I ended up buying a brand new set of Lindy Fralin Humbuckings, but mine are 8.5k at the neck and 9.5k at the bridge. I took them to Joe Glaser's shop (a well known guitar tech here in Nashville) and had (Tom), install them for me. We also replaced all pots with CTS brand, switch, and a new wiring harness.... and let me tell you that this guitar ROCKKKKKS now with presence and clarity! At first, I was a little apprehensive about stepping up a bit from the normal (7.5 - 8.5k) but... I have to say that it the right thing to do. Not only that I have a FAT tone that I like, but I can now hear a little bit of compression on my high notes, when everything is wide open (E. Johnson, violin, etc...) for soloing, which is what I always shoot for. Extremely happy with the Fralin pickups. Cost of the pickups was $305.00 at "Rock Block Guitars" in Nashville, and the replaced parts/wiring/labor was about $250.00 . Also included a set up/strings, etc... Way, worth every penny.