stratocaster guitar

How to Install New Pickups on a Strat-Type Guitar

By Enrico Monsanto

When it's loose enough, remove the neck mounting screws and carefully detach the neck from the body.

Once removed, the volume pot, tone pot and selector switch can now be detached from the pickguard.

Remove the pickguard screws.

Detach the stock pickups from the pickguard.

To totally remove the stock pickups, look for the 3 lugs under the selector switch where the 3 stock pickups are connected. When found, de-solder the 3 "hot" wires from the stock pickups.

De-solder the ground wires of the 3 stock pickups from the back of volume potentiometer.

Now the stock pickups are completely detached.

Attach the replacement pickups to their respective positions in the pickguard.

Check the wiring diagram for the color coding of the new pickup.

Solder tips of the black and white wires together then wrap tightly with electrical tape.

Solder the green and bare wires together then solder properly to the back of the volume pot for grounding.

Solder the red "hot" wire from the pickup to its the corresponding position in the selector switch lug as mentioned in Step#5.

Repeat Steps #9 and #10 for the other two pickups.

* After all soldering jobs, be sure to conduct a visual inspection on all soldering connections. 12. Return the "volume" pot, "tone" pot and selector switch to their rightful places. All wires should stay inside the guitar cavity.

Re-attach the neck to the guitar body's neck joint, then screw tightly.