ES-335/Epi Dot pickguard differences

[WireWhipper]

Greetings, Epiphonians!

 

It's no secret that Gibson ES-335 pickguards are not interchangeable with those on the Epi Dot. Never having compared the two guitars and/or pickguards side-by-side, I'm curious as to what specifically is different between the two pickguards that makes them incompatible. Is it the screw hole alignment, size of the pickup cutouts?

[wardog]

i believe it is the size of the pkguard cut outs for pkups, as well as the hole at the neck. i tryed to replace the pkgrd on a lp -100 i let a friend have and had to drill new hole at neck and shave pkgrd to fit around pkup rings. hopefully others can add or correct me if i miss spoke.

[TWANG]

I make a lot of the gib gaurds for epis.

and time after time I find that the neck screw hole is often a problem.

the other area is the space between the pups.

 

If you look at a gibson 335, you see the switch is not in the same place.

that made making, as I did recently, a match for the long 59 style quite a job.. the epi switch is closer so it had to be shortened somewhat.

 

I've found it's important to be clear about which guard you're wanting copied.

there are two short style guards... slightly different lengths.. and different at the lower portion..

there are thinner pieces going around the neck pup.. with slightly different shapes there, too.

there are various changes in epi, elitist, and gibbys for length.. year.. manufacturer, material, etc.

 

any of them can be done, but you really do need to get a pic to be sure.

and then bear in mind that some things don't translate and have to be custom.

 

gibsons don't have a hole for the bracket. they use a different bracket. But epis have an adjustable length bracket, so it's not a problem.

 

the best way is to make a trace. that way you can mark holes.. pup spacing.. and that can be translated to the new shape and be exact.

 

I have had a couple of returns and remakes.. I lose my butt on those in here, because I sell so low to forum guys to start with the return shipping charges kill the profit. I pay shipping back on a remake.

 

But, that's the way it goes.. you gotta get what you want!

 

I've got traces from several people.. dots are not the same as dot studios.. and elitists are different, and gibsons are, too.

 

So.. trace your own.. choose a shape.. consider any differences like switch placement.. and you can come out fine.

 

I'm pretty surprised that black seems to be the main color.

I would have thought some red dot guys would go pearl white.. or pearl black.. esp. as cheap as I do this stuff.

 

On a dot studio, plain black matches the binding..

most take a b/w/b guard.. but some like the fancier b/w/b/w/b look.. the beveled edge with all those plys really jazzes it up.

 

I got a tortoise guard back recently.. neck screw hole didn't match.. even though we both had sheris!

so I put it on my own.

I kinda like it.. had cream before to match my pups.. now I've got three. the original, the cream I made and this new tortoise.

*S*

 

truss rod covers I'm beginning to hate. god those are hard to get right, symetry wise.. but I'm getting better.

and that's another thing... those can vary as to screw holes, due to the length being different from model to model.

 

but it's all doable.

 

TWANG

[WireWhipper]

Thanks for sharing your knowledge, Twang! For now the stock Epi guard is working for me (with a little super glue to hold the E logo on!) but I plan to eventually make the switch to a Gib style. I'll be sure to let you know when I'm ready to take the plunge!

[TWANG]

anytime. thanks for the attention.

 

I'm working on learning to engrave these things.. *s*

 

 

TWANG

[Durango Kid]

I'm sorry but personally I think that the pick guard should immediately be yanked off, in either case. [-X/

[TWANG]

gotta agree in part with durango.

Mine looks good naked, too.

 

TWANG

[WireWhipper]

I'm not entirely opposed to removing the pickguard as it does cover up a good portion of a pretty finish. I've tried it without the pickguard but I sometimes like to rest my last finger on the pickguard for lead work. I especially like Les Pauls with a good flame maple top to be pickguard-free. For some reason I like the classic look of the somewhat gawdy black pickguard with the E logo on my Dot for now, but my tastes do change with time.