LipStick Pickup-New Fad

[big_teee]

Has anyone made one of the new Lipstick Pickup Kits.
I have a potential customer for one of these.
GFS is selling them in 3 flavors. the long one that fits the Danelectro guitars.
One that fits a Strat pickguard, and one mounted on Tele Bridge Baseplate.
Here's the kit that Guitar Parts Usa Sells. It looks to fit a strat.
It looks like you put the bar Magnet in a bobbin just like you would on a firebird mini humbucker. If thats the case I could build it ok. Not going to attempt the wind around the bare bar.

Don't know what the advantage of a lipstick pickup is.
No one seems to want an old common Humbucker, or normal strat single coil.
I wonder how much 42 SPN I could get on the bobbin?
Thanks in advance
Terry

[frankfalbo]

How coincidental, I have one in my hand right now, and was just looking it over. I may install one in my lap steel, but without the baseplate. Just surface mounted into a rounded bottom recess.

There's no bobbin in the real lipstick tubes. That bobbin and magnet are going to throw you out of original spec, but it should make a nice sounding pickup nonetheless.

[David Schwab]

Don't know what the advantage of a lipstick pickup is.

They are bright and twangy, and they look kind of cool. That's about it.

[big_teee]

The one that Seymour Duncan sells is wired at 4.3k Dcr. Do you think that would be 42 or 43 Gauge?
Terry

[copperheadroads]

you might of already seen this but if not it might help
http://music-electronics-forum.com/t12563/#post98440

[big_teee]

you might of already seen this but if not it might help
http://music-electronics-forum.com/t12563/#post98440

I did see that earlier. I'm a novice winder compared to that. I have enough trouble keeping wire on a bobbin. I can't even imagine how to keep it on a bare bar magnet.
The kit in my photo has a bobbin, I could do that I think. It should be a bobbin very similar to the ones I did this weekend for the mini humbucker. Hopefully bigger.
Terry

[copperheadroads]

oh i did not notice a bobbin in the kit cool

[Peter Naglitsch]

That bobbin seems looks very similar to those included in the mini HB kits from Moja and Allparts. If that is in fact so you will end up in the 3K+ range with AWG42 if y0u keep the wire within the bobbin itself, more if you alow it to bulge out (as possible with this style compared to a mini HB)

[JaimeC]

Hi big_teee, I've just joined the forum to specifically ask about Lipstick pickup kits and you've just answered my question. Much appreciated.

Likewise, a couple of customers have asked me about lipstick pickups - Maybe its because of the retro-looking guitars by Danelectro & Italia that can be found in the chain guitar shops here in the UK

On a side note, I've just stumbled across this forum - if only I'd known about it sooner! ;-) Looking forward to getting involved.

[big_teee]

Hi big_teee, I've just joined the forum to specifically ask about Lipstick pickup kits and you've just answered my question. Much appreciated.

Likewise, a couple of customers have asked me about lipstick pickups - Maybe its because of the retro-looking guitars by Danelectro & Italia that can be found in the chain guitar shops here in the UK

On a side note, I've just stumbled across this forum - if only I'd known about it sooner! ;-) Looking forward to getting involved.

Welcome JaimeC:
Its seems that with all the cheap guitars out there now, lots of players doing mods and wanting to try new and different things. Players wanting pickups different from the same old humbucker, and strat single coil. I've been asked about building the lipstick pickups, but no-one is forking out any money yet. They look neat, but sure has lots of limitations on winding room. I don't think I'll be putting these in my guitars anytime soon.
Good luck,
Terry

[JaimeC]

Welcome JaimeC:
...Players wanting pickups different from the same old humbucker, and strat single coil. ...

That's true, I seem to be winding the old short/wide jazzmaster coils recently. Suddenly they're popular again.

[flyneye]

Lipsticks have that signature glassy quacking high sound. Damn how to describe it...
Only a 'tube' sounds like a 'tube'. Overdriving it makes it more evident too, a good example would be Big Blacks original recording of "Kerosene" on "Songs about Fking"
Daniels original pickup pre lipstick tube was pretty much the same thing set in an extrusion pressed into a pickguard. It had the highs but not the quack.