"Screwless" pickguards

Bobby_Lee · 08-02-2007, 05:23 PM

Hello all. Some of you know me already from the LPF and have already seen my pickguards and may already have one or two. A little background first. I've been working with plastics for many years as a fabricator. I used to make acrylic grips for high end paintball guns. It seemed like a no brainer for me to do this.

The whole pickguard thing started while I was trying to decide whether or not to drill into the top of my Faded to mount the stocker. I really didn't want to do that, but I still wanted the protection of a pickguard. Plastic fab + plastic pickguard=

I started with a piece of 3mm clear acrylic and after some measurements and a sketch went to the Bridgeport milling machine and made the first one. I formed (line bent) The pickguard to resemble the lines of the stock guard. I removed the pickup ring screws and mounted the pickguard to the pickup rings and it fit perfectly and looked great. Aha this is great. After some initial spamming at the LPF

( Some of you probably read that whole post

) I decided to take it up a notch and write a CNC program and rout them. They turn out great. I still have to form them by hand and flame polish them but it is now at least feasible to make them easy enough to make it worth it to sell. The first few I made I back painted. What that means is I spray painted the back side of the pickguard after all the operations were done with whatever color I wanted. It gives a nice deep look to it. I now also have a solid cream color and black as well as the clear either as is or painted. I also can sandblast logos/names, etc. And before the year is out, I will have a laser engraver I can use that will enable me to engrave high detail. So far these don't fit Customs (different spacing) and there are some issues with taller Historic rings. Here are some pics. The first pic is the same as my avatar.

From another angle.

A clear one on a Classic

A closeup of the clear and the machine work.

A clear on my Faded. For those who want a pickguard and still see the flame

And a pic of a ZOSO Zep logo etched on the rear of a clear standard pickguard.

A pic of another regular clear pg that I sprayed from the back

There were some concerns voiced over how stable these would be. Well, I have some where in the neighborhood of 60 of these pickguards out there already and so far everyone has loved them. Let me know if you have any questions and peace!!

***Alex*** · 08-02-2007, 05:56 PM

Wow, that's pretty cool and creative! Good thinking, man.

If I may ask, how much does one of these go for? Let's say, for a Standard?

WBPickups · 08-02-2007, 10:04 PM

That is cool! Congrats to a great and useful idea!

johnreardon · 08-03-2007, 04:08 AM

Great idea and workmanship

Bobby_Lee · 08-03-2007, 05:39 AM

Thanks to all for the props!

Alex, I sell them for $15 + shipping. Where in NJ are ya. If you were close enough to Rockland County I could show it to ya first.
Anyhow, again, thanks for the

Peace,
Bobby Lee
BTW I have some of my pg in the UK, Sweden, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and of course, the U.S.

KristianJ · 08-03-2007, 06:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bobby_Lee

BTW I have some of my pg in the UK, Sweden, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and of course, the U.S.

Is there a distributor in Australia or do you just ship to customers out here? It's something I may well be interested in putting on my Epi in the future if the dimensions suit Epis as well as Gibsons

Bobby_Lee · 08-06-2007, 05:20 AM

Hiya Kristian,
I have had a few requests for Epi Les Paul "Screwless" pickguards. I'm going to have to do a trial run to see about fit. I have an Epi Les Paul that I'll take the measurements for and I'll make several up. Would you be interested in demo-ing one? I would send it to you N/C and I would only ask that you email me about any issues with how it fits. And, of course, a pic of it on your Epi would be cool! In any event let me know.
Peace,
Bob

terence_tez · 08-06-2007, 02:34 PM

dude,i'm from singapore.is there any way i can buy ur pickguards?

Bobby_Lee · 08-07-2007, 09:48 AM

Hiya Tez,
Sure, I can/would ship to Singapore. Email me--> nicatme@aol.com

terence_tez · 08-07-2007, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bobby_Lee

Hiya Tez,
Sure, I can/would ship to Singapore. Email me--> nicatme@aol.com

thanx bob! will e-mail u a little later on...sufferin from a sllipped disc now.damn screwed..
btw,ur pickguards rock dude...

Ardent · 08-07-2007, 02:11 PM

This might be exactly what I've been looking for. So would these fit a Studio? Also, are these as sturdy as a mounted pickguard?

Thanks!

