Freshening up "cloudy" pickguards

[Mr. Paul]

A couple of weeks ago I started a thread asking about fixing up a scuffed clear pickguard.



I got one helpful suggestion

Originally Posted by rokdog49

this stuff right here. Works on pick guards as well as wood.

https://www.guitarscratchremover.com...tar-polish-kit

Calling the manufacturer though, they hemmed and hawed a bit and said this would be an "off label" use of their product which is a two step system costing about $25. They said it "might work."

Here's the product I ended up getting, $9 at the auto parts store.



I used the painter's tape to protect the top and spent 2 minutes rubbing in. Got a very noticeable improvement.



I received this guitar used so I'm not sure how it was played to get it scuffed.

Then I tried it on a Santa Cruz. This is a newish guitar but was noticeably shopworn when I got it.

before


after


Scratches remain but almost all of the "cloudiness" is gone.

Then I tried my Goodall which is 12 years old. I know all the wear on that one is just from my dragging the anchor pinky around. That one showed the most improvement, probably because the scratches were the lightest.

On all three guitars I tried polishing a very small spot to make sure things weren't going to go haywire.

[Bowie]

I have used Plastic X for years. To get the deep scratches out, you have to remove actual plastic until the surface is as low as the bottom on the valleys. That's not going to happen and you unlikely want to use a filler so just getting the haze to subside a bit is about as much as you can ask.
The results look more impressive right after you use it. Giving it a few days, you'll see some of the haze return as the wet look from the product goes away. It still can help a little though.

[mirwa]

Unfortunately polishes as shown above do not really remove scratches well.

They do add a shine to the surface but nothing more than that.

The only way to get rid of them is to progressively sand them away with finer grit papers like micromesh.

A perfectly smooth reflective surface has millions of scratches, they are just not deep enough for our eye to see, so it appears as a perfectly flat surface.

Steve

[Earl49]

I prefer a matte finish on pick guards. I have been known to mask off the top and use 0000 steel wool to dull them down. One time my guitar was in a shop for some work, and the tech took it upon himself the run the guitar over to the buffing wheel to "shine it up". Nice gesture, but I had to re-dull it again for my taste. Less reflection of stage lights, and fewer visible fingerprints. YMMV.

[Mr. Paul]

Tough crowd!

My goal was to reduce the haze and I'm very satisfied with the results.