41Hz Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 Hi Basschatters, I’ve got a sunburst jazz with the standard tort pickguard. I know its the classic vintage look, but I’m not keen on tort and thinking of changing to a black one. The proper Fender pickguards are pretty steep (around £45 with postage). Has anyone gone for a cheapo aftermarket one and if so was it OK? I’d rather bite the bullet and get a Fender one if the aftermarket ones look cheap, but if you can’t tell the difference then I don’t see the point in spending the extra. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggaebass Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 I recently upgraded an old mex fender jazz and fitted a black pickguard from eBay, I had to file it out a little bit around the pickup which was tight and about 1mm off the neck curve ,but otherwise it looks fine to me for £5.88 maybe worth a go https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F173526289183 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
41Hz Posted December 2, 2018 Author Share Posted December 2, 2018 Reggaebass - I see you have black screws too, is that standard on the fender black guards - think it looks a bit better. The only issue with these ones is mine has the truss rod adjustment at the bottom of the neck, so need the.cutout on the pickguard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggaebass Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 Ah so yours is the us jazz ,same pickguard as this one, IMO the cheaper pickguards are not bad ,but if it’s quite an expensive bass I’d opt for the genuine one 😀 maybe keep an eye out on eBay they do come up now and again 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 The one downside to most of the aftermarket ones is that they don`t have the cut-out for truss rod adjustment. I always go for the Fender ones, in terms of quality you can feel the difference, pretty much the same as @Reggaebass expensive bass, not going to skimp on whatever changes I make. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The59Sound Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 I'm the opposite - I think there is very little difference, especially once the guard is on the bass. The amount of quality 3 or 4 ply guards out there for under £20 make the official ones seem crazy for the price. Most importantly, it's the fit that matters. Even official guards I've had to still file to make fit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The59Sound Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 8 hours ago, Reggaebass said: Ah so yours is the us jazz ,same pickguard as this one, IMO the cheaper pickguards are not bad ,but if it’s quite an expensive bass I’d opt for the genuine one 😀 maybe keep an eye out on eBay they do come up now and again Is that an official one or aftermarket? Straight away I'm looking at the fit. Neck and pup seem okay but the top of the control plate is not in line and there is a gap between the guard and control plate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggaebass Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 13 minutes ago, The59Sound said: Is that an official one or aftermarket? Straight away I'm looking at the fit. Neck and pup seem okay but the top of the control plate is not in line and there is a gap between the guard and control plate. It’s the original one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggaebass Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 (edited) On 02/12/2018 at 19:33, The59Sound said: Is that an official one or aftermarket? Straight away I'm looking at the fit. Neck and pup seem okay but the top of the control plate is not in line and there is a gap between the guard and control plate. There’s no gap between the guard and control plate the bevel goes all the way round, it’s not a very good picture it’s my battered iPhone Edited May 16, 2021 by Reggaebass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The59Sound Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 The original one? Damn. I can see the white in between the gap. Good to know Fender QC still has good as ever! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 @41Hz I’ve got one (new) that you might like - pm me if interested ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 8 hours ago, Lozz196 said: The one downside to most of the aftermarket ones is that they don`t have the cut-out for truss rod adjustment. I always go for the Fender ones, in terms of quality you can feel the difference, pretty much the same as @Reggaebass expensive bass, not going to skimp on whatever changes I make. But you can do that cutout in five minutes with a dremel 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
41Hz Posted December 2, 2018 Author Share Posted December 2, 2018 8 minutes ago, Geek99 said: @41Hz I’ve got one (new) that you might like - pm me if interested ? PM sent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