Bobby_Lee · 08-08-2007, 05:18 AM

Hiya Ardent,
Yes, they'll fit Studios. And they are very sturdy. I've had several people who have them on their LP's that play, uh, thrash/death metal that really work 'em out and have had no problems. If you break it while playing your guitar I'll give you your money back. Truth.

nicatme@aol.com
I am going to start giving discounts to mylespaul folks as well. Thanks again for checking it out.
Peace,
Bobby Lee

KristianJ · 08-08-2007, 06:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bobby_Lee

Hiya Kristian,
I have had a few requests for Epi Les Paul "Screwless" pickguards. I'm going to have to do a trial run to see about fit. I have an Epi Les Paul that I'll take the measurements for and I'll make several up. Would you be interested in demo-ing one? I would send it to you N/C and I would only ask that you email me about any issues with how it fits. And, of course, a pic of it on your Epi would be cool! In any event let me know.
Peace,
Bob

For sure - I'd be happy to assist!

If you let me know when one's done, I'll PM you my shipping address.

Bobby_Lee · 08-08-2007, 07:10 AM

Thanks Kristian. All said and done, it will probably be a week or two before I have the first set ready to go. So thanks!! And I'll be yakkin' at ya soon.

Peace
Bobby Lee

MIDNIGHT · 08-09-2007, 08:11 PM

hehe i must say, that is pretty awesome!

cool idea man

have ya been able to sell a lot of em?

Nothinspecial · 08-10-2007, 04:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ardent

This might be exactly what I've been looking for. So would these fit a Studio? Also, are these as sturdy as a mounted pickguard?

Thanks!

These are actually sturdier than stock LP guards. I had a Studio that I removed the stock guard and replaced it with one of the guards that Bobby sent me to try out.

I got some in the first trial run (after some people had a cow about them!) A cream one and clear one for my Standard Faded. Thanks again Bobby! I no longer have this guitar but I kept the other pickguard for a future LP.

You will not be disapointed in these bad boys!!

Bobby_Lee · 08-10-2007, 05:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by midnightdreamer

hehe i must say, that is pretty awesome!

cool idea man

have ya been able to sell a lot of em?

Hiya midnightdreamer, and thanks,
I have probably close to 100 out there now. And spread out over the world. I had an original batch of 25 that went out to LP owners to test (see post above

) I have been working on a web site but it isn't up yet (I'm old and slow

) so everything is by word of mouth or when someone runs across them in a thread on a forum.

Nothinspecial- Hey, how's it going?

I'm glad you've enjoyed the pickguards. That is beautiful LP! And a BIG thanks for the props

MIDNIGHT · 08-10-2007, 07:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bobby_Lee

Hiya midnightdreamer, and thanks,
I have probably close to 100 out there now. And spread out over the world. I had an original batch of 25 that went out to LP owners to test (see post above

) I have been working on a web site but it isn't up yet (I'm old and slow

) so everything is by word of mouth or when someone runs across them in a thread on a forum.

Nothinspecial- Hey, how's it going?

I'm glad you've enjoyed the pickguards. That is beautiful LP! And a BIG thanks for the props

i see.. i'll certainly consider getting one for my future LP

can't wait to see the site.. i hope you get to put it up soon.. tell us when it is ayt Bobby?

3Steps · 08-11-2007, 07:03 PM

Hey Bobby Lee,
That is a great idea and the quality looks first rate!

Bobby_Lee · 08-12-2007, 09:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 3Steps

Hey Bobby Lee,
That is a great idea and the quality looks first rate!

Thanks 3Steps. I wouldn't have it (quality) any other way

Peace!
Bobby Lee

Bobby_Lee · 08-13-2007, 04:27 PM

Forgot to mention to ya Alex, that for mylespaul community members get "Screwless" pickguards for $13 not $15
Peace

Bobby Lee

Ardent · 08-15-2007, 07:38 AM

I ordered one not too long ago for my Studio. After quick shipping on Bobby_Lees part, it arrived a day or two ago. After 5 or 6 hours of playing, I must say I am a huge fan. It is incredibly sturdy and fit perfectly. Really, I can't think of anything I don't like about it.

I needed a pickguard because I mount my pinky and without a pickguard, it feels too low. Sometimes, I really put that sucker through a beating, but it holds up exceptionally well. Plus, the additional protection is a good benefit.

If I ever change pickguards on any other LP, it will be to one from Bobby_Lee.

***Alex*** · 08-16-2007, 12:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bobby_Lee

Forgot to mention to ya Alex, that for mylespaul community members get "Screwless" pickguards for $13 not $15
Peace

Bobby Lee

Thanks a bunch, Bobby Lee. I'm sure many of will appreciate that.

