Bare Knuckle Review

I first learned of Bare Knuckle about a year ago. I was searching for a new set of pickups for my newly acquired MIJ Fender fotoflame strat. I was really happy with this guitar ('cept for the pickups) and I wanted to put the best sounding vintage 1962 era strat pickups I could into this guitar.

On a message board I found a post that told a story of two old timers running a vintage music store and they would not play anything built before 1965. However, these guys were just raving about Bare Knuckle pickups. The poster was just throwing their name out in response to one of those "what pickup should I put into my axe?" threads. Well this intrigued me so I started asking around about Bare Knuckle and I was overwhelmed with overwhelming positive responses! Two people told me something that I found most convincing: "Once you put Bare Knuckles in a guitar you will have to put Bare Knuckles in all your guitars!".

I also checked into the company itself and learned a little bit about Tim Mills, the owner and pickup winder extraordiar. He simply goes to great lengths to recreate the vintage strat and humbucker designs. Many materials that can't be sourced are constructed in-house. All Bare Knuckle pickups are hand-wound or scatter-wound. I believe that the scatter-winding technique is what sets these pickups apart. Coupled by the fact that Tim is obviously a master at winding pickups. Tim explained that even after the vintage correct components are sourced, the bottom line is winding the pickup so that it sounds the way you want it too.

To make a long story short I was very impressed with my set of Mothers Milk Bare Knuckles. In my mind, Bare Knuckle is a pickup that goes beyond your expectation. After I heard these pickups in my guitar I was 100% satisfied with the tone and response. As far as that strat goes, I have finished searching for the 'best' pickup. I'll never worry about it again. I just look forward to picking out the appropriate set of Bare Knuckles for my next axe.

Buying a Bare Knuckle pickup is like having a master of his craft custom design and hand build a pickup for your guitar and taste. Bare Knuckle has an impressive and diverse line of pickups and you can go over your requirements before Bare Knuckle actually winds your set. I was surprised to learn that on top of making the best vintage era strat pickups I have ever heard, Tim also has a complete line of hi gain humbuckers and plays guitar in an Ozzy tribute band! Now I have full confidence in buying Bare Knuckle regardless of the tone or genre of pickup I need. Simply amazing. Again, I think what sets Bare Knuckle apart from other pickups (including the big dogs) is that Tim is an expert winder. A man with a gift or magic touch. Maybe one day he will reveal his secretes as he obviously has a few.

Please comment on this review or further discuss Bare Knuckle Pickups at Bare Knuckle Pickup Discussion.