Official Luthiers Forum!

After seeing Hesh's latest and greatest with cool pick guard and
KiwiCraig's reply about pickguards dampening a top, I thought I would
through this out there. I'm just about to fret up a nylon string guitar. I
have two types of clear pickguard material. Heavy flamenco and some
fairly thin stuff. What are all you fine peoples thoughts on how a
pickguard can affect the overall sound? Have any of you tried to tell the
difference by playing before and after the pickguard has gone on? I
wonder how much I would gain by leaving it off altogether?

I don't use a flatpick but I don't baby guitars either. And I do use a
thumbpick from time to time. This particular guitar has a cedar top with
a fairly thin lacquer finish on the top.

Thanks,
Danny

I saw a beautiful Pre-War Martin HD 28 Brazilian/Adirondack, with standard pickguard sent back to the factory for a pickguard change. The owner wanted his to look exactly like Porter Wagoner's guitar.

While I can't attest to the change, it sure is gaudy now. The owner has since passed and the guitar with a massive pickguard, covers nearly 1/3 of the top of the guitar, is basically undesirable.

And I can imagine a Greven TorTis, affecting tone a bit more than say a standard Martin style guard. They are gorgeous and far and away more beautiful. Interesting, the trade-offs we sometimes make, for beauty. I'm on the fence on this one....


Edited by John Greven and Chris Martin, 17 February 2007

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http://www.dickeyguitars.com

Does anybody have opinions about the effect/usefulness of wood veneer pickguards as in the Sloane book?
I guess the main advantage of the plastic guards is that they are durable and somewhat removable (with difficulty) as well...??

John

Hi Danny,
            A heavy pickguard has the same result as laying on a thick laquer finish . It inhibits the tops movement .
Look at Hesh's example above. The ideal would be to have a french polish finished soundboard , as that is the thinnest finish and least inhibitive on soundboard movement .
Unfortunatley , it will mark quite easily ( particularly with a soft wood like cedar ) . I have found it necessary to protect the area . I installed a very thin clear guard , and while it must have altered the sound somewhat , it was hardly noiticeable . A heavy pick guard will inhibit the top a whole lot more.
If you are using a pick ( throw it away ! ) , but if you insist , you will definatley need a guard . I found the soundboard can get marked in that area very easily and I don't use a pick !

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CRAIG LAWRENCE of AUSTRALIA
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Due to the merits of the polyester finish, Kevin Ryan considers pick guards optional these days, even for flatpickers. The stuff is harder than plastic picks (not my MOP pick, though...). I actually decided to put it to the test and, in fact, you can't scratch the finish on his guitars with a regular pick. It's laid on super-thin so I'd imagine you could do some damage hitting it with a pick, but it's essentially scratch-proof.

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Bob Garrish
Former Canonized Purveyor of Fine CNC Luthier Services

You might be interested to know of a product that I
use on all my guitars..it's called "Static Pickguard"..it
is thin plastic sheeting which can be cut to any
desired shape with a pair of scissors..and is held
onto the surface of the top (very securely) by static
electricity...it doesn't affect the tone of any of my
guitars....12th Fret in Cnanda stock it and it's only
about @0 dollars (Canadian) for 2 sheets which
measure about 5" x 8".

That should read 20 dollars (Canadian)...

That's a -really- neat idea.

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Bob Garrish
Former Canonized Purveyor of Fine CNC Luthier Services

Yup...and it really truly works!!

Raj,
Thanks for the tip on the Guitar Guards. Have you compared the Guitar Guards to Kling-ons? Same idea. Kling-ons work well for errant fingernails on classicals, but I don't think they would do much for protecting from a pick. Kling-ons are very soft, flexible vinyl. If the Guitar Guards were a bit stiffer and thicker, I could see where they might work well for pick protection.

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Stay with the happy people.
--Reynolds Large

Sounds like the same sort of thing.
On my personal guitars I don't really fingerpick at
all...in fact I use exceptionally haevy home made
coconut shell picks (up to 5mm thick)..seems to
protect the top well in spite of this...but I guess it
also depends on how disciplined your right hand
technique is too.

I like a wood pickguard, because the warmth the tone of wood gives.Also there is just something about using a piece of plastic on a beautiful high quality all wood guitar.I won`t even consider using anything but wood for bindings.Give me the real deal.
                               James W B

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James W Bolan
Nashville Tennessee

I know of some flamenco builders who use epoxy to affix their pick/nail guards instead of that gooey soft adhesive or the equally soft self adhesive.

CrowDuck

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Chris Nielsen
Soquel, CA.

[QUOTE=James W B] I like a wood pickguard, because the warmth the tone of wood gives.Also there is just something about using a piece of plastic on a beautiful high quality all wood guitar.I won`t even consider using anything but wood for bindings.Give me the real deal.
                                 James W B [/QUOTE]

James, could you post a few pics of your creations so far please? Need inspiration here!

[QUOTE=James W B] I like a wood pickguard, because the warmth the tone of wood gives.Also there is just something about using a piece of plastic on a beautiful high quality all wood guitar.I won`t even consider using anything but wood for bindings.Give me the real deal.
                                    James W B [/QUOTE]
James-
Do you put the pickguard under or over the finish?
Thanks
John

I sold a 12 fret OO I made to my bro-in-law. I'm a
fingerpicker so I'd never put on a guard but he's a
flatpicker and 'taps' the guitar with the tip of the pick
quite a bit so I bought one of those cheap-o
tortise jobs from LMI. The guitar had been together
for over 2 years and played exensively. I kept it strung
during the install, playing it before and after the
guard went on and couldn't detect a bit of difference.

Hey John,I put it over the finish.I` would use the transfer adhesive Lmi Sells.And I have posted pics,in the past with a hickory pickguard on a guitar .
                  James W B

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James W Bolan
Nashville Tennessee

Thanks, James.