One of these days I'll

08-02-2007, 05:23 PM	#1 (permalink)
Bobby_Lee V.I.P. Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Rockland County, New York (A heartbeat above NYC!) Posts: 350	"Screwless" pickguards Hello all. Some of you know me already from the LPF and have already seen my pickguards and may already have one or two. A little background first. I've been working with plastics for many years as a fabricator. I used to make acrylic grips for high end paintball guns. It seemed like a no brainer for me to do this. The whole pickguard thing started while I was trying to decide whether or not to drill into the top of my Faded to mount the stocker. I really didn't want to do that, but I still wanted the protection of a pickguard. Plastic fab + plastic pickguard= I started with a piece of 3mm clear acrylic and after some measurements and a sketch went to the Bridgeport milling machine and made the first one. I formed (line bent) The pickguard to resemble the lines of the stock guard. I removed the pickup ring screws and mounted the pickguard to the pickup rings and it fit perfectly and looked great. Aha this is great. After some initial spamming at the LPF ( Some of you probably read that whole post) I decided to take it up a notch and write a CNC program and rout them. They turn out great. I still have to form them by hand and flame polish them but it is now at least feasible to make them easy enough to make it worth it to sell. The first few I made I back painted. What that means is I spray painted the back side of the pickguard after all the operations were done with whatever color I wanted. It gives a nice deep look to it. I now also have a solid cream color and black as well as the clear either as is or painted. I also can sandblast logos/names, etc. And before the year is out, I will have a laser engraver I can use that will enable me to engrave high detail. So far these don't fit Customs (different spacing) and there are some issues with taller Historic rings. Here are some pics. The first pic is the same as my avatar. From another angle. A clear one on a Classic A closeup of the clear and the machine work. A clear on my Faded. For those who want a pickguard and still see the flame And a pic of a ZOSO Zep logo etched on the rear of a clear standard pickguard. A pic of another regular clear pg that I sprayed from the back There were some concerns voiced over how stable these would be. Well, I have some where in the neighborhood of 60 of these pickguards out there already and so far everyone has loved them. Let me know if you have any questions and peace!! __________________ Bobby Lee Signature Series "Screwless" Les Paul Pickguards http://www.gibson.com/Wiki/Default.a...ookieSupport=1 http://bobbyleesignatureseries.com/ '95 Aged Alpine White Studio '01 Ebony Standard '50's neck '05 Faded Standard '60's neck Bobby Lee Blues Band Last edited by Bobby_Lee; 08-02-2007 at 06:27 PM.

08-02-2007, 05:56 PM	#2 (permalink)
*Alex* Administrator Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: New Jersey Posts: 380	Re: "Screwless" pickguards Wow, that's pretty cool and creative! Good thinking, man. If I may ask, how much does one of these go for? Let's say, for a Standard?

08-02-2007, 10:04 PM	#3 (permalink)
WBPickups V.I.P. Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: The New Smokey Mountains!! Redding, California Posts: 1,297	Re: "Screwless" pickguards That is cool! Congrats to a great and useful idea! __________________ Not Hype, Real Tone For Players! www.wbpickups.com http://www.youtube.com/user/WBGuitarPickups http://www.ristguitars.com/ http://netthink21.com/ Blurb Left Handed Pickups now available!

08-03-2007, 04:08 AM	#4 (permalink)
johnreardon Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Brackley, UK Posts: 491	Re: "Screwless" pickguards Great idea and workmanship

08-03-2007, 05:39 AM	#5 (permalink)
Bobby_Lee V.I.P. Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Rockland County, New York (A heartbeat above NYC!) Posts: 350	Re: "Screwless" pickguards Thanks to all for the props! Alex, I sell them for $15 + shipping. Where in NJ are ya. If you were close enough to Rockland County I could show it to ya first. Anyhow, again, thanks for the Peace, Bobby Lee BTW I have some of my pg in the UK, Sweden, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and of course, the U.S. __________________ Bobby Lee Signature Series "Screwless" Les Paul Pickguards http://www.gibson.com/Wiki/Default.a...ookieSupport=1 http://bobbyleesignatureseries.com/ '95 Aged Alpine White Studio '01 Ebony Standard '50's neck '05 Faded Standard '60's neck Bobby Lee Blues Band

Today
Les Paul	Sponsored Links __________________ This advertising will not be shown in this way to registered members. Register your free account today and become a member on My Les Paul Forums

08-06-2007, 05:20 AM	#7 (permalink)
Bobby_Lee V.I.P. Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Rockland County, New York (A heartbeat above NYC!) Posts: 350	Re: "Screwless" pickguards Hiya Kristian, I have had a few requests for Epi Les Paul "Screwless" pickguards. I'm going to have to do a trial run to see about fit. I have an Epi Les Paul that I'll take the measurements for and I'll make several up. Would you be interested in demo-ing one? I would send it to you N/C and I would only ask that you email me about any issues with how it fits. And, of course, a pic of it on your Epi would be cool! In any event let me know. Peace, Bob __________________ Bobby Lee Signature Series "Screwless" Les Paul Pickguards http://www.gibson.com/Wiki/Default.a...ookieSupport=1 http://bobbyleesignatureseries.com/ '95 Aged Alpine White Studio '01 Ebony Standard '50's neck '05 Faded Standard '60's neck Bobby Lee Blues Band

08-06-2007, 02:34 PM	#8 (permalink)
terence_tez V.I.P. Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: singapore Posts: 1,322	Re: "Screwless" pickguards dude,i'm from singapore.is there any way i can buy ur pickguards? __________________ they have firm bodies n exotic curves.they cry n scream bt we love them all the same--who need women anyway?

