Vintage Pickguard Question

[SoK66]

Pretty common issue. My '68's pickguard was in a box for 3 decades before I dug it out and reinstalled as part of a restoration. I just drilled new holes where it didn't line up. None of the repros did it for me. The tortoise shell guard for my '64 Strat had shrunk so badly it was pulling out the screws and squeezing and tilting the pickups so badly I was afraid it was going to damage the coils. The guitar had been literally in a closet for years and the off-gassing of the nitrocellulose yellowed the finish on the top. Vintage pickguards can be vexing.

 

[EsquireOK]

Don't do anything to it. You can't fix it, and you'll only damage it more.

I suggest storing it in a glassine envelope in a file cabinet, until you're ready to sell the guitar.

 

[dogmeat]

well.... there is a thing called "rejuvenator" for aircraft nitro and butyrate dopes. it has solvents to soften, and a plasticizer to make the old finish more flexible. it makes old cracked dopes soft again, and done right, the surface cracks flow back together. I have applied it to fabric aircraft finishes many times during repair work. I have thought of trying it on old plastic just to see if would work but never have. on old aircraft dope & fabric you apply it, and the fabric goes slack as the dope relaxes. over a day or so, the fabric comes back to tension as the solvents evaporate, the surface finish is left solid and flexible. the only company making it now that I know of it is "Randolph's". their part number is J-3000. if anybody wants to send me a sample for testing.....

 

[fromthebeginning]

Ya may want to get ahold of crazy parts in Germany, they did me a very vintage accurate guard on my 64, In real nitrate with the wide black line.
Very happy with the work they did.
I am very picky about this kind of stuff.

Finally heard back from Crazy, they unfortunately can’t help, all they have is standard white. I guess they don’t actually custom make them as one off’s. But thanks for the recommendation.

 

[scotabilly]

I have a '68 Tele that came with a black pickguard the previous owner had installed. He gave me the original white pickguard with the pearled backing, but it had shrunk quite a bit. Literally no screw holes line up. He tried to install it when he bought the guitar, and filed out the area where the control plate fits. It would still be usable on a new project, but it's not going back on this guitar.

 

[scotabilly]

 

[fromthebeginning]

Take the picture posted, and compare to any real 64, I think crazy parts did better than any I have seen. Including the custom shop, the colors seem spot on.
The nylon parts they make are the same, and used above. They also look correct also under a blacklight .

Then look at what the custom shop does. The fender cs is not even close.
Not in materials ,shades of color. Or even the font’s used.

Are they 100% perfect? Well no, but the best I have seen so far.

I heard back from Crazy Parts, they aren’t able to help, thanks for the recommendation.

 

[scotabilly]

I think Guitars Electric in the UK makes some nice repro pickguards

 

[bender66]

I lost my cnc guy for all my plastic needs. I looked all over at what people are charging. With that amount of money I'm gonna go to my local makerspace and invest it in myself, see if I can learn the fine art of designing/cutting plastics using their space/expertise. Wish me luck.

 

[FenderLover]

I lost my cnc guy for all my plastic needs. I looked all over at what people are charging. With that amount of money I'm gonna go to my local makerspace and invest it in myself, see if I can learn the fine art of designing/cutting plastics using their space/expertise. Wish me luck.

I would think with CNC and software these days, one could replicate a 'shrunken' pickguard with any hole pattern desired. The next step in relic technology.