Fender-ST-Style : Pick & Chords

A pickguard is usually a piece of plastic, or other laminated material, fixed with some screws on the guitar’s body under the strings, or raised on adjustable metal support brackets close to them.  Its main practical purpose is to protect the guitar’s surface, but it may also have a merely decorative use, as well as be a piece of memorabilia.

Fender-style pickguards are mainly fitted on solid-bodied electric Stratocaster and Telecaster guitars and often cover a large area of the front top surface.  Most of their electronic components, such as  pickups, potentiometers, switches and wiring, are mounted on, or behind, the pickguards.  As a matter of fact, this design simplifies repairs and spare parts change.

1° Step : Pickguard & Fabric.

2° Step : Material & Tools. 

Of course, a Strat-pickguard and an adequate beautiful 100% cotton fabric.  To custom and decorate my pickguard with the decoupage technique, first of all I need scissors to cut out my fabric, soft pencil to design the pickguard’s template on the fabric’s rear side and vinyl glue (or special fabric-glue).  Also a flat brush to spread a fair glue measure on the pickguard to paste the chosen fabric, a few plastic or wooden binder clips to apply around the edges to hold the fabric down while the glue dries.  Finally, I need a satin water-based varnish gel to create a protective, anti-scratch film with a good resistance to mechanical agents.  I apply a thick and uniform coat with a specific flat smooth brush.  Let it dry for at least four hours, and then I repeat twice or more times as to get a hard, solid and strong last finishing.