08-07-2007, 09:48 AM	#9 (permalink)
Bobby_Lee V.I.P. Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Rockland County, New York (A heartbeat above NYC!) Posts: 350	Re: "Screwless" pickguards Hiya Tez, Sure, I can/would ship to Singapore. Email me--> nicatme@aol.com __________________ Bobby Lee Signature Series "Screwless" Les Paul Pickguards http://www.gibson.com/Wiki/Default.a...ookieSupport=1 http://bobbyleesignatureseries.com/ '95 Aged Alpine White Studio '01 Ebony Standard '50's neck '05 Faded Standard '60's neck Bobby Lee Blues Band

08-07-2007, 02:11 PM	#11 (permalink)
Ardent Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 2	Re: "Screwless" pickguards This might be exactly what I've been looking for. So would these fit a Studio? Also, are these as sturdy as a mounted pickguard? Thanks!

08-08-2007, 05:18 AM	#12 (permalink)
Bobby_Lee V.I.P. Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Rockland County, New York (A heartbeat above NYC!) Posts: 350	Re: "Screwless" pickguards Hiya Ardent, Yes, they'll fit Studios. And they are very sturdy. I've had several people who have them on their LP's that play, uh, thrash/death metal that really work 'em out and have had no problems. If you break it while playing your guitar I'll give you your money back. Truth. nicatme@aol.com I am going to start giving discounts to mylespaul folks as well. Thanks again for checking it out. Peace, Bobby Lee __________________ Bobby Lee Signature Series "Screwless" Les Paul Pickguards http://www.gibson.com/Wiki/Default.a...ookieSupport=1 http://bobbyleesignatureseries.com/ '95 Aged Alpine White Studio '01 Ebony Standard '50's neck '05 Faded Standard '60's neck Bobby Lee Blues Band

08-08-2007, 07:10 AM	#14 (permalink)
Bobby_Lee V.I.P. Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Rockland County, New York (A heartbeat above NYC!) Posts: 350	Re: "Screwless" pickguards Thanks Kristian. All said and done, it will probably be a week or two before I have the first set ready to go. So thanks!! And I'll be yakkin' at ya soon. Peace Bobby Lee __________________ Bobby Lee Signature Series "Screwless" Les Paul Pickguards http://www.gibson.com/Wiki/Default.a...ookieSupport=1 http://bobbyleesignatureseries.com/ '95 Aged Alpine White Studio '01 Ebony Standard '50's neck '05 Faded Standard '60's neck Bobby Lee Blues Band

08-09-2007, 08:11 PM	#15 (permalink)
MIDNIGHT V.I.P. Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Jacksonville, FL Posts: 2,881	Re: "Screwless" pickguards hehe i must say, that is pretty awesome! cool idea man have ya been able to sell a lot of em? __________________ Actually... ... I'd play for free ...

08-11-2007, 07:03 PM	#19 (permalink)
3Steps Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 51	Re: "Screwless" pickguards Hey Bobby Lee, That is a great idea and the quality looks first rate!

08-13-2007, 04:27 PM	#21 (permalink)
Bobby_Lee V.I.P. Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Rockland County, New York (A heartbeat above NYC!) Posts: 350	Re: "Screwless" pickguards Forgot to mention to ya Alex, that for mylespaul community members get "Screwless" pickguards for $13 not $15 Peace Bobby Lee __________________ Bobby Lee Signature Series "Screwless" Les Paul Pickguards http://www.gibson.com/Wiki/Default.a...ookieSupport=1 http://bobbyleesignatureseries.com/ '95 Aged Alpine White Studio '01 Ebony Standard '50's neck '05 Faded Standard '60's neck Bobby Lee Blues Band

08-15-2007, 07:38 AM	#22 (permalink)
Ardent Junior Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 2	Re: "Screwless" pickguards I ordered one not too long ago for my Studio. After quick shipping on Bobby_Lees part, it arrived a day or two ago. After 5 or 6 hours of playing, I must say I am a huge fan. It is incredibly sturdy and fit perfectly. Really, I can't think of anything I don't like about it. I needed a pickguard because I mount my pinky and without a pickguard, it feels too low. Sometimes, I really put that sucker through a beating, but it holds up exceptionally well. Plus, the additional protection is a good benefit. If I ever change pickguards on any other LP, it will be to one from Bobby_Lee.