Steel Pole 43 Tele
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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Steel Pole 43 Tele 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.
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 |
| 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 |
**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
Sizing
Steel Pole 43 Tele Questions And Answers:
Notice:
Have a question about our Steel Pole 43 Tele? Ask it here. Your Question will be publically visible. If you want to ask a Private Question, please contact us through our Contact Us Form.
If you have multiple questions, please call us at (804) 358-2699.
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does the steel pole 43 bridge pickup have a metal plate on the bottom or do I need a separate ground for the bridge.
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Q does the steel pole 43 bridge pickup have a metal plate on the bottom or do I need a separate gro...... Read moreA
Hey Jeffrey, it has a Nickel Silver Metal Plate on the bottom that will ground out your bridge assembly once installed.
Hey! This pickup is going in a 2010 Mexican made Fender Esquire. Can you confirm which bridge pickup I need in the steel pole 43
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Q Hey! This pickup is going in a 2010 Mexican made Fender Esquire. Can you confirm which bridge pic...... Read moreA
Hey Shane, I'm a bit confused by your question. Since this is a single pickup guitar, are you asking if the Steel Pole 43 will work in your esquire? If so, the answer is yes. If you're asking what pot value, the answer is 500K.
Hello - I purchased a SP43 bridge pickup for my Tele from you guys a while back. I paired it with a p-90 noiseless that I purchased from you guys years ago. I have never really bonded with the p-90 neck, but I love the SP43 bridge. I am planning on buying the SP43 neck pickup from you. But it's asking about a 3-wire option. I'm not sure what to answer for that??
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Q Hello - I purchased a SP43 bridge pickup for my Tele from you guys a while back. I paired it with...... Read moreA
Hey Rick, you don't need the 3-Wire option for this model as you're matching two Fralin pickups together. If you were to do the Series Parallel (4-way switching) mod (which I don't recommend on higher-output models), you would need the 3-wire option for that modification.
Hello- I have the 3 wire steel pole 43- where do I connect the blue wire from the neck and the blue wire from bridge?
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Q Hello- I have the 3 wire steel pole 43- where do I connect the blue wire from the neck and the bl...... Read moreA
Hey Fernando, both Blue wires are permanent grounds. Solder them to the casing of the volume pot. - Tyler
How well does the steel pole 43 pickup handle extremely high/loud volumes with a big muff style fuzz as far as feedback is concerned. I’ve built a backup tele to my 1974 telecaster (which has no trouble with feedback at high volumes) but every pickup I’ve put put in this new build feeds back horribly. I’ve tried silicone tubing instead of springs and I’ve put foam under the pickups but it makes no difference. Also, if the steel pole 43’...
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Q How well does the steel pole 43 pickup handle extremely high/loud volumes with a big muff style f...... Read moreA
Hey Eric, that's a tough question to answer. All else things being equal, our Steel Pole series will not feedback more or less than any of our other pickups. So, I would definitely take a look at your gain stages and see which one is making the most difference, and start tweaking that. Furthermore, to test if your guitar is microphonic, you can tap on different parts of your instrument to see if a specific part makes the feedback come...
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Featured Reviews
Reviews we worked hard for, and are proud of.
I love my Tele and as a Jazz/Blues player with other genres at a lesser degree. I needed a thicker and warmer tone that also gives that crunch when needed. A Steel Pole 43 pickup on my bridge is perfect!
The whole staff is great in helping make the right choice with Lindy even getting on the phone and bringing me to the finish line. This is one very happy customer.
