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Post by pete1951 on May 3, 2023 15:20:41 GMT
I have a 40s Supro lap steel ( that iI got from Ken some years ago ) and I noticed the pickup sounded weak ( or at least much less output than any other guitars) . I read that it is common for these pickups to be disassembled and put back incorrectly.( one magnet reversed or the handrest put on upside down) which can weaken the magnets. Mine seemed to be ok ( magnets polarity matched, handrest correct way up,though with only 2 screws) but the magnets seemed weak. I have ‘cured’ the problem by adding a pair of ceramic magnets cut to size and placed on top of the original ones They are just held in by their own magnet attraction. Does anyone in the UK re-energise magnets, it would be nice not to have the extras? Pete
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Post by leeophonic on May 3, 2023 16:05:59 GMT
Jason Lollar sells replacements
Lee
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Post by pete1951 on May 3, 2023 16:40:18 GMT
Though magnets aren’t itemised on the website, I’m sure they sell them. However, the original ones are not chipped or damaged and there are ways of rejuvenating magnets, ( I just am not sure how!)
In the old days ( I used to work for a university) I could go to engineering or material science and they would do it for me. Unfortunately all my old contacts have retired . I may try to get in contact with someone through a third party, though this is never as successful. Pete
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Post by mitchfit on May 3, 2023 22:14:48 GMT
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Post by pete1951 on May 4, 2023 6:55:10 GMT
Thanks, I was sort of aware of this method but don’t have a meter to show how much the magnets have been ‘energised’. It’s possible that when I take the ceramic magnets away( which I will do later) they will have boosted the old ones to where they should be . Though not as powerful as the rare earth ones used on most YouTube videos, they have been on for several years . We will see. Pete
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Post by Michael Messer on May 4, 2023 7:00:13 GMT
Pete, I will ask Dave King for you, because back in the early 2000s he did a few and they were successful. I have been lucky with mine because it is still as powerful as the day I got it from George Gruhn in 1985. These pickups, when working correctly, are super powerful.
Shine On Michael
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Post by pete1951 on May 4, 2023 7:36:45 GMT
Thanks Michael, it sounds pretty good with the extra magnets. Will experiment today. Pete
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Post by pete1951 on May 4, 2023 9:40:59 GMT
I have tried it without the extra magnets and it sounds fine ( better than I remember when I first got it) but still seems a little underwhelming. It doesn’t have the power of a P90. With the extra magnets however it comes very close. I don’t have a second Supro to compare outputs.
Let’s see if Dave King comes up with a solution. Pete
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Post by Michael Messer on May 4, 2023 12:31:07 GMT
Dave told me that he just replaced, or stuck new ones on the outside, the two magnets. The magnets at each end that the screw go into. Yes....just as Pete has done in the photo. He said he never had a problem and it worked every time. Maybe try swapping the magnets around? Volume-wise, those pickups are lethal weapons! Back in the 80s I used to entertain bikers and the local Hells Angels club by sitting in with a very heavy rock band armed with Les Pauls and Marshall amps to the ceiling. I used to sit wearing Hawaiian shirts with my Mother of Toilet Seat National lap steel and a Mark 1 Mesa Boogie and leave them all at the starting line. It wasn't great for mine or anyone else's ears, but none of their macho stances and guitars could touch me! Since those days my lap steel pickup was turned into a Dave King Supro Ozark Caster and has been on every gig and recording I have done in the past 23 years. Even plugged into a 5w Champ amp or my lovely little 50 year old Pignose battery amp, it lifts the roof off and splits the enamel on my audiences teeth. *** There were Supro Ozarks long before anyone ever thought of making a Coodercaster. That is why I refuse to call mine a Coodercaster***Shine On Michael
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Post by pete1951 on May 4, 2023 13:56:42 GMT
Thanks for asking Michael, I’ll leave my extra magnets on for the moment. Pete
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Post by Michael Messer on May 4, 2023 14:54:40 GMT
Pete, I am going to talk to DK about this again, because I have a memory of something else being done because they weren't always successful. It was a long time ago, but I used to borrow a friend's guitar made by DK that was like mine and at first it didn't sound so good, even with the magnets, but after another tweak of some kind it sounded amazing. I may be talking bollox like I usually do, but I'll talk to DK about it.
Shine On Michael
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Post by saddletramp on Dec 2, 2023 17:41:21 GMT
I have exactly the same guitar (1948 Supro) with exactly the same problem. Where can I buy new magnets in the UK to place on top of the existing ones as shown? What strength and type do I need?
TIA, Chris
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Post by mitchfit on Dec 2, 2023 22:49:09 GMT
unsolicited input. perhaps saddletramp could circle a magnetic compass around the PUP to determine the distance of influence where it causes a change of needle direction? openly admit---highly UN-scienterrific data, but a possible base line for checking the remaining magnetism of the OEM units that are still floating around out there? back to the drawing board, mitchfit www.draftingsuppliesdew.com/studio-designs-futura-craft-station-with-folding-shelf
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Post by pete1951 on Dec 3, 2023 10:58:53 GMT
I have exactly the same guitar (1948 Supro) with exactly the same problem. Where can I buy new magnets in the UK to place on top of the existing ones as shown? What strength and type do I need? TIA, Chris These are questions I still don’t know the answers to! With the very powerful rare earth magnets now available it may be possible to ‘piggy back ‘ a couple of very small ones somewhere on the pickup and boost the originals ? Pete
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Post by saddletramp on Dec 3, 2023 13:27:52 GMT
Pete, I would be happy to try the solution you have shown above, but I don't know where to get magnets that size. Where did you get yours?
Chris
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