41Hz Posted December 2, 2018 Author Share Posted December 2, 2018 (edited) 10 hours ago, Reggaebass said: Ah so yours is the us jazz ,same pickguard as this one, IMO the cheaper pickguards are not bad ,but if it’s quite an expensive bass I’d opt for the genuine one 😀 maybe keep an eye out on eBay they do come up now and again Mines a bit different, the truss rod hole is a bit bigger and it doesn’t have the screw above the neck pickup. By the way, your neck doesn’t look quite straight, though it might be the angle of the picture. Mine was like that- just slacken off the screws on the neck plate slightly and push the headstock until the E and G string are equidistant from the edge of the fingerboard and the retighten. I swear mine played better after adjusting. Edited December 2, 2018 by 41Hz Grammar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggaebass Posted December 2, 2018 Share Posted December 2, 2018 28 minutes ago, 41Hz said: Mines a bit different, the truss rod hole is a bit bigger and it doesn’t have the screw above the neck pickup. By the way, your neck doesn’t look quite straight, though it might be the angle of the picture. Mine was like that- just slacken off the screws on the neck plate slightly and push the headstock until the E and G string are equidistant from the edge of the fingerboard and the retighten. I swear mine played better after adjusting. The necks dead straight thanks 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elfrasho Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 I bought a cheapo one for a fender jazz bass and I gaurantee no-one would've told the difference. It's probably worth keeping the old one though for resale purposes. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorks5stringer Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 I don't know if it's the same for Jazz plates but with the P Bass there are 10 and 13 hole variants which one needs to be careful of. Having never bought a 10 hole variant I'm not sure if the holes are spaced the same but just less of them , if you follow? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ForestPoetry Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 I bought a cheap b/w/b off ebay for my black/maple Jazz and it's fine. Looks the business. However either it wasn't cut precisely perfectly or I just got too enthisiastic and scraped off a small amount of the neck when I had to force it on a bit. I think it was only arouind £20, can't recall the seller. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandypjb Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 (edited) I bought a cream scratchplate for my fiesta red Squier Classic Vibe P - Fitted perfectly but the top surface has started to lift/wrinkle after a really short time. (It's not the protective cellophane before you ask!😄) Admittedly it wasn't expensive (£15 IIRC) so I can't expect top quality but I did expect it to stay in one piece. Anyway, the tort one is back on. If I buy another aftermarket scratchplate in the future I think I'll pay a bit more in the hope of better quality. Steve. Edited December 3, 2018 by Sandypjb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The59Sound Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 (edited) Kaish guards have been decent in my experience. I have a Fleor tort guard as well that is good. Edited December 3, 2018 by The59Sound Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted December 3, 2018 Share Posted December 3, 2018 3 hours ago, ForestPoetry said: I bought a cheap b/w/b off ebay for my black/maple Jazz and it's fine. Looks the business. However either it wasn't cut precisely perfectly or I just got too enthisiastic and scraped off a small amount of the neck when I had to force it on a bit. I think it was only arouind £20, can't recall the seller. you paid over the odds in my humble opinion, decent stuff comes in cheaper than that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onehandclapping Posted December 4, 2018 Share Posted December 4, 2018 I bought a tort one for a Fender custom shop relic,think they had other colours,it had a nitro top and fitted perfectly,all the measurements were shown,they had them on EBay and Ali Express,was about 5 pounds Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FinnDave Posted December 4, 2018 Share Posted December 4, 2018 I have a celluloid tort scratch plate for a MiM Jazz for sale in the 'other items' at the moment. I have previously fitted MiM plates to US Fenders and the other way round, the only difference seems to be the trussrod cutout on the US ones - the MiMs are adjusted at the headstock end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aidan63 Posted December 4, 2018 Share Posted December 4, 2018 (edited) £7 Chinese fitted my MIM perfectly I have a made in America aftermarket 3 ply black one I bought from someone on here I was going to fit but preferred the weird tortoiseshell one, you are welcome to try before you buy, you would have to modify it for the truss rod adjustment if you decide to keep it Edited December 4, 2018 by Aidan63 added offer to op Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
41Hz Posted December 4, 2018 Author Share Posted December 4, 2018 Thanks Aiden, I’m not sure I’d be able to neatly do the trussrod cutout with my dremel, so I’ll most like shell out for a new one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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