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Thread: Raised Pickguard

  1. #1
    Forum Member deepblue1963's Avatar
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    Raised Pickguard

    I am having trouble getting my pickguard to lay flat.
    It's perfect everywhere except between the bridge pup and the bridge itself. It is raised a tad.

    I'm stumped.

  2. #2
    Forum Member Don's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    Is it a single layer guard on a Strat? The often do that.

  3. #3
    Forum Member curtisstetka's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    Would that indicate that a screw hole might be a bit misplaced? Maybe plug and re-drill?

    Also - pickguards are cheap. Replacing it might be the easiest solution.
    s'all goof.

  4. #4
    Forum Member deepblue1963's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    It's a single ply pickguard on my Eric Johnson Strat.

  5. #5
    Forum Member Kap'n's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    Can EJ tell the sonic difference between warped and flat pickguards?
    Several guitars in different colors
    Things to make them fuzzy
    Things to make them louder
    orange picks

  6. #6
    Gravity Jim
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    He likes 'em warped, but just a little.

    I'm with Don: those single ply guards are going to warp and buckle. (Is that why they went to the 3-ply guards?) And with Curtis: I'd just replace it.

  7. #7
    Forum Member Kap'n's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    They don't all warp. My parchment one on my Am Series strat is flat. But it might have the 11 screw pattern designed to keep stuff flat.
    Several guitars in different colors
    Things to make them fuzzy
    Things to make them louder
    orange picks

  8. #8
    Forum Member curtisstetka's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    On my part-o-caster I have a single ply pickguard that Warmoth made. It's thicker material than typical single ply.
    s'all goof.

  9. #9
    Forum Member Don's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    Quote Originally Posted by Kap'n View Post
    They don't all warp.
    The '57 re-issue single ply guard on my Strat is completely flat, even with only 8 mounting screws.

    The original single ply guard on my '57 Strat was like a Pringles potato crisp! Wavy as heck!

  10. #10
    Gravity Jim
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    Quote Originally Posted by curtisstetka View Post
    On my part-o-caster I have a single ply pickguard that Warmoth made. It's thicker material than typical single ply.
    That's true... Warmoth offers solid white, black and matte black single-ply guards in a .06 thickness for vintage correctness, and a 50% thicker .09 for, I assume, less warpage.

  11. #11
    Forum Member NeoFauve's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    If it's warped, it's warped. You might be able to flatten it with a warm iron.
    If it's due to the pickguard holes being off, you should notice it being hard to allign w/the holes in the body.

    If it will lay flat without any screws in place, or w/some of the srews (near the raised part) removed or loosened, you might be able to enlarge a couple of holes (not the countersinks) and reduce the kink that's causing the hump.

    If it's a EJ design feature spec'd by EJ himself, for superior resonance , listen more carefully.
    It probably sounds better than having a piece of plastic screwed tight to the "breathing" wood.
    "Well, I used to be disgusted, now I try to be amused..."
    Elvis Costello

  12. #12
    Forum Member Kap'n's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    There's always double-stick tape, too.
    Several guitars in different colors
    Things to make them fuzzy
    Things to make them louder
    orange picks

  13. #13
    Forum Member Don's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    I tried double stick tape on my '57 and it didn't work very well. It would tack down for moments at a time and then pop back up.

    I decided that it was the nature of the beast and left it alone.

  14. #14
    Forum Member NeoFauve's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    Yeah. "Tone-robbing" double-stick tape.

    "Well, I used to be disgusted, now I try to be amused..."
    Elvis Costello

  15. #15
    Forum Member yankeerob's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    This phenomena is not exclusive to single layer 'pickguards' or 'scratchplates' as they call 'em here... I've been fooking around with 'electric guitars' for nearly 40 yrs... lot's of 'stuff' causes this... not enough clearance under the pickup routing and poor consideration of where the wires need to go... like others have mentioned... screw hole positioning... how about this one... thermal cycling... it doesn't mean jack... I just watched a vid of Elliott Randall playing the same Strat he's been using for years with a smile on his face... do you think he'd be worried about a little bit of buckling in his pickguard if he's still getting what he wanted out of it?... sorry...... but this thread - for me - is offset by an observation of a really, really nice guy (ER) who continues to get on (yup - with that same Strat with a H/B in the neck)... the proliferation of 'what is my guitar gonna be worth in time' taking over the enjoyment of owning, playing, maintaining and 'fooking around with' an instrument has gone on for toooooo long....
    If I could find a road to get away it wouldn't be too soon....... Shipwreck Moon.......

  16. #16
    Gravity Jim
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    Wow. Thanks for setting us straight.

  17. #17
    Forum Member yankeerob's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    Quote Originally Posted by silent j. View Post
    Wow. Thanks for setting us straight.
    I'm a realist...
    If I could find a road to get away it wouldn't be too soon....... Shipwreck Moon.......

  18. #18
    Forum Member yankeerob's Avatar
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    Re: Raised Pickguard

    and you missed an opportunity to correct my grammar... it's phenomenon in the singular....
    If I could find a road to get away it wouldn't be too soon....... Shipwreck Moon.......

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