I've been poking around Reverb & eBay to find some tortoise for one of my builds. Prices vary from around $9 into the thousands (for an original, of course).
Up until recently I considered tortoise kind of gaudy so I never paid much attention to it. Now that I have a use for it, I'd at least like to get as close as I can to the real deal
Anybody have opinions on this, or even hands-on experience? Please advise-
Thx
I’ve had success with Pickguardian
Mark
Chandler made the most authentic-looking tortoise-shell guards that I've ever seen.
"When injustice becomes law then rebellion becomes duty."
I went to their website & the first ting I read wasOriginally Posted by blackonblack
"Due to a worldwide shortage of multi-ply celluloid Tortoise material, we will not be able to make pickguards from multi-ply celluloid Tortoise material until September at the earliest. We will continue to try to find alternative sources, but it seems everyone is out. We do have 1-ply Brown Marble Tortoise acrylic in stock and a limited supply of multi-ply vinyl Tortoise. Contact us for details and photos."
Lol
That was May of last year. I'll have to call them early in the week to see what's up
TRUE STORY: At one time back in the mid '90s, I ordered a couple of Mint-Green Strat pickguards from Chandler over the phone. The 'guards arrived, but they looked different from what I was expecting, which was just a Vintage Reissue style. I laid one next to a '61 Strat I owned at the time, & it was obvious I was looking at an actual celluloid pickguard. They were kind of opaque or pearly green-gray. I took an exacto knife & scraped the squared edge of the 'guard at the trem route, & sure enough, it smelled like menthol.
I called them up & Paul's wife answered the phone. I told her how happy I was with the order, & how amazed I was that they had found the original material. She said that it was impossible, that they never had any of that. I was polite, but when told her I was pretty sure I knew what it was in my hand, she got irate with me & basically told me I was crazy. It didn't matter to me, for $28 bucks each I had a couple of 'guards that may as well have come through a time machine. One went on the '61, & the other I gave to a friend & it is still on his Candy Apple Red '62RI to this day.
I ordered another & it was back to the old vinyl or PVC stuff you find everywhere
Last edited by Cogs; 01-09-2022 at 01:19 AM.
Check Stewart-MacDonald for tortoise guards. They have premade versions for Strat and Tele, and they sell blank squares for custom applications.
I like them as they are 4-ply like the old days, and instead of white in the layering they use mint green to give it a quasi-vintage look.
Squares here:
https://www.stewmac.com/luthier-tool...ard-materials/
Born in Fullerton, California in 1952
Ouch, those reviews are brutal! The pre-cut Strat 'guard looks great, though. I don't see the option for an 8-hole pattern. I might have to call them if I don't find something on eBay or Reverb
Have you looked at this option, Robert......?
https://www.wdmusic.com/wd-custom-pi...r-details.html
"When injustice becomes law then rebellion becomes duty."
Yes, there's actually a WD pickguard on Reverb I'm looking at:
https://reverb.com/item/46174939-wd-...rv-clapton-etc
Jump on it!
"When injustice becomes law then rebellion becomes duty."
Bought one
That's a nice one, Robert.
Congratulations!
"When injustice becomes law then rebellion becomes duty."
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