Pickguard Headaches.. Any .02 would be appreciated..
 

I will preface this by saying that this is no where near the perplexing issues that many of you face.. I know many here really "fix" and work on your basses, so I apologize for the rudimentary and silly issue I am about to present..

I have a 90's Fender Squire Series - not a Squire - P Bass.. Has a single ply PG.. Being low on cash, I am looking to upgrade here and there, where I am able and can afford..

So (drumrolll...) I replaced the knobs and was looking to replace the pickguard... Got myself one from a MIM P, and the blasted thing doesn't fit. :rollno:

Yes, there are larger, more complex mod issues out there i know.. But the kid just wants a 3 ply on his baby. :rollno:

Any insight would be awesome.. and again, sorry for the pedestrian dilemma. :hiding:

and the blasted thing doesn't fit.
 

I'm starting to think that this is the rule, rather than the exception.

:rollno: true.

I wasn't sure, I knew that the MIA, MIJ and MIM are all just a tad different... The Squire Series has a MIM serial number, but I read all kinds of different things regarding these hybrids - good, but I am not sure which avenue to travel for the PG..

The one I got from a TB'r here, I was told it was off a MIM Fender P, so seemed like a match made in heaven. Nope.

I'm not adverse to filing a bit, but I never remember issues with them years back, I recall replacing them frequently.. I was poor then too and it was the fastest way to a "new" bass. :p

The easiest way to make the new pick guard fit, at least for me, is to drill out the holes that are off location, fill with a wooden dowel, and re-drill in the correct location.

In other words drill out the holes to 1/8", fill with a 1/8" dowel, and redrill with the correct size drill for the pick guard screws in the correct location. It may be a huge pain in the butt, but that's how I do them.

This method is documented in a few posts around here, but just recently saw it here, posted by Turtle71

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f57/p-...ebuild-950513/

If you do it the one time, you should in theory get any PG you want in that style to fit ...

There are custom pickguard makers out there. They will match your existing holes in whatever colour you want. ;)

If you want a no mod replacement, this is pretty much your only option. They say for best results, to mail them your guard. But, you can also mail a careful tracing.

pickguards.us (Chandler Music's Pickguard Heaven in Chico, Ca) for custom pickguards. They supply original pickguards for the G&L factory!

"Squier!"

:hiding:

I guess I am one and done in the bass spelling bee. :o

Very cool - that gent has quite a nasty set of tools - I think that box is the size of my house. (scrambling for my phillips head...)

I decided that vintage one-ply presently on the bass is looking pretty good... LOL

(ok, maybe I will try one more time... see below.. )

So, I am getting a MIM Fender P bass 3 ply black pickguard.. There is a notch for the truss rod pocket in the guard - but the access to my rod (heyooooo) is at the top of the neck.

That in itself is not a real bother to me, but is this a "no how, no way" situation in regards to this fitting?

The guard is not costing me a king's ransom, but I'd rather not throw my $$ away.

Thanks in advance!

Why are you buying another MIM pickguard if the first one didn't fit?
Am I missing something?

Because isn't it peculiar that it wouldn't fix? MIM Fender.. MIM Fender pickguard... And maybe I am a stubborn SOB? :D

And a really cool TB'r with one sitting around was kind enough to send me one to try? Thanks, Rebelscum!!

And I worked up the nerves and fired up a Dremel tool - and wouldn't ya know... :ninja:

Pics coming tomorrow.. Death in the family last night, so I am a bit sidetracked.. was just checking emails and saw the notification, so figured I would keep my mind off things, if even for a few moments. :(

Well, good luck! I feel your pain. I got my second one in the mail. If this one doesn't fit within reason, I guess I'll be shelling out the money for a REAL GENUINE FENDER guard, due to an obvious suggestion from a few TB'ers. (I am willing to drill a few holes at this point). It's a $225 MIM Pbass so I guess at this point I might not have much say in whether to dump some more into the money pit!

Sorry for your loss, Bro :(
Hope you didn't have to butcher that guard too much to get it to fit. Looking forward to seeing it on there!

rebescum, was that a GENUINE Fender guard? I still find it very weird and frustrating that MIM is so finicky. I am anxious as well, to know how much Dan had to fiddle with it.

The guard sent to Dan was an All parts guard that went on my MIM P bass with no issues. I later bought a genuine Fender tort guard and set them on top of one another and found no deviation from the shape or holes.

Thank you.