Where can I find large bare PCBs to cut pickguards from?

Talk about modding or building your own guitar from scratch.
User avatar
LVC
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1933
Joined: Wed Dec 28, 2011 12:38 pm
Location: France

Re: Where can I find large bare PCBs to cut pickguards from?

Post by LVC » Thu Jun 10, 2021 3:25 am

So... I’ve found something suitable at last.

Computer motherboards have got the hi-tech-ish look I'm after — complex, multi layered traces, solder mask, silkscreen... but as MattewK pointed out they usually come pre-assembled.

Turns out there is a market for bare repro motherboards for vintage computers, and they generally are pretty large. They seem to be quite pricey, but some can be found for not much more money than you'd expect to pay for a decent non-tort pickguard blank. I found this one on eBay, apparently for a vintage Soviet computer (Poisk-2):

Image

It's got the looks, and according to my calculations should be approximately 29.5x33 cm, which is more than enough.

If anyone else is interested, the seller has other boards that may or may not be large enough. You'd have to ask for dimensions as they are not specified, or do some rough calculations from the size of known components as I did.

If you want a slightly lower-tech look, large PCBs for tube preamp projects can be found on eBay as well... Get that toob mojo :D

This one looks good too... But I specifically wanted a green one.
Create art, not content

Post Reply