Hey everyone. I haven't been playing guitar for many years, but I've recently been wanting to get back into it. I own a Fender Vintage Hot Rod '52 Telecaster (see pic), which I've always loved for its neck feel and overall tone. The thing is, while I actually like the sound of the Seymour Duncan mini humbucker in the neck position, I find it really ugly. It just doesn't look right to me on a Tele. I'd love to go back to the "typical" Telecaster look with a standard single coil neck pickup under a regular pickguard.

That said, I'd like to keep a warm, full, smooth neck sound. I don't like trebly or harsh tones (I know, this is somewhat typical for Teles...). The mini humbucker currently gives me that warmth and I'd like to get as close to it as possible with a single coil.

A few specific questions:

1. **Is the swap physically doable?** I know the neck rout on the Hot Rod '52 is cut specifically for the mini humbucker (84mm x 30mm), which is larger than a standard Tele neck pickup. I'm assuming I'll need a new pickguard to cover the oversized cavity. Anything else I should be aware of?
2. **What pickup would you recommend for the warmest possible neck tone?** I've been looking at options like the SD Alnico II Pro or SD Quarter Pound neck, but it's hard to understand tone from YouTube videos. Open to suggestions from anyone who's done something similar.
3. **Do I need to swap both pickups, or just the neck?** I've read that the stock bridge pickup on the Hot Rod has reverse polarity to match the SD mini humbucker, and that putting in a standard pickup could cause phase issues in the middle switch position. Would a Seymour Duncan neck single coil be in phase with the stock bridge? What about Fender or other brands?
4. **Should I change anything in the wiring?** I read the Hot Rod comes with 375k pots. If I'm going to a single coil neck, should I swap to 250k pots to tame the brightness further?

Thanks in advance for any help!

Changing the neck pickup in my Vintage Hot Rod '52 Tele