I'm looking for a replacement for the hilo in my '63 Vette. Ideally, I'd like to drop in a TVJ Powertron (or PT +), but I want to avoid any significant routing.

Would appreciate any suggestions as to what my best choice for a replacement would be.

Thanks!

http://img703.imageshack.us/img703/2623/vette002.jpg

I could always trade you for my modern 'vette! :D

Otherwise you will have to route that guitar out. Power trons and filtertrons are made for chambered and hollow bodies.

Jukebox is right. The only pickup that will fit in a 63 Vette is a Gretsch HiLo. Anything else (including a TVJ HiLo) will require routing. When I did it (am I repeating myself? yes, I said this already on the GDP!) TV Jones recommended a neck pickup for the bridge position as it's narrower, needing less routing.

Would the modern replacment, the Gretsch Megaton fit?

How easy is it to go from Grestch Megatron to Hilo tron? I'm havng a pair of vintage hilo trons rewound to 4.5k and 4.2 to go into a modern white Corvette - is it a simple transplant? I didn't think it would be difficult

Cheers

Mr Marlin

Yes, the Gretsch megs and Hilo can be swapped, I've had this done. If you check my photo'd you will two different vettes, one with Hilo and one with Megs. Both are modern vettes.

Otherwise you will have to route that guitar out. Power trons and filtertrons are made for chambered and hollow bodies.

Bah! Pickups are made for guitars, and not just chambered or hollow bodies :)

you can put Filters and TV-J's in a slab, you can really do anything you like, but you just have to route sometimes : )

In this case this would be an easy one to do, seeing as how the two pickups you want to swap your hi-lo for are the same Form factor, your all lined up, so you just need a pickup ring and a router, some clamps and a router guide (anything with a straight edge you can clamp on the guitar without scratching it) and steady hands.

That is not what I was saying.....IF you would re-read what timberic wrote, you would know what I was saying! He doesn't want to do any routing, YOU cannot put Powertrons or Filtertrons into a slab without routing, they were made to go into a hollow or a chambered body because the poles are to long in the back. YES!!! You can stick any pickup in any guitar if you want to do the work, but you CAN'T, just drop these in! READ before you type!

That is not what I was saying.....IF you would re-read what timberic wrote, you would know what I was saying! He doesn't want to do any routing, YOU cannot put Powertrons or Filtertrons into a slab without routing, they were made to go into a hollow or a chambered body because the poles are to long in the back. YES!!! You can stick any pickup in any guitar if you want to do the work, but you CAN'T, just drop these in! READ before you type!

I read. I just dont think routing is that hard... lol. Honestly...

"you can really do anything you like, but you just have to route sometimes :)" not saying he should, I was just trying to enforce that there comes a time when you might just have to get your hands dirty to get what you want...

all I'm trying to say is that some people make modding out to be a lot harder than it needs to be with their misconceptions and the things they hear/ only think about with their eyes. Same thing with cars, home renovation/remodeling... A lot of people are just too worried to make a simple repairable mistake. I wonder where they are getting these thoughts? people telling them its harder than it seems... I'm just on the other side of the fence encouraging people to try to do something before they say they cant.

Rather than routing anything, you could take that HiLo out and send it to TV Jones or Jason Lollar for a rewind, or, even better, put in a safe place, buy another old HiLo, and have that one rewound.

Rory Gallagher had a Corvette that he bought from a pawnshop with a P90 installed. You can hear it on Youtube; just do a search for "Bullfrog Blues".

I had a Corvette that I found in a pawnshop that had had all the hardware removed. I had a tech install a humbucker, and it sounded pretty good. Yours is in nice shape however.

The old HiLos are very shallow pickups. I had a Clipper, and the HiLo was a surface mount, except for a small slot for the wire to go through. A Filtertron is a much deeper pickup; the polepieces go through and stick out the back. To put one in a Corvette you would have to deepen the pickup rout. It's a very thin guitar; you wouldn't want to carve the hole right through the back.

For the Corvette build from the Nashville bodies, I was talking to Tom Jones about adding a pickup in the neck position (the bodies are routed for the bridge only) and he was concerned about putting a Filter-sized pickup there because of the depth of the rout with the neck adjacent. However with the neck pickup in the bridge position it is a shallower rout and should be okay.

beautiful guitar! please don't route it out!

Rather than routing anything, you could take that HiLo out and send it to TV Jones or Jason Lollar for a rewind, or, even better, put in a safe place, buy another old HiLo, and have that one rewound

Much better idea.

Rather than routing anything, you could take that HiLo out and send it to TV Jones or Jason Lollar for a rewind, or, even better, put in a safe place, buy another old HiLo, and have that one rewound.

A big big BIG +1 right here.

My hi-Lotrons are being rewound at Bareknuckle. Just a little hitter than original, 4.2k neck, 4.5k bridge

My G Live Corvette has two Powertrons, and seems no thicker bodied than my standard corvette. It's the guitar i reach for first

Mr Marlin

Very nice, Marlin! love me some Bare Knuckles! ..once I get to Berlin I'll have Tim rewind my Jag pickups & send me a set of Riff Raffs for my SG :D

I'd go for a rewind or better still a hotter custom made exact sized replacement pickup, it'd be a sin to rout out such a nice old 'vette. Whilst on the subject of Filtertrons; does anybody know why the polepiece screws are so long? I can't imagine anybody needing to wind them out that far. I'm considering shortening them on a pair that I have in order to avoid having to deeply rout out a solid I'm considering putting them in.

+1 for the Rewind/Non Routing!

I love modifying guitars dont get me wrong, but not old original ones! :D

She's a beauty Timberic

That's for all of the suggestions guys!

I think I will look into having the hilo rewound.

That's for all of the suggestions guys!

I think I will look into having the hilo rewound.

When I took the old HiLo out of my Clipper, it disintegrated (they're pretty fragile). I emailed TV Jones, and he replied that he would fix it for me. I didn't need it in the end, as I managed to get the old HiLo back together and working with some epoxy and solder. If you get in touch with him, I think you'll find he'll do a rewind for you.