Why are tortoise shell guards so much more expensive?

[KingCrimson]

Seriously? I'm ordering a custom guard for my bass and they cost 20$ more.

[Stinsok]

I know! It's not like the're hard to catch.

[Sandor138]

different materials cost different amounts

[Gord_oh]

paint a pickguard brown and swirl in some orange and yellows.
BAM!
tort.

but yeah, they are ridiculously expensive.

[KingCrimson]

Originally Posted by Sandor138

different materials cost different amounts

Yes but they seem all plastic, pickguardian charges 20$ more for tortoise shell and 10$ more for pearloid.

I would think that pearloid and tort would be the same price.

Its PLASTIC how can it be 20$ more, they already cost like 50$

[Tusec]

Unlike solid color pickguards, tortoiseshell pickguards are made of celluloid, which is a more expensive material than vinyl. It's nitrocellulose based and is the same stuff that Fender guitar pics and ping pong balls are made of. It's also highly flammable (for a nice demo, try burning a Fender guitar pick). You can find cheap tortoise guards made of vinyl but they don't look near as good.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celluloid

[Tusec]

More info specifically on celluloid pickguards:

http://www.lashingguitars.com/celluloid/index.html

[snyderz]

Ah, capitalism! Supply and demand, or is it demand and supply?