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Scratch Plate/Pick Guard


Rookery

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I have a gloss black dreadnought guitar that came with no scratch plate from new. I've bought one of those hummingbird style after-market ones, self-adhesive backed. Has anyone ever fixed one successfully or otherwise? I'd be well miffed if it came off and left a nasty mark.

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I have a gloss black dreadnought guitar that came with no scratch plate from new. I've bought one of those hummingbird style after-market ones, self-adhesive backed. Has anyone ever fixed one successfully or otherwise? I'd be well miffed if it came off and left a nasty mark.

You can proceed without worries. Should you not like the applied pickguard later on (it won't come off on its own -- the adhesive is very effective), it's easily removable. A hairdryer to heat up the adhesive underneath and some oil to rub the glue off suffice to perfectly remove the application. Been there, done that.

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You can proceed without worries. Should you not like the applied pickguard later on (it won't come off on its own -- the adhesive is very effective), it's easily removable. A hairdryer to heat up the adhesive underneath and some oil to rub the glue off suffice to perfectly remove the application. Been there, done that.

 

Ditto, many times

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I have a gloss black dreadnought guitar that came with no scratch plate from new. I've bought one of those hummingbird style after-market ones, self-adhesive backed. Has anyone ever fixed one successfully or otherwise? I'd be well miffed if it came off and left a nasty mark.

 

Just a quick question...what is your purpose for the pickguard? That may sound like a rather "obtuse" question, but I'll explain why I asked.

 

I have 14 guitars and the only one with a pickguard is my Epiphone Dot jazzbox, and that one is removed, but just because I don't like how it hides the fine appearance of the soundboard on my Dot. The reason I do not like a pickguard (and when I ordered my Breedlove custom shop Revival 000 I specified "pickguard delete") is that the majority of the sound emanating from a guitar is produced by the soundboard. IMHO, adding a pickguard to the soundboard tends to diminish the tone of the guitar. It's like a guitar with a laminate top to add a pick-guard, IMHO, because the function of the soundboard is to vibrate and excite the air inside the body of the guitar into vibrations...which we perceive as sound...and when you adhere an object with dissimilar vibratory characteristics you interfere with the sounboard's ability to vibrate, which can only diminish not only the volume of the guitar, but also the tone and sustain.

 

Keep in mind this is only MY opinion, but it's one I developed over the past 50 years with this box in my hands. I fully understand the desire to maintain an instrument's appearance...many of my guitars were purchased specifically because of their appearance, particularly my handmade concert grade Hippner classical guitar and my custom shop Breedlove...but as a lifelong instrumentalist I have focused my efforts on developing and maintaining the tonal characteristics of each of my guitars. I guess I don't mind a scratch or two on the soundboard...would rather have that than a guitar whose sound character was even in the least bit "muted" by anything...as I play I am very careful not to rest my forearm on the guitar, which would also "dampen" the vibrations of the soundboard. I can hear a huge difference in the tone of my high-end guitars if I keep my forearm free of contact with the body of the guitar.

 

Life's all about choices...I am not criticizing yours, just explaining mine.

 

I hope your project turns out to be more than you expected [thumbup]

 

Cheers from Dugly B)

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The pick guard's/ primary purpose is to protect the guitar's top from being scratched from guitar pick(s) used when playing a guitar....a cosmetic thing, but it could also be a structural thing if a guitar pick's constant scratching of a guitar results in a hole in the top. It can also be purely a cosmetic thing as pickguards and pickguard designs can also be tied to how a guitar looks or is identified. The first purpose becomes a mute point if a player doesn't use a pick or picks, but the cosmetic function still remains...except, of course on a classical guitar or on a steel string guitar, if a player/owner decides a preference is to not have one on a guitar or, if a player, such as yourself, feels the sound is compromised by a pickguard being on the top.

 

No right or wrong here...just personal preferences...and, hopefully an answer to your question.

 

QM aka Jazzman Jeff

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I often replace pick guards on guitars I buy to ones I find more appealing. I'm sure there are other ways of making certain you get it stuck right the FIRST time. But this is how I do it. And it's worked well for me.

