Bendable pickguard material?

[Stjofön Big]

Some years ago I bought a long scale Lotus bass on the bay, just because it got some features in the look that somehow reminds me of the beatiful Gibson Eb 0 from -59. I took an immediate liking to it. It surprised me when I saw that the bass is a neck-through. Now I'm in the process of turning the Lotus into the illegitimate son of Mr T-bird and the pregnant Miss Eb 0. That process includes, so far, these changes:
- Clover style tuners
- Bad Ass II bridge
- T-bird pup
- Relocating input jack to the side, complete with black jackplate
- Moving the controls to Eb 0 style positions
- Rebuilding the head top contours into Gibson style profile
My problem of the day is the pickguard, as the body is kinda arched, or built in two different levels. I bought black self-adhesive thin plastic and shaped it to look like the Eb 0 pickguard. It works, but doesn't have the right lustre, and looks kinda wrong. So; is there any knowledge concerning material that could be used to form a pickguard that looks thick enough? Or do you think I should go for another shape, like the pickguard in the Les Paul Junior, double cutaway model?
Here's an adress where you can see the Lotus (got the same colour as mine):
http://www.google.se/imgres?imgurl=http://i16.photobucket.com/albums/b6/tombowlus/Lotus/IMG_3460.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f8/so-whos-owned-owns-lotus-bass-540617/&h=1024&w=768&sz=139&tbnid=ZPz7R4zBygrYcM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=68&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dlotus%2Bbass%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=lotus+bass&docid=6E-5RQuRZCM_uM&hl=sv&sa=X&ei=78KPT--bAZL74QTp4v2UBA&ved=0CD8Q9QEwAQ&dur=723
And here's how the Junior guard I'm thinking of, looks:
http://www.google.se/imgres?imgurl=http://www.pinrepair.com/vgi/gone/58_lpjr_3.jpg&imgrefurl=http://home.provide.net/~cfh/lpjr.html&h=690&w=950&sz=88&tbnid=jqy8Q0PunWrtaM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=124&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dles%2Bpaul%2Bjunior%2Bdouble%2Bcutaway%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=les+paul+junior+double+cutaway&docid=3FnL9PUX1lg14M&hl=sv&sa=X&ei=UsqPT_uMIZP64QSOxtWMBA&ved=0CFMQ9QEwAw&dur=342
Your thoughts are very welcome! Thanks!

[Basvarken]

Why don't you try to use standard pickguard material, heat it (with a blow dryer or hot water) and then bend it to fit the shape of the body?

[Stjofön Big]

Been thinking about the heat-up way, but am unsure of how bendable the material is? Do you think it would work to heat a 3-ply guard?
And what do you think of the p-guard idea? Should I go for the big Eb 0 one, or maybe use the smaller Junior? Or any other ideas?

[Stjofön Big]

Or maybe use a p-guard that follows the contour of the "upper part" of the body, but still in the style of the Eb 0, and then use a smaller piece for the horn, which is in the lower section? Like Burns did on the Hank B Marvin model, though in a simpler way?
http://www.google.se/imgres?q=burns+hank+b+marvin+bass&um=1&hl=sv&sa=N&biw=1280&bih=619&tbm=isch&tbnid=8sFsaau-UExkWM:&imgrefurl=http://master-gnurf.blogspot.com/2010_12_01_archive.html&docid=15ZzyFSXSH-5tM&imgurl=http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_DrmUH6oeWWE/TRG_rRxZo8I/AAAAAAAACCE/xM6bmB_FrfY/s1600/2008%25252BBurns%25252BMarquee%25252BBass%25252B_white_body2.jpg&w=592&h=387&ei=Fd2PT7r4MOPe4QT54syABA&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=946&vpy=325&dur=993&hovh=181&hovw=278&tx=129&ty=101&sig=115237610573876888143&page=1&tbnh=118&tbnw=181&start=0&ndsp=19&ved=1t:429,r:18,s:0,i:103

[dadagoboi]

That's a compound bend, impossible even with a vacuum press on most material.  Try doing the bend with a sheet of paper and you'll see it can't be done without wrinkling.

I'd follow the contour line for the bottom edge of the guard for a start.  Use a piece of paper and scissors to see what looks right to you.  Looking forward to the results!

[drbassman]

I don't think I'd put a pickguard on this bass unless I just did it on the raised portion of the body.  Making that curve, like other forlks said, is going to be darn near impossible.  Besides, I think it looks good without a guard as you can really see the contour well, which is part of the charm of this style.

[Pilgrim]

I don't think I'd put a pickguard on this bass unless I just did it on the raised portion of the body.  Making that curve, like other forlks said, is going to be darn near impossible.  Besides, I think it looks good without a guard as you can really see the contour well, which is part of the charm of this style.

I agree on both counts; first, no PG is needed and it looks good without one.  Second, if you really want one, just fit it to the flat portion of the body.  There's no point in adding one on the routed fall-off part of the body, as a pick normally would not contact it.  Of course, your application is cosmetic.

[chromium]

I remember a post from Marko/MPU over at the old place, where he vacuum-molded a Triumph-style pickup cover out of PG material for a Les Paul Signature bass project.  It came out nice!  He had made a mold from wood, interfaced it with his shop vac, drilled holes in the appropriate spots for suction, and plopped the thing into an oven with PG material laid over the top of it.  I remember there were pics of his whole process, but I can't find them anywhere.  Just FYI, and maybe you can contact him via TB for insights.

That said, I like it without the 'guard!  Reminds me a bit of those Acoustic Black Widows

[Stjofön Big]

All right, you guys! I get the point! And I agree with you - the thin plastic p-guard, that I put on the bass yesterday night, as a prototype, looks wrong. Abso-fuggin-lotuely wrong!!! But I think the body needs something black as antagonist (?) to the red colour.
Maybe it would have been all right if I had used a black T-bird pup, instead of the cromed one, plus a black bridge? But things are as they are, so I gotta find another place for that blackness...
I've got a black T-bird pup, but that one is installed in my black Ripper with black p-guard, and it's such a beauty, and got such a good sound, I just can't start to rip it up (as I suppose Little Richard would do?).
What do you guys think of a p-guard in the Eb 2 style? Like this: http://www.gbase.com/gear/gibson-eb-2-bass-1967-sparkling-burgundy
Or maybe black f-holes? Just something to loosen up the straightness of that body...

[Pilgrim]

How about an EB-0 style?  Modified as needed.....

[Stjofön Big]

Yeah, something in that style. Something that just gives the opposite to the red colour, and in the same breathe underlines it... And that 3-ply looks so good.

[drbassman]

Don't feel bad about it not looking right.  I once thought a tort guard would look good on a 4003 I had and after doing a mock up, I realized the idea in my head wasn't so hot once executed.  It just happens that way sometimes.