What IS the deal with LP pick guards?

dazzajl

This isn't about whether you like them on or off, I want to know why after 127,000 years of Les Pauls it's still just such a cheap bit of plastic? There is a LP up for sale here that is just about as pretty as a guitar can get, REALLY not a cheap one either. Everything about it looks exquisitely crafted, except the guard, which is the cheap bit of plastic that looks more like a kids toy from a market stall. Take a look at Gretsch Jet, that uses much the same set up. It's thick piece of perspex with a glistening peal backing that catches the light and has a three dimensional look in the light. With a nice little Gretsch logo that adds to the aesthetic.

My conclusion; you can do better Gibson.

RaymondLin

Tradition innit?

If it was crap before, it's got to stay crap.  

Or it will lose mojo.

ICBM

dazzajl said:

This isn't about whether you like them on or off, I want to know why after 127,000 years of Les Pauls it's still just such a cheap bit of plastic? There is a LP up for sale here that is just about as pretty as a guitar can get, REALLY not a cheap one either. Everything about it looks exquisitely crafted, except the guard, which is the cheap bit of plastic that looks more like a kids toy from a market stall.

... and that's exactly why I always take them off. They're cheap-looking and ugly. Even leaving the empty screw hole is less bad, although it's better still if it was never fitted in the first place.

That, and that they click annoyingly when you hit them with your pick or fingernails, often creak when you press on them, sometimes don't fit well around the pickups (especially P90s/Deluxes) and add unnecessary weight to a guitar most people already complain about.

They're not *quite* so bad on a Custom, especially black, but I still don't see the point in them.

PonchoGreg

Perhaps the appeal is in the simplicity? Much like a simple blackguard with 5 screws looks a bit more streamlined/understated than an ornate paisley or tort affair on a Tele?

Gretsch, d'Angelico etc have a different vibe going and that's cool too, but I for one like the "basic" plastics on an LP.

dazzajl

PonchoGreg said:

Perhaps the appeal is in the simplicity? Much like a simple blackguard with 5 screws looks a bit more streamlined/understated than an ornate paisley or tort affair on a Tele?

Gretsch, d'Angelico etc have a different vibe going and that's cool too, but I for one like the "basic" plastics on an LP.

Yup! And I love simplicity. That doesn't quite account for the cheapness of the plastic though does it?

p90fool

When the Les Paul was designed they fitted perfectly well with the simple P90/Goldtop aesthetic, but when you start adding silly tiger stripey bling they seem a little incongruous. 

idiotwindow

ICBM said:

dazzajl said:

Everything about it looks exquisitely crafted, except the guard, which is the cheap bit of plastic that looks more like a kids toy from a market stall.

That, and that they click annoyingly when you hit them with your pick or fingernails, often creak when you press on them, sometimes don't fit well around the pickups (especially P90s/Deluxes) and add unnecessary weight to a guitar most people already complain about.

It's amazing that anyone ever managed to play one professionally. I've no idea how the likes of Page and Clapton coped with all those creaks and clicks.

SteveRobinson

I know just the guitar for you:
Gibson Les Paul 25/50 one of 100 Hand Made Flame Tops 1978 NEW Old Stock | eBay

or maybe one of these?
https://reverb.com/uk/p/gibson-the-les-paul-1976-1980

boogieman

Yup, horrible things. It wouldn’t be quite so bad if they were all a decent colour instead of that crappy hearing aid beige that Gibson insist on using. Most of the time the beige doesn’t even match the pickup rings or the binding. 

57Deluxe

think it looks great on mine...

 

Boromedic

Ditto!

scrumhalf

Barry Gibb had two on his Les Paul. Go to  00:40.

Funkfingers

The pickguard is a throwback to the Jazz boxes for which Gibson was known at the time. (So are the body outline and carved arched top.) Remember, Les himself was playing a mixture of Jazz, Country and Pop. That was the target market for Les & Ted's broomstick guitar.

dazzajl

Funkfingers said:

The pickguard is a throwback to the Jazz boxes for which Gibson was known at the time. (So are the body outline and carved arched top.) Remember, Les himself was playing a mixture of Jazz, Country and Pop. That was the target market for Les & Ted's broomstick guitar.

I totally get where it came from and what it's supposed to do. What I don't get is why they are still like that? Prosthetic limbs and hearing aids have moved on from the beigeist greige, so why is the most visible bit in the middle of a £4K gibson still a 2p bit of plastic in the most unattractive of colours that doesn't even match the other plastics? See exhibit three posts up

LastMantra

It is only a pickguard. If you don't like it take it off.

equalsql

I do like the look of them, especially in creme or where they've aged. I'm not a fan of the cheap metal L bracket though, it would look classier if they used the same type of adjustable fixing as used on their semi acoustic models. I've always thought Les Pauls looked naked without the pick guard.

dazzajl

LastMantra said:

It is only a pickguard. If you don't like it take it off.

I've had draws full of the buggers, from Gibson and "a'likes". That doesn't answer the question of why they're so crap though?* If the tuner buttons or control knobs etc were made from the same plastic, people would complain they feel cheap surely?

*I do get that many many many more important questions exist. In fact, its hard to think of many less important ones but when has that mattered here?

ThePrettyDamned

Les Paul pickguards are an unnecessary design flaw that needs eradicating.

I don't even think they look *that* bad - but they look much better without (even solid colours) and the carved top of a les paul means that, frankly, you don't need something to protect that bit of the body anyway - the fact it itself needs elevating off the top tells you how unnecessary it is.

I took mine off and sharpied the hole. Looks better, is an ounce lighter (mine is already very light at under 8lbs) and I still don't hit the body with a pick. All wins

not_the_dj

It’s it a finger rest as opposed to a scratch plate?

LastMantra

dazzajl said:

LastMantra said:

It is only a pickguard. If you don't like it take it off.

I've had draws full of the buggers, from Gibson and "a'likes". That doesn't answer the question of why they're so crap though?* If the tuner buttons or control knobs etc were made from the same plastic, people would complain they feel cheap surely?

*I do get that many many many more important questions exist. In fact, its hard to think of many less important ones but when has that mattered here?

I suppose, to me, a fancy pickguard is like putting works of art on bog roll 

ICBM

idiotwindow said:

It's amazing that anyone ever managed to play one professionally. I've no idea how the likes of Page and Clapton coped with all those creaks and clicks.

Taking them off didn't seem to do Green and Kossoff any harm. And making them play better than Page and Clapton, of course...