Abigail Ybarra, the woman behind the most famous guitar tones in music.

[jaxson50]

She deserves recognition by everyone who loves rock and guitars, 

Quote

For 57 years, Ybarra worked at Fender, where she hand wound pickups, many of which undoubtedly found their way onto guitars played by some of the most important guitarists of our time, including Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, and Jeff Beck.

Dubbed “the queen of tone,” Ybarra is legendary among guitarists, who treasure the pickups that she wound by hand. (Units she wound bear her signature; those whose work she oversaw bear her initials.)

 

Though Ybarra retired in 2013, you can see her at work in the video above, where she winds an Esquire bridge pickup for a Fender master builder. Unlike machine winding, hand winding produces “scatter winds” that are irregular. The wires are not placed as closely to one another as they would be with standard machine winding.

https://www.guitarplayer.com/gear/watch-fender-pickup-artist-abigail-ybarra-hand-wind-an-esquire-bridge

 

Edited May 20, 2021 by jaxson50

[Sgt. Pepper]

She wound a ton up pups for Fender, no doubt about that.

[Big Bill]

I slept with her mother!

[slimt]

So that defines hand wiring? 

[Sgt. Pepper]

After doing that about five times, I would be bored. Winding the pups not sleeping with her mother.

Edited May 20, 2021 by Sgt. Pepper

[Sgt. Pepper]

12 minutes ago, Big Bill said:

I slept with her mother!

That's a Great GMILF.

[jaxson50]

10 hours ago, slimt said:

So that defines hand wiring? 

Yes, the bobbin or pickup core ss loaded on a autowinder , then the operator guides the wire over the metal cowl onto the bobbin,  if you don't look close you would mistakenly think she isn't doing anything,  watch again, she is guiding the raw wire between her thumb and index finger, the wire is very fine, the camera barely picks it up.

Abby is a legend in the Fender company, 

[jaxson50]

 

[rct]

I met the lady carrying on in her place, works at her old station.  Abby had just retired when we were there.  This lady has now become the one to have your Fenders made by.  Seymour has his own Abby, her name is Maricela Juarez.  She made my CS Pearly Gates for my #1 Tele.  These individuals do become their own thing and getting their pickups means something.  I had Abbys in one of my 'spensive Teles in the early 2000's.  Sold them in ten seconds.

rct

[duane v]

Funny thing the Fender Strat I just got a few months back the neck pickup stopped working and it had AY written on all three pickups.... I guess she fell asleep that day on that one... lol 

[Rabs]

I wonder if she is in this footage somewhere?

 

[slimt]

40 minutes ago, Rabs said:

I wonder if she is in this footage somewhere?

 

That is a Neat vid.    

[Mr. Natural]

On 5/20/2021 at 12:46 PM, Big Bill said:

I slept with her mother!

Bragger!