Need help finding pickguard stock in bulk

[Kitchen Guitars]

Over the years I have been asked a few hundred times for a replacement pickguard for Yamaha FG300's.
I hooked up with a CNC operator and we are going to make and sell them.
He cuts I paint and sell.
If I buy sheets from Stew Mac or such I'll have $30 - $40 tied up in a blank.
I am looking for 2'x4' stock or such. Anyone have a resource??


I am not beyond making my own from poured acrylic. Anyone have instructions on how to?

[clinchriver]

Originally Posted by Kitchen Guitars

Over the years I have been asked a few hundred times for a replacement pickguard for Yamaha FG300's.
I hooked up with a CNC operator and we are going to make and sell them.
He cuts I paint and sell.
If I buy sheets from Stew Mac or such I'll have $30 - $40 tied up in a blank.
I am looking for 2'x4' stock or such. Anyone have a resource??


I am not beyond making my own from poured acrylic. Anyone have instructions on how to?

Axiom http://www.axinc.net/category_s/47.htm

[John Arnold]

Celluloid is nice to work with, but the tortoise patterns available today won't be a very close match. The plastic in those Yamaha pickguards looks very similar to the thick Gibson pickguards from the late-1960's. Sorry, I don't know what the material is, or any possible sources.

I am not beyond making my own from poured acrylic. Anyone have instructions on how to?

The Tor Tis pickguards developed by John Greven are epoxy.
What is your price point?

[Kitchen Guitars]

Originally Posted by clinchriver

Axiom http://www.axinc.net/category_s/47.htm

Perfect material. Too much $$

[Kitchen Guitars]

Originally Posted by John Arnold

Celluloid is nice to work with, but the tortoise patterns available today won't be a very close match. The plastic in those Yamaha pickguards looks very similar to the thick Gibson pickguards from the late-1960's. Sorry, I don't know what the material is, or any possible sources.

The Tor Tis pickguards developed by John Greven are epoxy.
What is your price point?

I am trying to keep materials such as the pickguard,CNC blade wear, paint.... under $25. If I sell at $99 split 2 ways after cost it is still a labor of love unless we sell a hundred of them and it is still just a side hobby biz.

[John Arnold]

Perfect material. Too much $$

According to my figures, a 24" X 30" sheet will make 12 pickguards, for a cost of $107.80 plus shipping/hazmat cost. That is for the 0.070" thick celluloid, which is pretty close to the thickness of the originals.

http://www.axinc.net/070_Tortoise_Pi...rk_p/tb070.htm

[Kitchen Guitars]

I was looking at the thicker stuff when I said too much dough. Did you see the shipping charges as they make them ship it as a hazardous material (they must have heard me play guitar). All packages have a $27.00 surcharge added. What a crock.

I'll buy 2 sheets and see what happens!

[Frank Ford]

For bulk purchases of celluloid, you should try to work with wholesale suppliers, not the folks that provide retail materials. Delmar is such a source. Celluloid won't be "cheap," but then I presume the originals weren't celluloid, so you might widen your search to include sources that will accept a sample for review or matching. Delmar might help there, too.

[John Arnold]

All packages have a $27.00 surcharge added. What a crock.

Celluloid is classified as a flammable solid, but it was flammable before 9/11, when you could ship it by ground with impunity. The 'crock' comes in when you realize that there is no restriction on finished products. Cut it into pickguard shape, and there is no surcharge.
The way to minimize the hit from the surcharge is to order a lot at once.
Some of the tortoise colored acrylic sheets I have seen online look like a better match, but so far I haven't seen any less than 1/8" thick.
FYI, Axiom gets their celluloid from Delmar.

[Kitchen Guitars]

Thanks for the help all. I will contact Delmar!