Steel Pole 43 Tele
P90 Aggression for Telecaster®
$130 – $260
Stand out in the mix and transform your Telecaster into a P90 powerhouse with Steel Pole 43s for Tele. You won’t get a traditional Telecaster tone out of these pickups, and that’s the point! Featuring a high-output coil design and an aggressive magnet structure, this is as close to the famous P90 tone as we can get on a Tele. Don’t be afraid to get dirty – experience the expertly-crafted blend of P90 and Tele pickups, and discover what you’ve been missing.
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Jump to Sound Clips and more Info:
Tele Looks, P90 Guts.
Want to learn more about our Steel Pole 43 Tele? Here's all the information you'll need:
Features
Are you searching for the perfect P90 tone, but want to keep your Telecaster looks? We got you right here: Steel Pole 43s are the highest-output Telecaster Pickups we make and feature the thickest midrange and most aggressive attack.
Thicker and louder than our Steel Pole 42’s, The Steel Pole 43 leans even more towards the tone of a traditional P90. They are guaranteed to push your amp hard while still retaining all the definition and clarity you’ve come to expect from Fralin Pickups.
Features:
- Original Fender Size, Lindy Fralin Design
- P90 Tone in a Telecaster size
- Strong and bold – lots of midrange and snarl
- USA-made Ceramic Magnets for aggressive tone and output
- Compensated Bridge for even volume across all pickups
- RW/RP Neck pickup for a hum-canceling middle position
- Adjustable Steel Pole pieces for fine-tuning string balance
- Hand-wound with our “Sectioning” technique for unique, dynamic tone
- Hand-built for unrivaled quality control
- Backed by our 10-Year Warranty on manufacturing defects
Our manufacturing process allows us to achieve unparalleled quality control. The Steel Pole 43 for Tele consists of a precision injection mold, USA-Made Steel Screws, and USA-Made magnets to make this model scream. Each bobbin is carefully inspected and cleaned before winding, and checked three times before shipping for unparalleled quality control.
We wind each pickup by hand, one at a time using our proprietary “Sectioning” technique, which gives the pickup a sweet, clear tone. Finally, we wax-pot the pickup to prevent microphonics and preserve the pickup for years to come.
Sound
Steel Pole 43s are the closest we can get to a traditional P90 tone, with Telecaster looks. They are the perfect pickups to warm-up a particularly bright and thin-sounding guitar. If you play clean, you can expect a super thick and creamy midrange. You’ll instantly notice the warm tonal quality, round pick attack, and percussive character of the Steel Pole 43s.
When playing with distortion, you can expect a thick, aggressive top-end and midrange and a “chainsaw” grind, similar to P90s. Steel Pole 43s will hit the front-end of your amp hard and break up quickly.
The midrange is prominent on this pickup, which is suitable for all music styles of music, from Rock to Jazz, and sounds excellent on 500K pots. Finally, if you need the most output out of your Tele or are merely looking to give your Telecaster a unique voice, Steel Pole 43s are your go-to choice.
Sound Samples for Steel Pole 43 Tele:
About this Sound Clip:
All sound samples are played from Neck Position First and Bridge Position Last.
Tonal Graph For Steel Pole 43 Tele:
The tonal graph below for our Steel Pole 43 Tele features Lows, Midrange, Highs, and general Output.
Attack: Stiff & Percussive
Tech Specs:
See below for the estimated DCR and Polarity Information for our Steel Pole 43 Tele.
This pickup features a reversible coil direction. We can supply a 3-Wire lead which allows you to reverse the phase easily.
| SPECIFICATION | VALUE |
|---|---|
| Neck Ohm Reading: | 8.8K 1 |
| Bridge Reading: | 10.6K |
| Neck Polarity: | North To Strings, Counter-Clockwise Coil Direction |
| Bridge Polarity: | South To Strings, Clockwise Coil Direction |
| Wire: | USA-Made 43-Gauge Single Poly Nylon |
| Pole Pieces: | USA-Made Steel Screws |
| Magnets: | USA-Made Ceramic |
| Recommended Pot Value: | 500K* |
| Recommended Cap Value: | 0.02mfd 2 |
Additional Technical Info:
1 Ohm Readings can vary due to a multitude of factors, including ambient temperature, multimeter calibration, different wire batches, and other factors. Due to this, ohm readings are approximate. Learn more about Ohm Readings here.
2 We recommend a 0.02mfd Cap Value on most guitar and bass pickups. The exception is a Magic Cap, which Lindy prefers on the Bridge Pickup of Fender® guitars only. Learn More about Caps Here.
