Some plastics age faster than others

[JohnnyMac]

I picked up a Squier Affinity for my granddaughter. I think it's 12 or 13 years old. The body is burgundy mist and I think the pickguard was originally white. It darkened pretty drastically. We didn't think it looked good with the body so I swapped it for a black one. I have white guards that are much older and the color has barely changed.

I'm thinking I may use it on my white partscaster.

 

[JohnnyMac]

I found a pic of how the pickguard on the Affinity originally looked.

 

[dpang2836]

Wow! I have seen Bodies change color like that? Parchment maybe?

 

[poodle lover]

Looks good

 

[JohnnyMac]

Wow! I have seen Bodies change color like that? Parchment maybe?

You can see how white it is under the knobs.

 

[JohnnyMac]

Here's another example but in this case the white pickup covers aged but the pickguard is still white. This Bullet is 36 years old with original plastics.

 

[Random guitar guy]

Here's another example but in this case the white pickup covers aged but the pickguard is still white. This Bullet is 36 years old with original plastics.

View attachment 331577

About how my 198x MIJ Contemp strat aged it is red with rosewood also. The knobs and pickups aged different than the pickguard.

 

[Robb]

My plastic credit card ages faster than any other plastic in my house !

 

[Diavolo]

The knobs and pickups aged different than the pickguard.

oh man, what did that do to the tone?!

 

[Uncle Joe]

This unusual Bullet was the subject of my first post here. My buddy snagged it at an estate sale. $75.00 and it came with a coffin case. Odd. I cleaned it up and upgraded the electronics, keeping the aged pickguard. The thing plays great. It's his favorite electric guitar.

 

[Random guitar guy]

oh man, what did that do to the tone?!

The new knobs and pickups just are not vibrating the same. Must be the 1980s japanese plastic that is gone.

I had to remove those pickups, and the knobs. I was very worried the plastic aging would affect their inherent resonance so I quickly called fender and inquired to know the exact make up of them to not ruin the vintage Fujigen tone.

They told me they did not keep materials records going that far back. I really think it is because they keep billing my dental practice for the 14 custom shop guitars I ordered, and will not let me have my vintage materials unless I order number 15 to keep up with the other custom shop regulars.

In fact if they see I bought a used Cyclone built in Mexico they may pull my membership

 

[archetype]

Plastics vary a lot, even while adhering to defined chemical composition with tolerances. Plastics of the same basic type will change at different rates over time. An example would be a Strat with factory original white plastic parts. Over a couple of decades, the result may be pickguard, pickup covers, switch tip, and knobs in distinctly different shades.

-archetype, in whose checkered past was a stint in an die shop making injection molds for plastic

 

[Beatup Guitars]

Love aged pickguards and plastics like the first one posted here.

I’ve even had several where the original knobs no longer matched each other or the original pickup covers no longer matched each other.

 

[JohnnyMac]

I decided to put the "aged" guard on the white parts caster. I think it looks pretty good.

I loaded it with some Tonerider Pure Vintage that I had on hand. I kind of hated to take the bootstraps out but the Toneriders are very nice pickups too.

 

[DougMen]

That Pure Vintage set is a pretty new offering from Tonerider, but is actually just what they renamed their Classic Blues set when they started winding the Classic Blues hotter.
They spec the Pure Vintage at- 5.9k, 6.1k, and 6.4k
My 1st gen. CV60s alnico 5 STA3 pickups, which are the equivalent of the original Tonerider Classic Blues set (before they made the Pure Vintage set) measure 5.8k, 6.1k, and 6.5k, identical to the Pure Vintage set.
The current set of Tonerider Classic Blues is spec'd at- 6.3k, 6/4k, and 7.0k
I'm also surprised they were able to call that set Pure Vintage, because i would have thought that Fender had trademarked that name, since they use it on so many of their pickups.

 

[DougMen]

I wonder if those PG plastics darken so much from sunlight the way guitar finishes do, because you can always tell a Martin that's been played outdoors in the sun because of its orange top, like this.

My Martin's OG owner obviously played it out in the sun a lot. You can see how light/white a piece of spruce it is where the finish is worn down to the bare wood between the bridge and PG.

 

[BlueSquirrel]

I decided to put the "aged" guard on the white parts caster. I think it looks pretty good.

I loaded it with some Tonerider Pure Vintage that I had on hand. I kind of hated to take the bootstraps out but the Toneriders are very nice pickups too.

View attachment 331891

That looks wonderful!!

 

[BlueSquirrel]

Which bootstraps pickups did you have in it?
Why have you removed them?

 

[JohnnyMac]

Which bootstraps pickups did you have in it?
Why have you removed them?

I have the Sun City Selects. I only removed them because I was swapping parts around just to change things up and I’m out or Strats to put them in right now. They’re fantastic pickups and will certainly get used in the future.

 

[JohnnyMac]

That Pure Vintage set is a pretty new offering from Tonerider, but is actually just what they renamed their Classic Blues set when they started winding the Classic Blues hotter.
They spec the Pure Vintage at- 5.9k, 6.1k, and 6.4k
My 1st gen. CV60s alnico 5 STA3 pickups, which are the equivalent of the original Tonerider Classic Blues set (before they made the Pure Vintage set) measure 5.8k, 6.1k, and 6.5k, identical to the Pure Vintage set.
The current set of Tonerider Classic Blues is spec'd at- 6.3k, 6/4k, and 7.0k
I'm also surprised they were able to call that set Pure Vintage, because i would have thought that Fender had trademarked that name, since they use it on so many of their pickups.

How new do you figure the Pure Vintage are? I bought mine used probably about 5 years ago.