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Flattening old Bakelite pick guards and source for new guards?

The old axes I am constantly working on have a few things in common, and the warped guars are one of them. Have any of you any ideas on how exactly to flatten these things? And I would love to get a sheet of this somewhere also so I can start making my own.

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Greg,  since you mention heating and re-seating shrunken bindings and I have a relatively new Martin that has separated the binding at the waist (and torn the lacquer with it) - can you give me the skinny on how you and others go about this delicate operation.  I have standard heat guns etc.

I've "cut and shut" (added aged sections etc) severe cases in the past and am a lacquer sprayer of some conviction but the prospect of heating and stretching, which I do with new bindings when building, and re-seating is appealing and rather than experiment perhaps your info will short cut the procedure for me.  Tks in advance.

Rusty.

Sure, Rusty. In severe cases I will peel back even more binding (carefully!) in order to spread out the heating/stretching. I'll give the side a little protection by taping on cardboard like the backing of a writing tablet (or just hold the cardboard behind the binding as you heat it). I paint accelerator along the binding ledge with an artist's paintbrush. Heating a section of binding maybe 4 or 5 inches long with a heatgun on low, I'll push it into place. You can easily tell when it's warm enough to lay down without force. While holding it tight with one hand I'll get a drop of thin cyanoacrylate on the tip of a scribe. After I glued my thumb to a guitar, I started using a pencil eraser to press on the binding. I let the drop wick in, tacking the binding in place about every inch or so, then move to the next section. Heat, press, tack. Immediately after letting a drop wick under the binding I give a quick wipe with a piece of blue shop towel. When I've got it all down I go back and let CA wick in between my tacks. Touchup usually consists of a little 1200 wet/dry and a quick trip to the buffer. If chips of lacquer have been pulled up with the binding, you'll have to drop-fill those, of course.

I'm sure there are other techniques that work just as well or better, but this has worked for me. Good luck!

Thanks for the posts folks. Paul these guitars are all 1920s/1930s Kay Kraft guitars, and they are real Bakelite.  Thanks for all your responses folks. I got what I need...

 Still no one has said anything about were I might buy some sheet stock of this stuff... Anyone?

 

Greg, what a terrific description of how you do that job! With my Facebook instrument repair photoessays, I always 'try' to approach the descriptions from a layman's point of view, same as your post above. Even without any pictures, I could see everything you were describing....
Some National necks back then were "real Bakelite," but the rest of it was real celluloid. Once you have enough first-hand experience with the two substances, you never get them confused. I really wish the term Bakelite hadn't been hijacked by people who thought any decorative pre-war plastic was Bakelite. Trust me, real Bakelite was never used on Kay Kraft insturments. If a guard is distorted, it's a lead pipe cinch that it's celluloid.

if your uncertain about if it is or isnt bakelite put some scrubbing bubbles on a qtip and touch the bakelite if it is the qtip will turn yellow

cheers Mark

Here's a link that has some interesting information!

 

http://vintagejewelrylane.com/information/vintageplastics.htm

And this link - to test for "true" bakelite - http://vintagejewelrylane.com/information/bakelitetest.htm

Hate to say it, but these articles are specious and misleading BS. This is a case of not believing everything you read. Witness:

The words "bakelite" and "catalin" are often used interchangeably. However, they are actually two different materials. Both are thermoset plastics made from formaldehyde.

 

No, celluloid is not a thermoset plastic. There was a bit of Bakelite with decorative properties, but most of it ended up (deservedly) as circuitboards and pot handles. Dull, ugly stuff that was (and is) impervious to heat changes.

 

 

OK Paul, you have got me more than half convinced after that. I just took two of the pickguards off and have had a vera good look at both, and  I just can't tell. 409 is not widely available in Canada, so that test is out. I just tried the bright light test and no light got through either one.  '

 Paul what is the actual test for celluloid? Maybe it will be easier to prove this is celluloid than to prove it is not  bakelite. I know celluloid  is amazingly flammable, almost explosive...

   What is the active ingredient in 409? Maybe I have some here.

 Paul the material ( lets call it that!) is more flexible than I thought it should be if it is bakelite, so it certainly points in that direction.  

Scrape a little off in one spot on the backside with a penknife and stick your nose right down on it. Celluloid has an unmistakable camphor/ping pong ball smell.

Good procedure Greg and a new one for me.  Thanks.  You too Mark.

I was going to suggest getting scrapings from both & putting a match or flame to both of them.  The celluloid will 'flash" and burn faster than you can watch.  The bakelite  will just sit there and scowl at you.  Set a real celluloid pick on fire to see what I mean.

A friend who restores antique radios tells me that Bakelite has a finite "lifespan".  After a few decades, it starts to disintegrate.  From what he's told me, it's a poor choice for any guitar component.

Best of luck (:

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