Buc McMaster Posted March 28 Share Posted March 28 (edited) While I really like this 185, the original pickguard does nothing for me at all and have been debating with myself about removing it and replacing with my favorite guard material, fire stripe. I have been reluctant to remove the guard............cleaning up the adhesive residue would require the use of some products that the finish has reacted to badly in the past (naphtha, polishing compound, Virtuoso cleaner. This morning, on a whim, lifted the edge of the guard with a fingernail and just kept going...............peeled right up intact, leaving behind some serious residue. Managed to clean it up quite well with naphtha, exposing the tan line I expected. I will send the original guard to a couple different makers (one after the other) to be copied in fire stripe........results later. Even with the tan line it looks pretty good without a guard............ Edited March 28 by Buc McMaster Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc McMaster Posted March 29 Author Share Posted March 29 (edited) This fire stripe guard I landed a few weeks ago was not the right profile..............a false start or two is often in order. You can see some of the tan line under the high E and B strings. The back is covered with clear kitchen wrap to allow the transparency show without sticking it to the top...........just a look at what fire stripe might look like on this one. Sending the original guard as a template will make for an exact copy. Edited March 29 by Buc McMaster Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 I’m a black pickguard guy. But it’s yours. It looks weird to ME. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorristownSal Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 Creme maybe? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave F Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 I like the one that came on my SJ. Has what looks like a gold glitter or marbling background with a little translucency. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G Man Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 Get in touch with Taylor from Holter Pickguards, https://holterpickguards.com/product-category/all/gibson/. A little pricey, but he definitely makes a quality product. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc McMaster Posted March 29 Author Share Posted March 29 Not a popular mod, it seems.........ah well. I have a propensity to not leave well enough alone.......try this, tweak that.......change for the sake of change to satisfy curiosity. And so it is with this. And it's not an irreversible change..........if the fire stripe becomes tiresome it can always be changed......again...... I do like look of the mockup with the bad guard............the fire stripes visually connect to the lines of the strings and the split parallelogram inlays in my twisted mind.......the more I consider it the more I like it. A single color guard might work as well......black though, not creme. Life is full of options........doesn't hurt to sample some of them now and then........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 "Who nothing dares sits and glares" Are the upper edge-curves clean - seems to be signs of flimmer-frays. Heps to your appetite for experimentation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc McMaster Posted March 29 Author Share Posted March 29 1 hour ago, E-minor7 said: Are the upper edge-curves clean - seems to be signs of flimmer-frays. The guard in the photo is not attached. The 'flimmer-frays' you see is the edge of the clear wrap I put on the adhesive face so it could be placed on the guitar without sticking........just a visual check. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 19 minutes ago, Buc McMaster said: The guard in the photo is not attached. The 'flimmer-frays' you see is the edge of the clear wrap I put on the adhesive face so it could be placed on the guitar without sticking........just a visual check. Aya, , , thought something like that. You usually perform very competent modifications. Enjoy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lars68 Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 I like the look, but would prefer if the inner rosette rings were fully visible, like on the J-45 pictured. But hey, it's your guitar! Lars 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc McMaster Posted March 29 Author Share Posted March 29 1 hour ago, Lars68 said: I like the look, but would prefer if the inner rosette rings were fully visible, like on the J-45 pictured. But hey, it's your guitar! Lars Agreed. I am considering buying two guards, one with the original radius and one that increases that radius to expose the inner rings of the rosette. Quality guards are not cheap so consideration of cost is a thing........... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lars68 Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 21 minutes ago, Buc McMaster said: Agreed. I am considering buying two guards, one with the original radius and one that increases that radius to expose the inner rings of the rosette. Quality guards are not cheap so consideration of cost is a thing........... You should be able to modify the one you already have, should you want to achieve that look. Trace the new radius with a pen on the back, warm it with a haidryer or running water, cut it with sharp scissors, and use a sharp knife to bevel, then polish. Takes time, but can be done nicely. Lars Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave F Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 (edited) How about a black with a white Maltese cross? Edited March 30 by Dave F Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egoidealmusic Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 Just because we were talking about J-185s: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc McMaster Posted March 30 Author Share Posted March 30 (edited) 11 hours ago, Dave F said: How about a black with a white Maltese cross? Well that certainly looks interesting................ Edited March 30 by Buc McMaster Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave F Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 54 minutes ago, Buc McMaster said: Well that certainly looks interesting................ Send me a tracing and I'll give it a shot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fortyearspickn Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 We use to have several threads, spanning a couple of years' time, arguing ....er, I mean weight the pros and cons, of whether and how much of the rosette should be covered by the p/g. At the time, if I recall, the Mother Ship was cranking out new gits that had them mostly covered, and some with slightly off radiuses. I think we can take credit for getting that problem fixed. And the glue drop pandemic at the turn of the century. FWIW - I think the thin fire-strip guards are going to catch on too... But they need to be around 80-20 - mostly stripe with only a little see-through. Sort of like 'more cowbell'. Engraved p/g s are nice to look at - but I'm always leery of wearing off the panzer paint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J185cat Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 2 hours ago, fortyearspickn said: We use to have several threads, spanning a couple of years' time, arguing ....er, I mean weight the pros and cons, of whether and how much of the rosette should be covered by the p/g. At the time, if I recall, the Mother Ship was cranking out new gits that had them mostly covered, and some with slightly off radiuses. I think we can take credit for getting that problem fixed. And the glue drop pandemic at the turn of the century. FWIW - I think the thin fire-strip guards are going to catch on too... But they need to be around 80-20 - mostly stripe with only a little see-through. Sort of like 'more cowbell'. Engraved p/g s are nice to look at - but I'm always leery of wearing off the panzer paint. “More Panzer Paint” 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 (edited) What did it look like before it had a tan line? Show off the Rosette. The CNC Machine worked hard to rout that. Edited March 30 by Sgt. Pepper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 (edited) 19 hours ago, Dave F said: How about a black with a white Maltese cross? I hope that was on one of Lemmy’s acoustics. Edited March 30 by Sgt. Pepper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc McMaster Posted March 30 Author Share Posted March 30 2 hours ago, Sgt. Pepper said: What did it look like before it had a tan line? Show off the Rosette. The CNC Machine worked hard to rout that. It looked like this. The original guard covered the inner rings of the rosette. I've considered enlarging the radius but decided against it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egoidealmusic Posted March 30 Share Posted March 30 That's the original guard? Maybe it's just the picture but it seems off center--too low. Can't wait to see what the firestripe looks like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sgt. Pepper Posted March 31 Share Posted March 31 Get the one Lemmy would approve of, it matches the bridge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc McMaster Posted March 31 Author Share Posted March 31 Dave is kind enough to indulge my curiosity and has done this mockup of a black guard with a small maltese cross cutout. The silhouette is not quite right for a 185 but it's close enough to see what it would look like.............. I think I like it. What does the herd think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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