How to make a pickguard when one is probably not able to make a pickguard

A fine day to you!

My Yamaha pacifica tele is a sweet guitar, but the pearloid pickguard is a bit too blingy for my taste. It seems nobody makes pickguards for these yamaha teles, so i suppose i would need to make it myself. I have an extreme lack of tools and skills though, and i wondered what was the easiest way of going at it, without huge investments (but still with a nice pickguard). I'd just like to make it cream coloured (in line with the binding), or black. i read that a jigsaw can be your friend in this kind of endeavour. How likely is it to do a good job when you have never wielded the jigsaw? And how does one cut out the cavity for the neck pickup?
gracias!

A fine day to you!

My Yamaha pacifica tele is a sweet guitar, but the pearloid pickguard is a bit too blingy for my taste. It seems nobody makes pickguards for these yamaha teles, so i suppose i would need to make it myself. I have an extreme lack of tools and skills though, and i wondered what was the easiest way of going at it, without huge investments (but still with a nice pickguard). I'd just like to make it cream coloured (in line with the binding), or black. i read that a jigsaw can be your friend in this kind of endeavour. How likely is it to do a good job when you have never wielded the jigsaw? And how does one cut out the cavity for the neck pickup?
gracias!

I would say no to the jigsaw...

The best approach would be with a router or laminate trimmer. Using the original PG as a template or to make a template. If you haven't used a router either, get some help from someone who has.:!:

Here's (http://www.tdpri.com/forum/tele-home-depot/195748-new-build-ash-tele-3.html) how I do it.

http://www.crenshawweb.com/ash/body111.jpg

Peace,
Mark

You're probably better off taking your original pickguard to someone who makes custom pickguards. It will probably cost less than buying the tools to do it yourself.

I was comparing pictures of the Pacifica with a normal Tele to see if a Tele pickguard would fit. It seems the only issue with trying to use a normal Tele pickguard is that the lower horn of the Pacifica looks much more narrow, almost like a Strat. Is that the case?

You can try contacting these guys and see if they'll do it for you. You might be able to send your current pickguard in for them to use as a template.

http://www.pickguardian.com/pickguardian/

I make black single ply picguards using High Impact Polystyrene Sheet, the stuff they use for vacuum forming. It cuts with a sturdy craft knife, drills and files easily, and the plastic usually has a matt and a glossy side too.

For making a black or white pickguard it works pretty good, the trouble is that other colours it seems to come in are primary shades and may be a bit too bright.

You can also buy pickguard blanks in more guitar-friendly colours, buy it is harder work to cut, and is best sent to a specialist to make one, unless your very handy with a router, or very patient with knives, files and drills.

I was comparing pictures of the Pacifica with a normal Tele to see if a Tele pickguard would fit. It seems the only issue with trying to use a normal Tele pickguard is that the lower horn of the Pacifica looks much more narrow, almost like a Strat. Is that the case?

http://www.pickguardian.com/pickguardian/

indeed, and the pacifica has a switch mounted directly on the pickguard, and no cutout for the control plate. I've noticed there's some places that do indeed make custom pickguards, but that would feel a bit less like an accomplishment. On the other hand, i don't have fancy tools, nor do i know how to use them. So in the end it may be wiser to let it be done by someone who knows how to do it. Then again, a man needs to try...

Maybe i could cover it in some stylish wallpaper, or paint it.

Where would i find these high impact polystyrene sheets? I think black would suit me perfectly fine.

Do you have access to Krylon brand spray paints? If so, their Fusion line is designed to be sprayed onto plastic.

[QUOTE=mr.jef;2470768] So in the end it may be wiser to let it be done by someone who knows how to do it. Then again, a man needs to try...


I vote for "try"....jump in and get your feet wet. You might look at some of the threads on the $210 Tele build challenge to see how others are making their own p/guards and some of the tools used, you'll get some great ideas, saw one using a vinyl record as a p/g. I believe there is one builder that used a coping saw to cut out his body. If he can cut a body out with a coping saw you can cut a p/guard out. For the challenge, I'm building only my second guitar which includes making a p/g. Not complete yet, but you can see the process I've followed so far in posts 75 and 76 under "roll the dice". You might also Google Mcmaster-Carr and look up garolite (same material as "bakelite") in the 1/16" size, used by Fender early on for p/guards.

Jump in!

P.S. I'm also a beginner that had no experience until 10 months ago.

If you have a router table, here a little tutorial I put together a few years ago.

http://www.tdpri.com/telephoto/showgallery.php/cat/609

I have in the past used a pickguard as a template for a replacement. I elevate the pickguard off the pickguard material with double sided tape. I cut a smaller pickguard spacer out of junk wood to fit directly underneath the master and slighly offset inside the perimeter, so the spacer doesn't cut any wood. It looks like a sandwich with the pickguard/wood/pickguard material stacked and taped together. Cutting off the excess pickguard material near the drawn perimeter line ,and using a flush trim bit, it duplicates the master pattern pretty easily. You need to keep your fingers away from the cutter and hold onto the material so that it doesn't get away from you since the bearing is only riding on the thin edge of the pickguard. This is all done on a router table.

I used Terrapin Pickguards (http://terrapinguitars.com/) for mine. He charged me $60.

I am a graphic artist and drew the PG in Adobe Illustrator. Mine was a custom job made to cover more like a thinline PG. I had some shipping damage and one of the pots, knob and all was "punched" through the top. BUT I have the original PG drawing too.

Mine is the 311MS (mike stern lower end model) so I'm not sure if it will help you, but John Polk is familiar with it now.

I offered that he could have the template. I can send it to him or you can download here:
pacifica pickguard (http://www.lakiukulele.com/clients/guitar/pacifica_pickguard.pdf)

BTW, the one he made me off my template drawing fit perfect!

I saw his site indeed, and when the 0€ projects don't work out, and money comes my way, i would seriously consider it. Just yesterday i tried (and well, ungratefully not really heeding the advice of everyone here (sorry!)) making one from the cover of an old german record. It's vaguely racing green tissue on cardboard, with golden letters saying MU MUSIK SIK. From a meter away, it looks great. Close up, it looks horrible. But it got me thinking, that maybe i can make something from an old book cover (the ones bound in fabric or leather, with golden letters). Or a black linoleum floor tile. Or oh well, we'll see

I can't remember where I saw it, but someone cut one from a garbage bin.

After some searching for replacement materials (i like the garbage bin idea), i've decided to go for a more ambitious approach. So i got myself a nice sheet of B/W/B, and i'll try to carve a pickguard out of that (which i am going to do with a jigsaw, a drill, an exactoknife and sanding paper). I'll post some pics when i'm done