Alex_C Posted January 16, 2020 Report Share Posted January 16, 2020 I picked up a used Kiesel. The pickups are not stock. I wanted to see what brand/model they were, but they are jammed into the pickup cavity. Kiesels are known to have tight pup cavities, some pickup brands need to have their tabs filled to get them to fit. Whoever put these in used brute force to cram them in. The screws are superfluous at this point because these suckers are crammed in and don't move at all. How the #$@*(! do I get them out? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mistermikev Posted January 16, 2020 Report Share Posted January 16, 2020 well, something like this... man you wanna take care. The guitar is finished in gloss? even more care. if it's jammed and you catch the edge of that gloss coming out - you'll be sorry. Post some pictures... there are lots here who can help but I think I can speak for them all in saying that pics would help us/me/them help you best! funny, I go look for keisel pickup route pics and first one... notice the little chips in the finish right where the pickups are. I would suggest you A) just leave them and enjoy or B ) prepare for needing a finish touch up to your gloss. You could put some wax on the edge right there to try and help... maybe see if you can take all the screws/springs out and see if you can bend the little tab a bit... but then you have to get them back in w/o issue too. hope that helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ADFinlayson Posted January 16, 2020 Report Share Posted January 16, 2020 I seem to remember their cavities are all copper taped, can you remove the tape at the same time as tugging on the pickup? might be just enough to get it angled enough to take it out. Absolute worse case, you could take a sharp chisel and remove a hair of material right by from where it's jammed, again just enough to get a bit of angle in there so you can work it loose. If you reapply some copper tape afterwards, it will never be seen. And def file the poles down before reinserting! The PRS single cut template I use regularly also have very tight routs and I have to round over the screw poles slightly (even with PRS pickups) to get them in as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex_C Posted January 16, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2020 Some great advice here. Thanks to all. I never thought of using an exacto knife, this is the first thing I'l try. I also never thought that someone may have used double-sided foam tape! This is likely the problem because the pups don't move in any direction (can't even rock them) and one of the pup tabs isn't touching the side. The finish is matte, but I don't want to snag the top wood, so an exacto to make some room, then bend the tabs and use mini j-bars (modified allen keys) to pry them up. I'll order new pups and perform the surgery next week or so. I'll post pics of the operation. Low quality pics: This pup tab has some room, but no movement. Top down view - poor angle. This tab is touching the route. The guitar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex_C Posted January 16, 2020 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2020 4 hours ago, ADFinlayson said: And def file the poles down before reinserting! The PRS single cut template I use regularly also have very tight routs and I have to round over the screw poles slightly (even with PRS pickups) to get them in as well. I've had to take a bit a metal of pup tabs for some solid mount builds. It only takes a minute or two. Odd that people don't take the time do it properly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizman62 Posted January 16, 2020 Report Share Posted January 16, 2020 Instead of a knife, running a feeler gauge in and around the seam might work as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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