Help me build my model 3

[AzPilot]

Ok, Some of you might remember the model 3 i bought last month on ebay, I painted it with the checkerboard pattern, then decided i didnt like it, so i spent a day resanding it down. I have primed it and have the first flames painted on, tomorrow the cherry red paint will go on top with the clear coat to follow. So heres the deal, I am going to change the pickups and put a floyd in it. It used to have the JT6, one EMG and two single coil whatever charvel used.
I use it just for fun, practice and my own enjoyment. 50% of the time i like to play ballads, stairway to heaven, type songs, the other time i play a mix of priest, oz, maiden etc. I have NO idea what kind of hardware to put in this thing, but am ready to buy based on the experience of the board members. I need help with the type of pickups, a link would really be nice. The right floyd would be helpful as well.
So what would you put in a gutted model 3?

[dg]

The right floyd is easy. Original Floyd Rose. Any guitar worth playing is worth putting an OFR on, imo. It'll work fine with the JT-6 posts, but if you want to get a little bit more range of motion, Budman makes replacement posts that fit the JT-6 bushings. He also makes the best pickup rings available anywhere, bar none:

http://www.fretsonthenet.net

As far as pickups, go with what suits your tastes and fits the music you play. Tons of great options out there. I'm partial to Duncans, especially the Custom and the Distortion. I also like the Hotrails in the neck position, but you may prefer a true single there. Be aware that the Charvel single coil routes are tight and don't have clearance for the lip that a lot of singles have. Even some of the newer lipless Duncans can be tricky to fit in there due to the stiffness of the lead coming out of the center of the pickup. I still had to do a little undercutting of the route in my Model 6 to fit a lipless Hotrails in without smashing the wires.

Good luck with your project & post pics!

[MortenP]

Hey AZ..
How about a Duncan JB in the bridge, and a stacked humbucker(singlecoil-size) in the neck?

I'd go with an OFR if I had the cash, I think it'd make your fiddle something you'd want to keep for the rest of your days!

[AzPilot]

Thanks guys. I didnt realize there was a difference between an Original floyd, and a regular? floyd. I do see a difference in price. The original goes for quite a bit more. done deal on that. What about EMGs? do you like the duncans better? I know its all about preference but, i have little experience and couldnt tell the difference myself. I would like top of the line stuff for sure. this is going to be a keeper.

[MortenP]

I for one don't want to put EMG's in any of my guitars, as I am under the impression that you can make a cardboard box sound good by putting EMG's in it!(AI it doesn't matter what kind of wood is in your guitar.)

I might be totally wrong, but I'd go with passive electronics as it would have more to say how you play on what sound you'd get..

(But this has been discussed over and over, and I'm probably gonna get a whole lot of flak for saying so

[Alvin_Wilson]

I would suggest an EMG 89 in the bridge and an EMG SA in the middle and neck positions. The 89 is an EMG 85/SA housed in one humbucker size pickup. It has a push/pull pot for splitting. It is a very versatile pickup.

Alvin