Fender Dan Smith Red Bobbin Pickups

[PAF-Boy]

Hello winders,
I have a customer who wants me to wind him a set Strat pickups to the 1982 Dan Smith
specs.All I know is that they used red bobbin material.Maybe one of you guys can help me out with the specs of those?
TX
P-B

[Rick Turner]

Red really colors the tone.

Not good for playing blues, though... Great for hot licks.

[David Schwab]

This guy REALLY wants you to use red forbon for his pickups? Ask him why, since no one is going to see it. Then ask him if he took his meds.

I never heard of these pickups.

[the great waldo]

Here´s a picture.
Cheers

Andrew

[Rick Turner]

Dan was part of the employee group that bought Fender back from CBS; he was a VP there for many years, and the Custom Shop was developed under his leadership and watchful eye. He retired a couple of years ago.

[PAF-Boy]

Thanks you for reply,
I was hoping to get info about the specs like magnet lengt and diameter, wire diameter and type of wire.
cheers
PB

[eehanj]

After a bit of googling I stumbled across the following link:

The Fender Stratocaster - Google Books

It refers to a "Superstrat X-1" pickup that is a bit hotter. Wikipedia also refers to the Dan Smith pickup as the X-1 and that it was used in both the neck and bridge position.

I hope that a) this is correct, and b) it is some help.

Regards:
Ianj

[aportilla]

Red bobbin pups are hard to come by and very EXPENSIVE, so are the guitars they come in. These pups came in the strats produced in 1980-1982, in the "Dan Smith Era". A 57' or 62' American Vintage RI from the Dan Smith era will run you $3K-$5K. The pups would sell for $400-$1K.
The only reason I could think of creating these pups is to make a fake/copy.

[aportilla]

1982 Red Bobbins Fullerton Fender Stratocaster Pickups

[PAF-Boy]

Yes,
a copy.You are right.
A copy that sounds alike the redbobbin strat pickups does not have to be a look alike or a FAKE.
Red fiber is not hard to find but that will not make the tone.
I am searching for technical specs: bobbin height, wire turns ect.
There has to be more than red fiber bobbins in them.What makes people pay so much money if there is nothing special in tone?

[the great waldo]

There has to be more than red fiber bobbins in them.What makes people pay so much money if there is nothing special in tone?

Probably the same reason that danelectro put a full page advert. in a guitar magazine extolling the virtue of using a zinc battery instead of an alkaline battery to improve the tone of effects pedals!!

Cheers

ANDREW

[aportilla]

I've actually been doing a lot of research on those pups and guitars lately and I haven't seen any specs on the windings. I did read that they aren't hot at all, but sound very chimey.
If I find some, Ill post it, but don't hold your breath...

[David Schwab]

I've actually been doing a lot of research on those pups and guitars lately and I haven't seen any specs on the windings. I did read that they aren't hot at all, but sound very chimey.
If I find some, Ill post it, but don't hold your breath...

Yeah, hot and chimey don't really go hand in hand. One thing to note is that they are not staggered magnets.

I'll tell ya, the best Strat neck pickup I have ever heard was some no name pickup I ended up with at some point (don't know from where, might have been a cheap Fender) with straight magnets that read 5.5K. Just a beautiful tone. I'd take each pickup up a little from there.

[RedHouse]

That pic Waldo posted looks like regular forbon with candy apple red laquer on it, look how dark the edges are.

[David Schwab]

That pic Waldo posted looks like regular forbon with candy apple red laquer on it, look how dark the edges are.

I also thought it looked like paint. The tops look white.

I bet smith had some white forbon and did this so they would stand out, and then he hoarded several hundred sets and is now selling them on eBay for big bucks because of the mystique!

It was the same way with Lane Poor pickups. No one knew how they were made. But they turn out to be fairly normal. These Strat pickups might be a common variation, but the color and scarcity has built them up to something more.