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Hey guys! I'm looking to find some decent quality pickguards to etch. The problem is most pickguards I'm finding are like 80 bucks or they are 20 buck shit. Isn't there a middle of the road?

Damn it.

I'm looking for steel, anodized aluminium, regular aluminum. Basically anything metal. If you know someone that owns a CNC machine and wants to make me some of this shit to, I would be forever in your debt.

I've only seen the ones on ebay that are around $20 and then the boutique ones like you said that are like $80+ unfortunately.

Can you set your lazor to cut things? Or only etch? Like is there a depth control that you could use? That would be awesome if you could cut your own pick guards and then lazer etch them!

skullservant wrote:I've only seen the ones on ebay that are around $20 and then the boutique ones like you said that are like $80+ unfortunately.

Can you set your lazor to cut things? Or only etch? Like is there a depth control that you could use? That would be awesome if you could cut your own pick guards and then lazer etch them!

It can cut things but there's a limit and I haven't figured out how to do it. Believe it or not the manual is kind of useless. It's annoying. I know I can cut one type of plastic as well, but gotta look up what kind it is.

You would think this sucker could cut anything since it's a fiber laser made to engrave all metal types. So weird.

Ah that blows. Hopefully you can figure out how to get the lazer strong enough to cut through aluminum, that would be great if you could cut and etch all in one. Plus I know anno guards would sell like hotcakes in the first place since so few people produce them affordably

Yea I called them and it doesn't cut. I need a different type of laser to do that. Sucks.

Now if I knew someone with a CNC machine, they could do it like crazy. Just gotta keep looking.

May have found someone already!!!!!!!!!

Sweet!

If I were you, I would use the laser engraver like this:

1. create an outline of the pick guard shape and run / pass that as many times over the desired material until it is cut out.
2. Use the desired artwork to etch like normal!

Dude, if Wildebelor's suggestion works you could go fucking nuts with this. Imagine a pattern like this

laser cut the whole way through a pickguard (obviously you'd have to design it pretty carefully so that it stayed in one piece, but shit, that's what Jeff's for). It would look great on guitars that don't need a pickguard to hide a massive body route.
Or if you had a crappy body route you could chuck some LEDs in there and backlight the thing. Which may in fact be awesome, or it might make you look like Steve Vai.

wildebelor wrote:If I were you, I would use the laser engraver like this:

1. create an outline of the pick guard shape and run / pass that as many times over the desired material until it is cut out.
2. Use the desired artwork to etch like normal!

Not sure if that would work, but I guess it's worth a shot. It may be more time consuming than you'd think. I'll try it right now. lol

There's always a work around with tools my friend.
I know it works!

I cut up old cymbals and flattened them to make to control cavity covers for my sg. I get complements on how it looks all the time.
Put add for broken cymbals on CL
Buy them for next to nothing.
Cut them to shape.
Etch
Profit.

I'd be down for some etched brass on my doubleneck if you pursue this.

What about these guys?

http://www.anotone.com/shop/

Had a cool email exchange with them a week ago. They don't do custom shapes right now, but tele and strat and you are good to go. I am going to be looking into one of the local prototyping shops to see if I can't get them to help me out. I kind of want a polished aluminum pick guard for the DMZ3000 I just picked up.


You need to go all out though, do something like this:

^ That flying V guard looks incredible.
Perfect in every way.