Spacing question

[RhysPlease]

Im going to replace the bridge pickup on my gibson sg special with a nailbomb. My problem is what pole spacing to choose.
I read that most gibsons come with 50mm spacing standard, but some sgs come with 53s. I measured both the E pole pieces (well, the screws, not sure if theyre the pole pieces, n00b here), and theyre 52mm apart. But then i measured between both the E strings, and i got 50mm.

so this makes me wonder, do i get the 53mm spaced nailbomb to be closer to the 52mm original pup, or do i go for a 50mm spaced nailbomb to match the strings?

Cheers.

[Philly Q]

I'd go with the 50mm to match the actual string spacing.  But it really won't make much difference either way.

Welcome to the forum, by the way!  :)

[RhysPlease]

Cheers :D Been thinking of joining for a while, but only just decided to.

Is the size of the actual housing any different with the different spacings? I mean, a 50mm and a 53mm will both fit the same space, right?

[Lazy_McDoesnothing]

Yeah, just the poles are spaced differently to match the strings.

[RhysPlease]

so i should deffo be going for the 50mm then?

[Lazy_McDoesnothing]

Measure both neck and bridge pickup poles.  If they're both the same AND the bridge pickup poles line up with the strings get 50mm.  If the bridge pickup has wider spacing or they both have the same spacing but the bridge poles don't line up with the strings(e.g. poles too narrow) get F spaced.

[RhysPlease]

The neck pup is around 49-50mm,  so the bridge is bigger for sure. However, the strings dont line up with the bridge pickup, with the 1st string only just reaching the pole. This should mean the spacings too big, and i should get a 50mm, right?

[Lazy_McDoesnothing]

If the pole pieces are outside of the E strings, then yes 50mm should be what you need.

It's not a huge deal if they're not perfectly lined up.  If they're close enough, the sound basically doesn't change and it's just aesthetics.

[Philly Q]

The "modern" Gibson bridge pickups like the 490T, 498T and 500T have a wider polepiece spacing than the "vintage" pickups like the '57 Classics and Burstbuckers (about 52mm vs. 50mm).

They don't really need to be that wide, but sometimes you'll find whoever set up the guitar at the factory has notched the bridge saddles for a slightly wider spacing.  It's best to always judge by the actual string spacing over the pickup.

[Twinfan]

It's best to always judge by the actual string spacing over the pickup.

Yep - that's what I do!