"Nashville-ing" an American Special

Can't answer your questions, but just wanted to add that the American Special body would have to be routed out to accommodate any middle pickup, and the pickups you're referring to are referred to by Fender as "Hot Vintage". Just in case any reader is confusing them with Texas Specials or Tex-Mexes.

 

Might want to try the Bill Lawrence 5 way switch mod. Worked great on my Peavey Reactor.

 

I don't understand the desire to clutter a great guitar with an unneeded extra appendage. I personally hate having a middle pickup that is only in the way of my playing style, but that is my peccadillo. Realize that you will be lowering the value of the guitar if you go to resell it, but you may not have that intention.

 

Sigler Music do a James Burton 7 way switch that gives you all 3 pickups and neck and bridge.
I have added one to my Nashville. The soldering is top quality as are the components.
http://www.siglermusiconline.com/pr...ton-loaded-5-way-control-plate-with-s1-chrome

 

I don't have a specific recommendation re: pickups, but I'm guessing you will want a fairly high output strat pickup in there. My reasoning is that if the pickups are truly that hot (and that sounds WAY HOT for a neck pickup...), you will need a hot middle to keep it fairly low to the pickguard. The biggest complaint about strat middles is that they get in the way of one's picking motion. Keeping the pickup low can help. But if you throw a 6K middle pickup in there you may need to run it pretty high to try to compensate for volume.

Good on you for trying it. For what it's worth, I put in an order for a custom T-style in January. I specified a route for a 'bucker in the neck as well as a strat middle. It will be delivered Nashville style with a T-style single coil in the neck, but I wanted the flexibility. I also specified that I wanted a 5-way with the middle position able to do either middle pickup solo or neck/bridge using a push/pull pot on the tone control. We will see what the Suhr gnomes come up with...

 

I have 3 Joe Bardens in my Tele with a separate volume control for the middle pickup. I have the neck and bridge connected to a 4 way switch so I can get the parallel/series thing going.

 

I'd say split the difference and look for a middle strat pickup in the 12-13K range. You'd want it RWRP to get hum cancelling in 2 and 4 and a more authentic strat tone in those positions (mentioned already?)

My Nashville has a five way switch wired like a strat. I added a push-pull pot to the tone control to get the bridge pickup always on - this gives me the classic tele both-pickups-on and a (less useful but cool) all-pickups-on. It's an easy mod and very easy to wrap your mind around in a gig situation.

 

Well, Bill Lawrence taught me to only compare pickups based on Inductance (Henries) and I have no idea what the values are on these pickups. They were I think exclusive to the ash bodied, vintage tunered, 12" board radius "Highway One Texas Tele" and at least half the people I remember having that guitar, tended to yank them out and put Fralins or Budz or Mares or SD Broadcasters or CS No-Casters or some other pickup they preferred.

They were mostly OK. A little harsh sometimes, I thought. Been a while.

 

I don't know if you have a argument there.

 

I like the nashville idea and tele, but I have to say I think a 4-way and or not the S-1 with it will preserve the body routing and give you a decent array of tones in the Tele. And I agree with this...

"Bill Lawrence taught me to only compare pickups based on Inductance"

Which brings me to the 4-way with a Tele set. Its more reliable in this case as they are already matched for this instead of trial and error, and with all the tones matching imho. Theres a few sets which work great also.

 

Yes, a compass works. Super easy.