It’s like I put a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on my guitar. All good
Hi Lindy, I give 5 stars for your customer service. Your quick turn around on the repair I sent was most appreciated. Thank you. But, I purchased a set for a two pickup Tele a bridge pickup only for a Esquire style guitar. I intended to install both bridge pickups in a Bill Callaham Vintage Tele bridge. Problem is. I purchased these pickups going by the pickup bobbin dimensions listed on the website listed as 2.845″. Callaham bridge opening is 2.875″ Easy fit right. Nope. Both bridge pickups I received are 2.910″. When I received the repaired pickup, it said pickup was damaged due to sanding the bobbin to fit. Not true. I nicked the ground wire with a mounting screw when trying to jockey the pickup to fit the bridge. I then realized the huge difference when I used a Starrett caliper to measure the dimensions. I then sanded it to make it fit prior to sending it in for repair per our phone conversation. It was my fault, but you really need to fix the measurements listed on the website. I would not have purchased had I know the proper dimensions. So, I still have a bridge pickup that does not fit the Callaham bridge. Guess I’ll have to sand it as well to make it fit. Thank you for your time and consideration of this review. Could I send it back and exchange it for a different pickup or get a refund for it ?
I built a custom Tele for my client who wanted P90’s, I have to say I have a happy client. He loves the pickups!
Thank you very much!
Reached out to Fralin as my luthier recommended the brand for my ’78 Tele restoration. Jon suggested I go with the SP 43s based on what I told him I wanted from my guitar. I couldn’t be happier. These things are amazing. I’m playing my guitar more than I ever did before. Yes, they are that good.
Replaced a SD Broadcaster with this pickup and man, this pickup screams! My new favorite Telecaster pickup by a wide margin.
Absolutely a great choice for my Tele.
I installed these in my custom built Tele and they completely transform my guitar, IN A MAJORLY GOOD WAY!
I couldn’t be more satisfied!
Thanks Fralin Team!
Je parle français seulement, alors je mets mon commentaire dans les deux langues.
Hey les faiseurs des meilleurs pickups,
Je les ai montés sur une Telecaster Thinline 2011 en frêne, en remplacement des Fender Noiseless Gen4. Et ce n’est plus la même guitare, juste une extraordinaire guitare avec ces micros ! une grande clarté des notes jouées, beaucoup de dynamique, une grande sensibilité au jeu guitaristique et enfin une chaleur et une rondeur que les micros Fender ne m’ont pas donné ! Que du très bon ! Et en plus très silencieux.
J’ai redécouvert ma Telecaster Thinline. Un ami les a montés sur une Telecaster solidbody, et si le son est un peu différent, il fait les même compliments que moi pour ces pickups.
Je dois donner cinq étoiles pour votre travail, et je recommande fortement ce set complet, même à ceux qui ne jurent que par les Fender USA pickups.
Alain Jouvenat, Switzerland
I speak French only, so I put my commentary in both languages.
Hey, the makers of the best pickups,
I mounted them on a 2011 Thinline Ash Telecaster, replacing the Fender Noiseless Gen4. And it’s not the same guitar anymore, just an amazing guitar with these pickups! a great clarity of the notes played, a lot of dynamics, a great sensitivity to the guitar playing and finally a warmth and a roundness that the Fender pickups did not give me! That very good! And in addition very quiet.
I rediscovered my Telecaster Thinline. A friend rode them on a solidbody Telecaster, and if the sound is a little different, he gives the same compliments I do on these pickups.
I have to give five stars for your work, and I highly recommend this complete set, even to those who swear by Fender USA pickups.
Alain Jouvenat, Switzerland
I just installed a pair yesterday in my thinline tele. Beautiful, woody, gnarly and yet smooth sound. They replaced a pair of Fender CS Twisted tele pickups. I made a video of the difference on youtube. Only complaint is that the spacer rubber thingy is a tad too short and so the neck pickup is a little wobbly but I’ll just replace those.
Wonderful pickups, even with the 250k pots that I had in it. I prefer a darker Tele tone.
This pickup is BIG, BOLD, and BEAUTIFUL! on a scale of 1-10, it’s an 11! It’s way better than advertised, and you guys know that can be hard to do. I put it on an esquire and it’s everything I wanted it to be and then some. thanks to the whole staff for such great service, and especially for this great pickup!