* You can experiment with pot values for a different tone. This pickup will sound very dark and warm on 250K pots
Polarity Information:
Here's how we wind and magnetize our pickups:
Note: We depict all our coil directions from Ground (Black Wire, or Start Wire) to Hot (White Wire, or Finish Wire).
Steel Pole 43 Tele Dimensions:
Steel Pole 43 Tele FAQ's
General FAQs
Here are quick answers to common questions we get:
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What Ohm Readings does your Steel Pole 43 Tele have?
Navigate to our Tech Specs Tab for complete Ohm Readings and more useful information.
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Will this pickup fit my instrument?
Check our "Sizing" tab for the size of the pickup. No Sizing tab? Check under the product image gallery for dimensions.
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Is your Lead Time of 2 Weeks accurate?
It depends on the shop capacity at the moment, and the size of your order. Feel free to give us a call for an accurate lead time. We always try to beat our estimated Lead Times.
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What pickup height do you recommend setting your Steel Pole 43 Teles to?
Our recommended Pickup Height is 1/8" (3.175mm) on the Bass Side and 1/16"( 1.5875mm) on the Treble Side. To measure, hold the correct side down at its highest fret. Then, measure from the bottom of the string to the top of the pole piece.
Product FAQ's
People frequently ask these questions about our Steel Pole 43 Tele. If you have a question that you don't see listed here, click "Ask" in the Quick Links section above.
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What's the difference between this pickup and the Steel Pole 42?
Our Steel Pole 43 is the overwound version of the Steel Pole 42. It features a thicker midrange and more output. It’s closer to a traditional P90 tone.
Technically speaking, the only thing different is the amount of turns of wire. We use more turns on this pickup.
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What's the difference between this pickup and the Split Steel Pole Tele?
Other than the fact that the Split Steel Pole Tele is noiseless, the Split Steel Pole Tele is cleaner and is closer in tone and output to the Steel Pole 42.
Pickup Pairing
Our Steel Pole 43 Tele pairs well with the following models:
P90 - Neck
Starting At: $ 125
Pair a P90 neck with a Steel Pole 43 Bridge for a killer P90 Tele
P-92 - Neck
Starting At: $ 175
Pair this pickup in the Bridge and a P-92 in the Neck for a versatile combo
Get it prewired
Go the extra mile and combine our Steel Pole 43 Tele with a Telecaster Control Plate!:
Featured Reviews
Reviews We Worked Hard For, and Are Proud Of
Customer Reviews
80 Genuine Reviews for Steel Pole 43 Tele
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Woah!
These pickups are breathtaking! I could not have imagined how great these sound in my American Tele! Thank you!
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Steel Pole 43 Tele – Bridge
My FAVORITE of all the high-powered Tele Bridge P/U’s… It does exactly what I was looking for….make a Tele Squawk like a LP Jr. yet stay a Tele. I could NOT be more satisfied with this P/U.
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Sound! My second Set of SP 43. Wonderful sounding, full of character. Especially with lighter-sounding teles, like thinlines.
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Very Nice! I installed these pickups in my made in Mexico Strat. They have a much better tone/sound than the original pickups. They are brighter, crisper, and more defined.
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Bought a Steel Pole 43 bridge pickup to match a gold foil in the neck of a Tele I use for slide. Perfect match! P90 tone for sure and just screams for slide. Love this pickup. Thanks for the advice guys!
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WOW!!!! I put the Steel Pole 43 Set in my Rock n Roll Relics Richards and this guitar has some serious growl and grit!! I am blown away!!
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Just got a Michael kelly cc50 telecaster with the sp43 in it
I must say they are very well balanced pickups and give this tele some more grit above my stock 92 fender tele
There’s DefinAtely great note articulation across the board in all positions
I have to agree with what’s been said about the adjustable pole heights, it is an extra bonus to dial in the strings with height adjustment
Also they are super quiet playing through my fender 57 deluxe twin
AWESOME !!!! -
These pickups are great. I am totally in love with the bridge. Mean and gritty but articulate at the same time. Totally transformed my American Performer Tele! I wasn’t as in love with the neck so I switched back to the Fender stock pickup. It was then I realized that the neck was better than I thought. I’m not in love (I do like it better than the stock and switched back again!), but it does mix really well with the bridge when both are engaged. It’s more of a preference than anything really. I might have been better off opting for a 42 neck and 43 bridge honestly. If I had to do it over again I would most definitely go 43 in the bridge as I couldn’t imagine anything being better , but maybe something different in the neck. I wish I had the money to try the 42 in the neck, but the 43 ain’t bad.
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I’m very happy with these pickups. I wanted a unique sound and I got it. Thanks to Jon at Fralin for helping me through some grounding issues (my fault). The sound is awesome!
