Accessories
Measuring Your Guitar's String Clearance For Floating Pickup Installation
It is crucial to measure string clearance accurately to choose the proper pickup, and to assure its proper installation. Take a fine-graduated ruler (a machinist rule is best) and put one end on the soundboard of the guitar, just beyond the end of the fingerboard. Press the low "E" string down at the highest fret (20 to 22 on most guitars) and measure the distance from the bottom of the string to the top of the soundboard. Repeat the operation on the high "E" string and record the results.
Guitars with clearance greater than approx. 9/16" (14mm) may be fitted with virtually any pickup, including all Kent Armstrong models. Guitars with clearance of 7/16" (11mm) or more may use the Armstrong 2D Ultra-Slim pickup. (Clearance requirements are included in the descriptions for all pickups here.) Guitars with lower clearances, or those built with fingerboards attached to the soundboard, may be fitted with bridge pickups like the Pick Up The World, or may attach the 2D Ultra-Slim pickup to the pickguard some distance away from the end of the fingerboard as required.