Mickguard Posted July 25, 2005 Report Share Posted July 25, 2005 I came across a leather telecaster pickguard on ebay (da link) -very cool. Except, I don't like the fanciness on the borders (check out his other guards, if you're into fancy though )...and I'm thinking I could make my own. I have an old leather coat here that's due to be retired, it'd look really great as a pickguard (and the wife will stop bugging me about getting rid of it) So how would I stiffen up the leather to make it useable as a pickguard? Any ideas? I'm thinking I could impregnate the underside with sealer perhaps --but maybe there's something else that will work better? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegarehanman Posted July 25, 2005 Report Share Posted July 25, 2005 I think it'd look the cleanest if you glued it to a plastic pickguard and wrapped it around the edges of the pickguard. Although, that may not be possible if it's thick leather. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2005 I think it'd look the cleanest if you glued it to a plastic pickguard and wrapped it around the edges of the pickguard. Although, that may not be possible if it's thick leather. ← Well, I figure if I can stiffen it to the point where it's nearly as hard as plastic, it should be possible to get a neat job out of it. Don't want it to get too thick, and I'm already installing a copper sheat under it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegarehanman Posted July 25, 2005 Report Share Posted July 25, 2005 Lay it on a really flat surface, not yet cut into your shape, and slather the back with CA glue. Let it dry, then keep repeating the process till it seems pretty stiff. The cut out your pickguards on a bandsaw or jigsaw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegarehanman Posted July 25, 2005 Report Share Posted July 25, 2005 EDIT: Then (cut out your...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2005 Sure, CA glue....that sounds like the ticket...or what about epoxy? Another trip to the hardware store, coming up! Anyway, it's a pretty big coat, should be able to make a few guards out of it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marksound Posted July 25, 2005 Report Share Posted July 25, 2005 Hey, you could do a whole body cover! Like this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drak Posted July 25, 2005 Report Share Posted July 25, 2005 Here's some others in case you weren't aware of them. El Dorado Leather 'Guards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2005 Here's some others in case you weren't aware of them. El Dorado Leather 'Guards ← Yep, found the link using the search function here --but I don't want anything fancy like that --I'm definitely not going for a country theme here.... I've been wearing this coat for something like 8 years now, it's nice n' worn in...it'll look excellent as a pickguard. Hmm...instead of attaching it to a plastic guard, I could mount it on a thin piece of metal.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2005 Man, I love the internet.... "Basically Cuir Bouilli is a means of making hardened and stiffened leather. Although there is some disagreement among some leatherworkers as to how this is accomplished, there is a significant amount of evidence to think that it was done by molding wet vegetable tanned leather. This leather can be formed into any number of forms, which, on drying, will retain that shape. The wet leather can be set more firmly by drying it under moderate heat, the degree of rigidity obtained being determined by the drying temperature. A faster method, which produces extremely hard and rigid shapes, is to dip the molded leather into boiling water for anywhere from 20 to 120 seconds. This technique causes the partial melting of the fixed tannin aggregates in the leather, making them plastic, causing them to flow and redistribute themselves throughout the fiber network of the leather. On cooling, the fibers become embedded in what can best be called a tough, three-dimensional, polymer network or resin, somewhat similar to the materials made by condensing formaldehyde with substances such as phenol, urea or melamine." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tirapop Posted July 26, 2005 Report Share Posted July 26, 2005 After you boil your jacket, it might not have the same nice looking worn finish. Gluing it to a thin pickguard is probably your best option. Perspiration and body heat might undo any stiffening you've boiled and baked into the leather, letting it pucker or sag in spots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marksound Posted July 26, 2005 Report Share Posted July 26, 2005 I'm already installing a copper sheat under it. Hmm...instead of attaching it to a plastic guard, I could mount it on a thin piece of metal....That sounds like it would work. Stiffen the leather and shield the back at the same time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blink 182 Posted July 26, 2005 Report Share Posted July 26, 2005 How thick is the leather? It needs to be about 1/8th of an inch for it to stiffen properly. My dad makes things out of leather for a living so maybe i could ask him more about it but that thickness becomes pretty hard if you boil it or wet it then put it in the oven. Im not sure a coat would have the thickness, so you could glue it on thin plastic as other people have mentioned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unclej Posted July 26, 2005 Report Share Posted July 26, 2005 i made a flame type pickguard out of material using the same techniques listed in the fabric finish tutorial...applied wood glue to an old pickguard..applied the fabric. after cutting and wrapping the edges and letting it dry i then applied sanding sealer and several coats of lacquer. i was surprised at how flexible it was without cracking. i'm sure it would work with thin leather if a shiny look is acceptable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 26, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 26, 2005 Well, the boiling didn't work --either the leather isn't thick enough or it's not the right kind (I think you need vegetable-based tanned leather or something like that). So I'm into phase 2...no time to get to the hardware store, so I just took some grain filler and used that on the suede side--it works pretty well, the leather gets pretty stiff. Maybe I'll just put some sealer on there--that should harden it enough, right? Or I'll pick up some epoxy (is that the same as CA?), that'll definitely work. I want to keep the leather side plain leather, since that's what looks cool. I'm also thinking of gluing two stiffened pieces together, then hammer them.... Got a whole jacket of scrap to play with! Think I'll hit up the thrift stores though, seem to me it'll be possible to find a nice old purse or something similar... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sobot Posted July 26, 2005 Report Share Posted July 26, 2005 if it's a strong leather, why not just stretch it onto the guitar and use extra screws that go down into the wood a lot more than regular screws? maybe you could somehow rivet the leather on... hmmm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 27, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 27, 2005 if it's a strong leather, why not just stretch it onto the guitar and use extra screws that go down into the wood a lot more than regular screws? maybe you could somehow rivet the leather on... hmmm ← Well, yeah, once you start to think about, there are all kinds of things you can do with a leather finish....I'm surprised the metal-head crew here hasn't thought of that! Of course they're a pretty conservative bunch... I'm tempted to go with the guard on ebay... Nice thing about tele pickguards, you can change them whenever you feel like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
