Why hasn't someone come up with a new tortoise shell analog

[tdbajus]

Pleased to be getting my first Spitfire tort guard, but it makes me wonder: I'm sure opinions vary, but I think the white pearloid guards look swell. Makes me wonder why someone doesn't do some sort of red over some sort of yellow.

It wouldn't have to be an exact clone or anything- but just something swirly with those natural earth tones in it. I mean, ANYTHING would be better than the fake tort fender is using, no?

While I'd love to think of myself as some kind of plastics visionary, I suspect others have thought the same and hit a brick wall. Just wondering what that wall is.

[Horsefeather]

They aren't common but there are options out there. I've been considering one of these for a project.

https://www.axetremecreations.com/Strat ... e-Tortoise

[tdbajus]

They aren't common but there are options out there. I've been considering one of these for a project.

https://www.axetremecreations.com/Strat ... e-Tortoise

Those look very pretty, but no Jazzmaster guards!

[oid]

Our unique process allows us to create a pearl or iridescent look for our Custom Shop Pickguards. The iridescent look created with our unique process is hard to describe, difficult to photograph, and just pure amazing to see in person!

It really looks like they are just using proper celluloid tort and laminating up their own blanks, the edges are not even that clean if you zoom in. Looks like they decided marketing was cheaper than decent router bits.

For those that care, rothkoandfrost.com imports celluloid tort and other materials from the last of the old makers in italy, you can get that and some thin pvc from places like mcmastercarr and laminate up pickguards yourself. Considerably cheaper than spitfire and some of the pickguard blanks.

[Debaser]

Pen nerds are way ahead on their plastics game.

https://www.exoticblanks.com/Rhino-Plastic-Pen-Blanks/

[tdbajus]

Pen nerds are way ahead on their plastics game.

https://www.exoticblanks.com/Rhino-Plastic-Pen-Blanks/

Oh my god, those would be AMAZING.

[kdanie]

Why? Simple... $$$$ There isn't enough money to be made on a commercial scale.

ken

[tdbajus]

Why? Simple... $$$$ There isn't enough money to be made on a commercial scale.

ken

They stopped using tortoiseshell because the turtles were being wiped out. Which would imply there is a demand for it.

[kdanie]

Tortoise shell pickguards on electric guitars (maybe some OLD acoustic guitars had real tortoise shell) were never made from actual tortoise shell, they were made from colored nitrocellulose. JM certainly never had real tortoise shell.

ken

[tdbajus]

Tortoise shell pickguards on electric guitars (maybe some OLD acoustic guitars had real tortoise shell) were never made from actual tortoise shell, they were made from colored nitrocellulose. JM certainly never had real tortoise shell.

ken

Sorry, I'm not being clear. The demand was high enough to endanger the turtles. The celluloid is hazardous to work with, but they did for a while. My glasses are fake tortoise shell, and are very nice.

It seems to me that people clearly want a good substitute. The fake rhino horn mentioned above looks DOPE.

Maybe Spitfire needs to branch out his product line!

[Deed_Poll]

That rhino plastic looks great!

I just did a search for it, now I'm getting a nose job

[Debaser]

Those guitar 'skin' shops and Spitfire's existence show there is a market for 'new tort', but probably a sub-niche inside the already niche tort set.

[tdbajus]

Those guitar 'skin' shops and Spitfire's existence show there is a market for 'new tort', but probably a sub-niche inside the already niche tort set.

I would be willing to wager that if more good tort was available, it would become much more popular. I mean, those fake tort guards are HORRIBLE looking, so almost no one under 35 even knows how pretty they are.

Also, some of the weirder Rhino stuff looks so cool!

[oid]

it would become much more popular. I mean, those fake tort guards are HORRIBLE looking, so almost no one under 35 even knows how pretty they are.

Almost no one under 35 likely cares, most of that age group is just making do, can not recall a single time someone under 35 came to me for a purely aesthetic change to their instrument, it likely happened but far from common. I think 90% of the under 35 market who do such things live here at this forum.

Edit: That is a purely aesthetic change beyond the rebellious youth stickers, random paint, drug behind a car sort of change.

rothcoandfrost was not the celluloid supplier I was thinking of, they are UK and mostly only carry the pearl and tort variations, there is someone in the US that imports it and has twice the selection, cheaper as well, think they were in Colorado. I will see if I can dig it out, they have a good deal of material that is not available in the guitar pickguard market.

[Steadyriot.]

I've been pondering this for quite a while now and I think there are two main options for a cool "tort-y" pickguard.

The first one would be epoxy. Deel_poll has been making these and they look the part:


The other one I've been thinking about is called a "Dirty Pour". You throw acrylic paints into a cup and you pour it on a surface. It'll swill and bubble which'll give you something akin to tort:


This has been on my to-do list for a while; a just haven't gotten to it yet. You can also do it with colored resins (what I think Deed_Poll's suplier is doing).