Fender mint green pickguard history

[Ross W. Lovell]

I sometimes see these popping up on vintage listings but could never really understand when were these introduced, on which body colors (only custom?) and when phased out of production.
Any information and/or links would be welcome!

My 1969 Fender Strat has its original pickguard, it is what they call mint green, though not like the one Axstar posted, just real subtle. Sunburst, is the finish, I lost have several Esquires from the 50's and 60's with the same guard material. All are the same material, but the tint is similar not exact. I say the same material as the guards give off a distinctive smell because the still seem to de-gas in their cases. It's not the cases.

The older plastics were made with a different blend. This blend changed for a variety of reasons, partly because white is a notoriously unstable color. Also, the new formulations are environmentally friendly.

 

[EatS1stBassist]

That seem unlikely. White plastics may yellow over time due to the presence of amine accelerants for the polymerization process. I think we've all seen this. However, there's nothing to my knowledge (and I actually teach polymer materials technology) that would cause a white plastic to turn mint green. Ergo, it must be a colour choice.

Untrue a lot of the early white pickguards would turn a greenish hue. But not the factory produced mint green you see on newer guards. I read an article before the internet was a reality that the formula had been changed so the PG Would not turn green as people would Complain about it. But what do I know I may have not learned everything or Anything since I’ve only been playing bass for 56 years.

 

[M.R. Ogle]

My 1956 Precision has the single-ply white BIG pickguard. It's still snow-white.
I've seen others of the same general era, and they're also still pure white. So, I'm leaning into believing the W/B/W layering as the cause of the "minting" of some white guards.

 

[BassholeKI]

white Start knobs.

What kind of knobs?

 

[hsech]

They have been around for a while, or perhaps mine just changed with age. This is me in the mid 1960's playing my old late 1950's Strat. Note the Buddy Holly look.

 

[Stan_da_man]

Just ordered a 3 ply mint guard for my natural Jazz with rosewood neck. In my head it's a cool combination - fingers crossed it looks the biz.

White mint over snot mint anyday!

 

[Ross W. Lovell]

My 1956 Precision has the single-ply white BIG pickguard. It's still snow-white.
I've seen others of the same general era, and they're also still pure white. So, I'm leaning into believing the W/B/W layering as the cause of the "minting" of some white guards.

I'd buy that but weirdly I have the original pickguard and covers on my Strat.

What caused the pickup covers to "mint"?

No black in them.

 

[EveryMann]

Like someone said earlier, it seems some of the reproduction companies tend to go overboard "minting out" their guards. Here is the original w/b/w nitro guard on my 100% factory '64 Mosrite bass.

 

[MrAB4003]

Can confirm that they're on the American Pro II series as well. My 2021 American Pro II P Bass is Miami Blue and it has a Mint Green pickguard.

 

[bassman818]

Mint pickguards were a thing from the early sixties (1960-1964). They started out as pristine white guards, but since they were made from a celluloid material (like pingpong balls), they degrade over time and under the influence of oxygen & (UV) light. In case of white celluloid, they became greenish in colour. Some years are more prone to discolouration than others (1962 for instance). By 1965, Fender switched over to a different plastic that didn't degrade. After a while people started to like the greenish white, so Fender started offering mintgreen pickguards, especially on their vintage-inspired models.

Great info! I felt like the mint green (seen in person) had an early sixties vibe.

 

[Seth DuSith]

There are a couple of schools of thought on why and where the mint colour comes from. Ironically the first generation white ABS or vinyl pickguards (such as single-ply '50s P bass/Strat/Tele/Esquire) don't change colour over time to the same degree! The trouble arose when Fender opted for three-ply pickguards.

Some people consider the mint shade to appear when the upper white layer becomes more transparent, revealing the black middle layer. Combine this with a natural yellowing of the top layer and the black/yellow mix makes a subtle khaki colour. Some also suggest that the black bleeds out a little into the upper white layer.

However the following website documents some destructive testing performed on an original 'mint' Stratocaster guard, and the consensus here is that the mint shade only occurred on the surface of the upper white layer. There is no bleeding through from the black layer, and the mint shade can be wiped away from the upper white layer. taking you back to the original colour.

Celluloid Fender Pickguards - ' 59 - '65 Mint Green Nitrate


Some makers totally over-cook the mint shade, with too much of an emphasis on an overt green shade. I think this is because manufacturers identify and market 'mint' as an overtly different colour, which gets messy when you're marketing pickguards in various shades of ivory/parchment/aged/cream etc. Combine this with a flat, consistent shade of the colour, and you get odd combinations that I don't think look right:

View attachment 2960593

I've never much been into this combination on paper, but there is just something beauitful about that specific guitar