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Perfect match
I called looking for a different option for a bridge p/u in a Tele I was building. I already had a vintage style PAF for the neck. They steered me to this Steel Pole 43 to match what I had and helped me decide on 500k pots. Lindy & crew are an absolute pleasure to deal with. They always come through with a great product and friendly knowledgeable service. Every time I have to call with a question they leave me feeling so much more confidant and with an understanding of what I did not understand. They are rooting for you and it shows ! Once again, great products…. you can’t go wrong here. -
SP43 – it’s not your Dad’s tele neck pickup
Somebody gave me a Steel Pole 43 Tele bridge pickup so I ordered the matching neck and just by coincidence a pretty hot rod looking tele got delivered with some wiring problems so I replaced it with some different wiring the SP43 pickups. Turned out to be an excellent choice. Booming bass, sparkly highs, both pickups really sound great, albeit not very tele like. Well they are are supposed to sound more like P90’s than tele and that they do. Highly recommended for anyone that wants a Telecaster with a non traditional tone. -
I got one of these in the neck position of a pre wired pick guard. It sounds FANTASTIC.
It has so much snap and brilliance. Great tone.
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Customer added no additional comments
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SP 43….unbelievable
I’ve had the Lindy P-90 in my Tele neck for a while. Huge Pearl Jam fan and wanted to emulate Eddies main Tele. Been going back and forth on the bridge pickup for literally months. Holy Crap!!! This pickup completely changed the guitar!! All 3 positions are killer…middle position might be perfection to my ears. Anyone considering this…just do it. 500k pots with P90 neck. The Tele is finally complete!! Thank you Lindy and Jon!! Could not be happier. Eddie – If you see this and you haven’t already….put a SP 43 in the bridge of one of your Teles!!! ?? -
Great Pickup
I really couldn’t be happier with this pickup. Fralin’s customer service was top notch as well!
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Lindy Fralin Steel Pole 43 Bridge!
Absolutely love the sound I get from this one. Rawring mid-range with great punch and a nice ”spongy/splashy” sound on single notes. Hard to explain but hit that A chord and you are in rock n roll heaven. Look at my reviews here:
Unboxing and installation
Full review -
Better than I expected with an unexpected surprise.
This is my first experience with Fralin pickups, but certainly will not be my last after the goodness all around. I knew the Steel Pole Tele 43 neck pickup was going to be good, but I’m surprised at how good. I have to say, not only is it the best Tele neck pickup I’ve heard, but I think it’s the best neck pickup tone I’ve ever heard from any guitar I’ve owned, and I’ve owned quite a few. In fact, now I’m seriously considering one, or a whole set, for my Strat. The unexpected surprise is the huge increase in sustain. The improvement seems exponential from the previous stock pickups which weren’t bad. This Steel Pole 43 is just incredible. I also was able to talk with some of the folks there because there was a question about my order that needed clarification. Not only were they very informative and great to talk with, they sent me the proper value resistor based on the wiring that I described. That was a huge plus. And, I don’t know if I could put anything but an SP43 Tele neck pickup in the neck position on any guitar (even non-Tele) again it’s so sweet. Very happy. Thank you!
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The Real Deal. I have a G & L Bluesboy. The pickups it came with were good, but not what I was looking for. So I ordered a Steel Pole 43-bridge pickup & it gave my Tele the ballsy tone I need to play Texas Blues.
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Steel Pole 43s are GREAT!
I’ve come to love P90 pickups in my Telecasters. I have a couple of fabulous sounding Teles with Seymour Duncan Antiquities and I won’t be parting with them anytime soon, but these SP43s nail it. They are not quite P90s, they have their own sound characteristics, but I love the full sound and the harmonic richness I’m getting with these babies. I also am a stickler for a nice, even volume from bass to treble and it’s a joy to have the ability to tweak the pole pieces up and down just a hair to get the tone and volume I prefer. I must admit that I’m fond of a more warm tone with little effects added, sort of a jazz-like tone, even though I’m not a jazz cat. More of a Western Swing sound, but with an affection for the Jim Hall and Ed Bickert warmth. I now have these in two of my Teles and each one sounds ever so slightly different. Must be the wood, what can I say?
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Fralin Steel Pole 43
This Pickup is very well rounded in tone. It does the P90 thing which I love. Is it 100 percent p90? Absolutely not. It is however in my opinion exactly how Lindy Fralin describes it. 25 percent tele twang 75 percent p90. The pickup cleans up very nice but will get down in dirty when called upon. Lindy Fralin seems to be very serious about his products so if you want to get serious about your tele tone and you want it to have some extra snarl!!! I have said it before and I will stand by that, get serious with a Lindy Fralin Steel Pole 43 you will not be disappointed.
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