mosriteforum.com

No way I can do it...but on ebay someone has a Jonas Ridge V3 body in metallic blue burst-nitrocellulose finish. It's a great start for a very cool project. I don't know how the original 3-pickup types were wired, but it seems to offer some interesting tonal options.
It would be fun...

Strat-o-rama wrote:No way I can do it...
It would be fun...

You'd be surprised what you could do if you just dive in and do it. And you are right, it would be a fun project.

Yea. I would then be searching for a Jonas Ridge neck. Some guy has them once in a blue moon...unfinished, but haven't seen any in a while. Would otherwise require an Ellison of California neck.
I can pretty easily visualize what it would look like...I'm giving myself GAS thinking about it.

Strat-o-rama posted:
........"Would otherwise require an Ellison of California neck."

Well since most everyone seems to recognize the Mosrite Pickups as "P-90s,"
which are known to be on Gibson Les Paul and SG Specials,
We could "DUB" it on the Ellison Headstock:
"the DUBTRUB Special"

I don't technically know what the differences are between a P90 and a Mk1 Mosrite pickup, but to my ear the Mosrite falls more into a Gretsch-like tonality, not a Gibson.

Strat-o-rama wrote:I don't technically know what the differences are between a P90 and a Mk1 Mosrite pickup, but to my ear the Mosrite falls more into a Gretsch-like tonality, not a Gibson.

Strat-o-rama,

The Gibson P-90s were the single coil p'ups used on the early SG Specials, the early Les Pauls as well as the early "ES series" such as the ES-175, 300, 350, etc. They came with either what they called "Dog Ears" Style pickup cover, which wasn't anything more than an excess 'flap' on both sides of the pickup in such it could be mounted to the guitars. The majority of these were used on the Electric Spanish Models. However, they were also found on the early L.P.Jr, SG Jr, and such. The other style was what they called the "Soap Bar." The P'up mounting screws went actually through the pickup between the B and G, and the D and A strings. A lot of folks consider the Gibson P-90 pickup to be sort of like a Hot Rodded version of the Fender Jazzmaster Pickup, being that it was a lot "hotter" in Output.
The Mosrite was a Single Coil as well, and the Dimensions of the P'up were close to a P-90, not to mention from a certain distance, they almost looked identical, only difference being that the Mosrite had the Pickup Ring.
And you are right my dear Sir, the Gretsch and the Mosrite sound VERY CLOSE tone wise, but that would be only the Gretsches with "High-Lo" Pickups, which are the Single Coil Models...

Hey Strat-0.

Have you seen this Mosrite project on eBay? http://cgi.ebay.com/1960S-MOSRITE-GUITA ... dZViewItem

Regarding Mosrite pickups, here's the patent drawings depicting Semie Moseley's design. Unless you really understand the make up of a pickup, these drawings can be a little confusing. I have studied them until I was cross eyed and even dismantled my Hallmark pickups for comparison. The Hallmarks are virtually the same. That's why they sound so good.

Normal single coil pickups have the copper wire winding either around the magnetic pole pieces or they use bar magnets at the bottom. Semie use the bar magnets and coil set wide apart as in figure 17 of the drawing. That is what gives it it's unique sound similar to a Fender Jazzmaster, which BTW are constructed similar in regards to the wide coil, however Jazzmaster's do not use bar magnets. Wide and shallow coils wound hot is what makes a Mosrite sound like a Mosrite. Don't be surprised if you see some replica Mosrite pickups come out of Dubtrub's 'Ellison of California Custom Shop' in the not to distant future.

Danny,
thanks for the e-bay link. Looks like a unique fixer upper. I have a feeling in the last few minutes it will soar way beyond what is reasonable for me (the blue body did).
The Hallmark pickups are supposedly near exact copies, except they have eliminated microphonic feedback problems the originals may have (potted?).

For what it's worth, I emailed the guy with the white mosrite in the ebay auction to ask what he'd take for the whole thing, and he wanted $1200. A bit to much for me to spend, especially on a project. Looking at the vibrato assembly, I wonder if this was originally a 12 string guitar that's got a replacement neck and a celebrity vibrato?

MWaldorf wrote:For what it's worth, I emailed the guy with the white mosrite in the ebay auction to ask what he'd take for the whole thing, and he wanted $1200. A bit to much for me to spend, especially on a project. Looking at the vibrato assembly, I wonder if this was originally a 12 string guitar that's got a replacement neck and a celebrity vibrato?

Reading the auction description the seller mentions Gene Moles and this being one of his guitars. I used to visit Gene's guitar shop periodically and knew him on a casual basis. Gene purchased a lot of the Mosrite stock when Semie went belly up. A lot of the inventory that Gene had was incompleted necks and bodies and a boat load of miscellaneous parts. Gene was a darn good self taught luthier, so any guitar Gene put together either as a scratch built or parts guitar would be first cabin. However, that still doesn't put a Gene Moles guitar in same league as a Mosrite and $1200 would be pushing it for a refin. It would be cool to have one of Gene's parts Mosrite completed by Gene in it's original un molested condition.