I used to have a Gibson Royaltone.
The polepiece screws on my steel were sticking up about 1/8" or less above the surface of the pickup. I believe the pickup was mounted flush against the body. It sounded fine to me with the polepieces at that level.
You have to be a little careful adjusting the pickup screws. I tried adjusting the polepieces and ended up snapping he head off the screw. I think the plastic plates on the top and bottom of the pickup had become warped so the screws didn't move freely.
It turns out that the screws were 5-40 machine screws, which is not very common these days. You see 4-40 or 6-32 but not 5-40. Send me an email if you end up needing some 5-40 screws for a Gibson pickup. I have a whole box.
It sure was a nice looking steel. You're making me start to regret ever selling it:
[This message was edited by Gary Anwyl on 28 April 2006 at 04:04 PM.]