. This month, we’re talking about the Gradual Tap* Mod. This mod utilizes a Humbucker with a 3-Conductor lead that sounds great tapped. Examples of our humbuckers would be our Unbucker, our Standard Humbucker, or our High Output Humbucker. It also utilizes our […]
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How Do Blade Switches Work?
3-Way, 4-Way, 5-Way, Toggle, Blade, Rotary – There’s a lot of switches available for your electric guitar. Some come in a variety of designs and can introduce some new functionality to your guitar. These little connectors are powerful when you know how to use them, so let’s learn how they work! Today, we’re going to talk about Blade Switches. Blade […]
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All About Alnico!
In this day and age of the electric guitar, we’ve pretty much seen it all. AlNiCo 2-8, Ceramic, Samarium Cobalt – guitarists and innovators are always trying new things to get different tones – but, what’s the difference between them? How do you choose? We’ve decided to make a little magnet “Cheat Sheet” for your reference, and experimentation. Let’s start […]
READ ARTICLE May Mod Of The Month – Series / Parallel Humbucker Wiring
All of our humbuckers are wired in Series – which means, the output of one coil is going into the input of another. This explains why all humbuckers sound big, bold, and beefy. But, what if you wanted to make your humbuckers sound more like a strat? Well, here’s May’s Mod of The Month: Series / Parallel Switching: WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE […]
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