more.. Mod Garage • Gear • How-Tos • DIY • Guitar & Bass Mods • Guitars • Pickups & Accessories • S-Style • Singlecoil • June 2011

1) The distance we’re measuringis from the bottom of the string(pressed against the last fret) tothe top of the pickup magnet. 2) The tools: a screwdriver anda measuring device—which canbe a precision ruler, like thisStewMac String Action Gauge,or sized blocks cut from squarerods of the correct height. 3) Using the String Action Gaugeto measure pickup height. 4) Measuring with a precisionmetal ruler. 5) Using a brass block to quickly andaccurately set the pickup height.

If your string reaches the feeler gauge (.018 inches is the best gauge to use for optimal nut action height) you are all set. If it doesn’t, you need to file down the nut. Start by loosening the string, not taking it off. Select a file that best fits the fret, and file the fret down a small amount. Then tune back up, and use the feeler gauge to check the distance once more. Repeat until you reach the proper height, and then move on to the next string.

One of my all-time favoriteStratocaster mods is alsothe cheapest and most effectivemod you’ll ever perform: adjustingthe height of your pickups.All you need is a screwdriver, asmall ruler, and your ears.

To check nut-slot height, hold the string down at the third fret, and see how much it moves over the first fret. This is similar to checking neck relief, but the string should move much less. If the string doesn’t move at all, chances are the slot is too low. If it moves more than a few thousandths of an inch, it should be filed lower. For proper string nut slot depths, use the feeler gauges. Measure the height of the first two frets by laying a straight edge across them and sliding different combinations of feeler gauge blades under it until they touch the straight edge. Record this measurement. I bought this nut to replace the stock plastic one on a Squier standard strat. I guess on most strats the nut slot is curved, as you would guess from the shape of this nut; on the Squier the nut slot is flat, though. I got it to fit in the nut slot at the height I wanted after sanding it down some (carefully).

Over the years at our shop,we’ve received countless Stratswith descriptions like “it doesn’tsound Stratty enough” or “there’ssomething wrong with the pickups.”Most of the owners werelooking for a set of replacementpickups to solve the problem.There are good reasons to replacea Strat’s pickups—such as gettingan ultra-hot output to drive youramp into crazy saturation. But ifyou feel something is missing inyour tone, play around with theheight-adjustment screws beforebuying a set of new pickups. Inmost cases, our customers weremore than happy with their stockguitars once we “sweet-spotted”the pickups.
Many players think their Stratscome from the factory with perfectlyadjusted pickup heights andare afraid to change them. Thegoal of this column is to encourageyou to pick up a screwdriverand play around with the adjustmentscrews. Before we start, takesome low-adhesive masking tapeand stick it on both sides of thepickup covers. With a sharp pencil,mark the current height of thepickup where it emerges from thepickguard. As long as you leavethe tape on the covers, you canalways return to the old adjustmentswithin seconds.
To start, put a towel, a pieceof foam, or a blanket on a tableor your workbench, tune yourStrat, and then place it on thework surface. You can use anyprecision ruler to measure thepickup height. The folks atstewmac.com Strat Nut Slot Height

have developeda tool called the String ActionGauge—part #0670 (inch) and#0670-M (metric)—that I useand recommend for this work.Besides measuring pickup heightwith this tool, you can also measurestring height, saddle height,nut height, saddle-slot depth,and more—it’s very versatile.
I built myself another littlehelper for measuring Strat pickupheight. I found some precisionsquare brass rods in exactlythe heights I needed. I cut off asmall piece for each height, andI place the bar on top of thepickup magnets, following themeasurements detailed below.Then all I have to do is raise thepickup until the bar touches thestring. Better yet, if you can findsquare rods made out of a magneticmaterial, the pickup magnetwill hold the bar in place.
Finally, you need a screwdriverthat matches the head type andsize on your pickup-adjustmentscrews. Get the right kind—flat-headscrewdrivers are not madefor Phillips screws and vice versa!
Okay, here are the specs I useto set the heights for each Stratpickup. These measurementsmake a very good starting pointfor any Strat with standard Stratsingle-coils:

Bridge pickup
• Low-E string:2.5 mm/0.0984'
• High-E string:2.0 mm/0.0787'
Middle pickup
• Low-E string:3.0 mm/0.1181'
• High-E string:2.5 mm/0.0984'
Neck pickup
• Low-E string:3.5 mm/0.1378'
• High-E string:3.0 mm/0.1181'

Chances are that theseheights will work for you rightfrom the start, but it’s importantto realize these specificationsaren’t set in stone. Yourperfect pickup height dependson the pickups themselves, yourstrings, and, of course, yourplaying style, your amp(s) andoutboard gear, and personaltaste. Some players like thetone of the pickups close to thestrings, while others don’t.
There are no factory specs,and if you talk to 10 differentguitar techs, you’ll hear12 different opinions aboutit. These specs are based onmy experiences and data I’vecollected over the years workingon countless Stratocasters.Surprisingly, these heights seemto work every time.
If you have very powerfulsingle-coils such as Fender’s TexasSpecials, you should lower thepickup height a tad to avoidhaving the magnets pull on thestrings and interfere with vibration.This causes tuning problemsand robs sustain. If you have veryweak, vintage-flavored single-coils,you can place them a tadcloser to the strings to boost theoutput a bit. Adjust humbuckersa tad lower than powerful single-coils,as a starting point.
Once you’ve adjusted all threepickups using the specs in thiscolumn, play your guitar for awhile with the same amp settingsas before to get a first impressionof your Strat’s new tone. Ifyou’re completely satisfied, great.Leave the new settings alone andyou’re done. If you feel that yourStrat sounds better than before,but you still miss that certainsomething, it’s time for somesweet-spotting fun. More aboutthis next month.
Dirk Wackerlives inGermany and is fascinatedby anything related to oldFender guitars and amps.He plays country, rockabilly,and surf music in twobands, works regularly as asession musician for a local studio, and writesfor several guitar mags. He’s also a hardcoreguitar and amp DIY-er who runs an extensivewebsite—singlecoil.com

American Strat Nut Width

—on the subject.