Tortoloid Pickguard Material

We bought the tortoloid pickguard material to try it out and to compare it to the Tor-tis which we normaly use. Our conclusion is that the Tortoloid has a weeker color and seems a bit cheap. The size of the sheets could have been larger, it fits a standard drop size pickguard but not a dove size.

I bought a sheet rather than a pre-cut pickguard because I wanted to be sure it was the exact same shape as the stock black one on my D-28, and I wanted to choose the way I cut the pattern into the shape. This was the first time for me to cut my own pickguard but the material was very easy to work with - I just heated it gently with a hairdryer and, using the stock guard as a template, cut it with a box cutter. The front was shiny but I needed to polish the back a bit. Bevelling the edges with the edge of a blade was part of the fun. The dark tortoise pattern looks great on the guitar, and the material is not too thick or thin. To the naked eye it's about the same as a stock Martin pickguard. I'd like to see Mario Proulx and StewMac introduce some new colours, like a dark-reddish brown. How about it guys? I'm happy with this product and would have no hesitation recommending it to others.