First carefully place guard exactly where you like it. The using small strips of blue painters tape, tape it down in a couple of places so that it does not move. Then using the painters tape, carefully tape AROUND other edges of the guard at strategic points. Make the tape about 3 layers thick so that you have an edge template that you can use to re-align the guard perfectly when you apply it. Even then the application is somewhat tricky. But you push just the edges of the guard up against the tape template. Hopefully getting it position correctly the 1st time. But even if don't, you only have the edge stuck to the guitar and can much more easily remove it for another try. Once you think you have it right, apply the remaining portion of the guard. The trick is in the strategic tape template. If you get the pieces in the right places, it's easy to align the new guard. Hope this helps.

The 2nd post of this thread has pic of one I did on my DR-100.

http://forum.gibson.com/index.php?/topic/125538-modding-my-dr-100/page__p__1710041__fromsearch__1#entry1710041

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The tail end of this (page 2) discusses how to install a pickguard: http://frets.com/FretsPages/Luthier/Technique/Guitar/Pickguards/Pickguard/pickguard2.html I know some luthiers and repairmen/women who place the pickguard down where it should go, then use blue tape to tape one side, making sort of a hinge. Then they fold back the pickguard, remove the paper protecting the adhesive, and swing the pickguard into place and press it down.

 

What about a clear pickguard? http://frets.com/FretsPages/Luthier/Technique/Guitar/Pickguards/ClearGuard/clearguard1.html

 

And if you change your mind, here's Frank Ford on removing a self-adhesive pickguard: http://frets.com/FretsPages/Luthier/Technique/Guitar/Pickguards/PeelGuard/peelguard.html

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The tail end of this (page 2) discusses how to install a pickguard: http://frets.com/FretsPages/Luthier/Technique/Guitar/Pickguards/Pickguard/pickguard2.html I know some luthiers and repairmen/women who place the pickguard down where it should go, then use blue tape to tape one side, making sort of a hinge. Then they fold back the pickguard, remove the paper protecting the adhesive, and swing the pickguard into place and press it down.

Heck, that's better than my way. I'm doing it that way next time!

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The pick guard's/ primary purpose is to protect the guitar's top from being scratched from guitar pick(s) used when playing a guitar....a cosmetic thing, but it could also be a structural thing if a guitar pick's constant scratching of a guitar results in a hole in the top. It can also be purely a cosmetic thing as pickguards and pickguard designs can also be tied to how a guitar looks or is identified. The first purpose becomes a mute point if a player doesn't use a pick or picks, but the cosmetic function still remains...except, of course on a classical guitar or on a steel string guitar, if a player/owner decides a preference is to not have one on a guitar or, if a player, such as yourself, feels the sound is compromised by a pickguard being on the top.

 

No right or wrong here...just personal preferences...and, hopefully an answer to your question.

 

QM aka Jazzman Jeff

 

Correct you are, JJ...no right or wrong, personal preference rules! Protecting the appearance of a guitar is a perfectly good reason to want a pickguard!

 

Life is all about choices...I was just posing a question regarding which issue was most important to the OP.

 

My first guitar was a classical guitar (and they are STILL my favorite type of guitar). My handmade Hippner concert grade classical guitar is the one I play when I perform onstage or in competitions. In fact, I didn't own a steel-string guitar until I had been playing a classical for 35 years...I tried, but the Ovation I bought second hand had the narrowest fretboard I've ever played, so it was useless, and the Yamaha I bought hurt my fingers...I didn't even mind when the Ovation was stolen in a burglary, but I sure do miss the classical that was stolen at the same time.

 

I own multiple classicals...NEVER will a pick touch those strings or that soundboard, they are only played fingerstyle.

 

My acoustics and electric guitars all get played with a pick and fingerstyle, both...but no pickguard, I don't mind a few scratches, although playing even my steel-string guitars in a "classical guitar" posture seems to allow me to hold my forearm away from the body of the guitar, so none of my acoustic steel-string guitars seem to be scratched, either.

 

My Epi Dot doesn't get much play time, but my Epi LP "copy" does...it's solid body and was only $100, so I enjoy wailing on that one...it'll get scratched and I don't care!

 

Willie Nelson's "Trigger" is a perfect example of what can happen with a pick and no pickguard, but it doesn't seem to hamper Willie much... [thumbup]

 

Like I say...life's all about choices...it's ALL good!

 

Cheers!

 

YerDugliness [cool]

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