Pick Guardian

4003360man · Post by **4003360man** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 9:33 pm

Just wondering if anyone has had their 4001/4003 fitted with these custom pick-guards or bridge pick-up covers.

I'm toying with the idea of changing from the standard white to getting a colored pick-guard for my 4003 Fireglo. Plus I swear, one of these days I'm going to cut myself on the chrome bridge pick-up cover now that I've removed the cover bar.

I'd love to just get a clear pick guard so I can show off the beautiful Fireglo paint job, but unfortunately a clear cover would expose the electronics which wouldn't be so pretty.

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions or can tell me about their experiences with customizing their Bass.

Thanks.

tomg · Post by **tomg** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 9:37 pm

Tony at Pickguardian does excellent work. I have one of his pickguards on my 4003.

shinynewtoy · Post by **shinynewtoy** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 10:23 pm

I put one of Tony's Vintage White back-painted guards on my '77 4001. It looks phenomenal and it's really well-made. Not to mention Tony's a stand-up guy to deal with and you get your order FAST!

(I'm no photographer but) here's a shot of it...

ilan · Post by **ilan** » Sat Jan 28, 2006 11:37 pm

+1

Tony made a black pickguard for my white '73. Excellent work!

Now I'm thinking about ordering one in Antique White (Clear plexiglas with creamy aged white paint on the back). Should look great on a slightly yellowed white 4001. I have a spare vintage TRC to match it.

lars · Post by **lars** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 12:20 am

I put on the bridge PU surround on my '76 FG. It didn't stay on because for anchoring the thumb on the PU it is to thick (high) with the top plexiglas mounted. I tried without the plexi part, but the screws would need to be shortened as they hit the bottom of the routing. I didn't want to cut the original screws.

lars · Post by **lars** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 12:25 am

phlemmy · Post by **phlemmy** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 3:04 am

anyone used his 2 pc guard yet? he said he's got a template for it but also mentioned that he's got a 1pc to replace it. i'd rather keep it a 2pc personally.

green_us90 · Post by **green_us90** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 3:38 am

Hey Lars, that pup surround looks great. Probably the only one I've seen yet that looks clean and professional. It appears the factory holes were used so should you sell it it could be returned to stock easily.

Nice!

tomg · Post by **tomg** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 3:47 am

I forgot to mention that Tony also made a set of gold guards (clear plexi, underpainted gold) for my 620. They came out really nice.

lars · Post by **lars** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 3:57 am

Yes Dave, this is a totally reversible modification. No extra holes. But as I mentioned, the screws that holds the pickup are too long if I remove the clear plexi part. As it is on the picture, the pickup is set lower than the surface of the plexi. If adjusted higher, the strings would hit the pole pieces. Ehm, hard to explain... Do you get it?

beatlefan · Post by **beatlefan** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 4:07 am

Tony makes great stuff! I've used p/g's and he's made thumb rests that you can't tell from original....

Plus he's a great guy and nice to deal with and ships VERY quickly!

rickenbrother · Post by **rickenbrother** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 6:50 am

Tony from pickguardian made me a nice pickguard for my '75 4001FL. Like Chris said, he's a nice guy, ships quickly.

lowendbob · Post by **lowendbob** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 7:01 am

Vintage gold on Monty Brown.
If I had to do it over again, I would have bought the plain p/g. The sig. addition is just plain silly.

kcole4001 · Post by **kcole4001** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 7:05 am

I think it's kinda cool to have your name on the p/g. Just the name, not necessarily the "Signature Edition" script.
Makes one more step would be thieves need to take to resell the guitar also!

rickfan60 · Post by **rickfan60** » Sun Jan 29, 2006 7:20 am

Tony made a replacement guard for my '63. He did a superb job. His workmanship is every bit as good if not better than factory guards.