So I have an inexpensive mandolin rail pick up that I have set in the neck position on my latest build. The guitar has really nice low action but the mandolin pick up rail is a very high so the strings hit it as soon as I fret above the 12th.
I have run out of space to set the pick up any deeper, but have a good quarter inch of rail that I could probably just grind or file down.
Any reason I shouldn't ?

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Grinding it down will probably reduce the output of the pickup a tad, but should work. Another way would be to try an Elmar Flatpup, a Dan Sleep Thinbucker (though with his current state of health, not available for several months), or a Lace Matchbook.

I suspect Oily might be right, also it will rust quickly unless treated, is there any excess packaging underneath that can be removed to give you an extra couple of mm's?

It depends on how the pickup is constructed. Grinding could possibly make enough vibrations to break the magnet wire, unless you can remove the blades from the coil to work on it. 

If there is a ceramic or alnico bar magnet on the bottom, you may be able to swap that out for some very thin neodymium magnets and reduce some height that way. 

In general, for taller pickups, you either need to not have a neck through design, or if you do, you need to cut a notch in the neck to accommodate the height of the pickup. You may need to add an additional board below the notch to get the depth desired and maintain strength. 

Thanks for the replies everyone! I ended up trying to drill some space in the bottom for the pick up, but accidentally hit the Circuit board wiring on the bottom of the thing and pretty much destroyed it. I have stupidly glued thing together in a way that did not allow me to remove the pick up, so I ended up cutting into the top of the box the right way so the pick up could be taken out and dropping them a nice dual rail from foundry tone. It works great and is probably the best sounding guitar have made. So live and learn!

The old saying that experience is the best teacher can be true, but it can also be the most expensive teacher.

There's a lot of tutorial DIY videos that can be found using a good Google search. Many Videos to be found on YouTube.

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