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Custom Pickguard Update!

Discount Saint

Discount Saint

Bassist for the music in my head
Jan 26, 2007
1,613
1,055
Victoria, BC, Canada
#1
Awhile ago I posted about my desire to get a custom pickguard made for my '91 Fender Jazz Bass Plus V -- they didn't come with pickguards that I am aware of, and the body shape and pickup / knob configuration is different than any other Jazz bass, so it has to be a totally custom job.

Anyway, I recently went to see a local guitar tech who also does custom pickguards and he helped me refine a design that I think is going to look really cool on this bass -- just curious as to everyone's thoughts!

Here is the original:

Body%20CU.jpg


And here is something I whipped up in paint - an approximation of what it will look like with the PG. The PG will be on three play BWB and I based it loosely on a Marcus Miller style:

Bass%20PG%20Design%202.jpg


Thoughts?
 
#4
Yeah, although I think it's a fine idea to come up with a new pickguard for it, I have to honestly say your first drawing here looks really bad to me. Maybe you could draw up a handful of other designs, and poll us to find out which overall design looks best, and refine the idea from there?
 
#6
jenderfazz said:
Not a bad start, but I'd probably eliminate those little spaces around the knobs and extend the pickguard out left (closer to a real MM pickguard).
Click to expand...

Nah, I like the spaces - those are sort of the lynch pin of the whole thing.. I know it's not your standard J Bass PG, but that's what I wanted. Besides which, if I'd wanted a real MM or J or P PG I could have just had that made...
 
#8
bongomania said:
Yeah, although I think it's a fine idea to come up with a new pickguard for it, I have to honestly say your first drawing here looks really bad to me. Maybe you could draw up a handful of other designs, and poll us to find out which overall design looks best, and refine the idea from there?
Click to expand...

Keep in mind, I'm not a graphic artist - I just did this in about 30 minutes in paint! What about it specifically looks bad to you, aside from the quality of the drawing itself? It is pretty heavily influenced by the Marcus Miller style PG.. really the only big difference are the length of the middle in relation to the pickups and the outer edge design of the lower wing... try to imagine the standard parts of it following the standard J bass PG contours.. I just couldn't draw them properly.

Edit: And also the left side is cut closer in line with the neck.
 
#9
yellofury said:
the space around the knobs are ugly IMHO
how about a more Roscoe Beck like shape? in tort?
Click to expand...

Not really a fan of the Roscoe Beck pickguard - I wanted something more similar to a Marcus Miller - I guess I just prefer bigger, blockier shapes :) The space around the knobs are going to be a lot smoother on the actual PG as well..

I thought about going Tort, but I am planning on getting a Black P bass with a tort PG sometime in the future.. wanted something a little different for this.
 
#16
::Saint:: said:
What about it specifically looks bad to you, aside from the quality of the drawing itself?
Click to expand...

Well it was mostly the drawing- if somebody was to cut your guard using that drawing as a template, you'd be in trouble. But even taking into consideration that you might have an artist do the final version, I can't think of any way to make those cutouts around the knobs look good. Since you like blocky shapes, maybe you could have a solid rectangular block above the knobs, but not extending down around them?
 

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