n8rofwyo Posted July 29, 2005 Report Share Posted July 29, 2005 Leather is definently not my bag but, I had a custom arm guard made for me (for archery) at the local saddle shop. The leather was a natural color and hard as all get out (don't know if it comes other colors or not, but I would think so). The craftsman said he used "bull hide" leather for the guard. The stiffness is somewhere around that of 1/8" plexi. Maybe that helps maybe it doesn't, but that's all I know about leather. Good luck. Nate Robinson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 29, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2005 Leather is definently not my bag but, I had a custom arm guard made for me (for archery) at the local saddle shop. The leather was a natural color and hard as all get out (don't know if it comes other colors or not, but I would think so). The craftsman said he used "bull hide" leather for the guard. The stiffness is somewhere around that of 1/8" plexi. Maybe that helps maybe it doesn't, but that's all I know about leather. Good luck. Nate Robinson ← That does help ---I wasn't sure about what terms to search for. Thanks! The leather I have here would be great for a fabric finish--actually I've discovered that there are two types of leather on the coat--the leather used for the arms is significantly thicker than the main panels. The main panel leather is very supple--could be fun to make a leather-backed guitar, for example. On the other hand, for making a pickguard, it'd be useless. I tried strengthening the leather with some bondo yesterday...it helps a little but not enough. So my choices right now are either to make a fabric finish guard (using a metal plate) or find some of that dar bull leather --or just buying a ready-made guard.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocksolid Posted July 29, 2005 Report Share Posted July 29, 2005 Wow this thread has given me a few ideas! What I think I'll do is this: buy a cheap purse, (the kind that look like crocodile skin) attach it to a metal or plastic sheet with glue, and then to hide the ugly edge i would recess it like you would with a control cavity cover on the back of a guitar. I think that would look pretty sharp dont you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 29, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2005 Wow this thread has given me a few ideas! What I think I'll do is this: buy a cheap purse, (the kind that look like crocodile skin) attach it to a metal or plastic sheet with glue, and then to hide the ugly edge i would recess it like you would with a control cavity cover on the back of a guitar. I think that would look pretty sharp dont you? ← Oh YEAH! Crocodile! Very cool....think I'll go hit up some thrift shops...excellent idea! Plain leather looks a little...well, plain on the guitar...there's not enough of a difference between that and a normal matte black guard...that's why you need fancy patterns I guess. I'm also looking out for old suitcases/attache cases --my wife has an old blue case from her childhood==the leather on that looks very thick. Too bad it's blue (and she gave me a dirty look when I started inspecting it...)...hmmm...maybe a crocodile suitcase...or old cowboy boots? I like the recessing idea too --except, I want to be able to change the guard from time to time (one of the nice parts about tele pickguards --there are tons of variations). I think there are other ways to hide the edge though --for one thing, leather's pretty malleable --you should be able to press the plate deep enough into the leather so that it forms an edge...it seems leather is pretty responsive to heat, so there's probably a way to do it so that it all comes out pretty neatly WITHOUT having to wrap the leather under the edge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocksolid Posted July 30, 2005 Report Share Posted July 30, 2005 I'm glad you like the crocodile skin idea! I never really thought of using heat like that. I like the idea of using steam to soften the leather and then pressing the metal plate into the back of it to get the edge. You could probably use a blowdrier or something to dry the pickguard into that shape. Whatever you do just make sure you post a picture of it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickguard Posted July 30, 2005 Author Report Share Posted July 30, 2005 I'm still working with the idea...you've definitely loosened me up though...now I see all kinds of ways to go, like snakeskin, lizard...or even cow hide (can you say 'moocaster'?) In the meantime, my bondo test actually worked! I came back to it yesterday after it had had more time to dry...in the places where I smeared the bondo thick enough, it's easily stiff enough to replace an actual pickguard. Especially if I put a thin metal plate underneath it (I already have a super thin copper shield for it, so I don't know if I want to use a metal plate...I'd prefer no plate. So that frees me up to try out more material types. I'm betting the bondo will let me shape the edges of the material so that it'll look right too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nollock Posted July 31, 2005 Report Share Posted July 31, 2005 You could coat it in epoxy, then lay it between two pieces of stiff smooth plastic with a weight on so as to press it dead flat and even, squeeze out any spare epoxy. If that isnt strong / stiff enough on its own, lob a layer or 2 of carbon fiber matting on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skibum5545 Posted August 3, 2005 Report Share Posted August 3, 2005 It still seems to me that CA glue (Superglue, Krazyglue, etc.) would soak into the fibers and stiffen the leather very thoroughly. Thinned epoxy would probably also work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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