Making a few upgrades to my Recording King RD-310

[Diamond Dave]

I just sold a guitar to pay for a keyboard and had a little extra money left over from the deal, so I've just ordered a Greven Tor-Tis pickguard for my Recording King RD-310. The original pickguard was black, which I replaced with a cheapie $8 tortoise print stick-on that was too small and left tan lines. Even though the RD-310 is similar to a D-18, the soundhole is about the same size as a D45, so I had to get a big ol' pickguard. It should look something like this when it arrives next week. It will complement the tortoise binding on the sides.



I also want to switch the plastic bridge pins to either ebony or bone. I *think* the taper is 5 degrees, but I'm waiting on a reply from RK to confirm that. (If anyone has changed the bridge pins in an RK RD-310, feel free to share. )

Pics when the real thing is complete!

[jpd]

Dave.....I've used the 5 degree on all my RK's. (Ebony is my go to, but snakewood also)

[Bigjoedo]

Looks great!!

[Dru Edwards]

I always preferred a tortoise colored pickguard over the black ones. Have fun with your upgrades - looking forward to completed pics.

[Diamond Dave]

Originally Posted by jpd

Dave.....I've used the 5 degree on all my RK's. (Ebony is my go to, but snakewood also)

Yeah, I'm pretty sure they're 5 degrees too. Thanks.

Originally Posted by Bigjoedo

Looks great!!

Thanks! I hope the real one looks as cool.

Originally Posted by Dru Edwards

I always preferred a tortoise colored pickguard over the black ones. Have fun with your upgrades - looking forward to completed pics.

Especially when the binding is tortoise. Thanks, Dru.

[Diamond Dave]

Just in case this shows up on an internet search by some lost soul...Recording King RD-310 bridge pins are tapered 7 degrees.

From RK:

Hi,

Thank you for your interest in Recording King. The bridge pins are standard size bridge pins with a 7-degree taper; because of the taper as long as you use a slotted pin, most commercially available acoustic guitar pins with string slots will work.

Best Regards,
Sam

Seeing as how I didn't want to go on a quest for 7 degree tapered pins, and they said any pins would work, I bought a pack of ebony Taylor pins for $8 from the store down the street and even tested the fit on an RD-310 they had in stock. Fits pretty well!

[Diamond Dave]

Here's a can of worms: I do indeed notice a difference in sound after replacing my plastic end pins with ebony ones. The guitar is louder, more responsive, and has more mids.

I'm fully willing to chalk it up to my imagination, but when you strum a chord, the end pins are clearly vibrating along with the top, bridge and saddle, so they must have some sonic effect, however subtle. It could have something to do with using pins that are slightly large for the holes and the extra contact between pin and bridge. I dunno.

[David-NJ]

Originally Posted by Diamond Dave

Here's a can of worms: I do indeed notice a difference in sound after replacing my plastic end pins with ebony ones. The guitar is louder, more responsive, and has more mids.

I'm fully willing to chalk it up to my imagination, but when you strum a chord, the end pins are clearly vibrating along with the top, bridge and saddle, so they must have some sonic effect, however subtle. It could have something to do with using pins that are slightly large for the holes and the extra contact between pin and bridge. I dunno.

There's nothing going on except with the varying weight of different pins. Nothing.

[Diamond Dave]

Originally Posted by David-NJ

There's nothing going on except with the varying weight of different pins. Nothing.

Hey, I'm open to any explanation, or none. The last thing anyone should trust as being hard science is their senses!

But that vintage pickguard is gonna be a banjo slayer!

[Diamond Dave]

The Greven Tor-Tis pickguard arrived today and I put it on. It's a perfect fit. I used the "hinge" method with scotch tape to make sure it lined up properly. The guard is substantial without being what I'd call heavy, and is translucent so you can still see the rosette and the wood grain. It's 1,000 times better than the $8, ill-fitting, thin "pepperoni" sticker I had on there.

And now, the $64,000 question:

What is the impact on the tone?

After careful thought and multiple rounds of testing with the latest space-age equipment, I've come to this conclusion:

That's a stupid question.

Here are pics:



The pickguard matches the tortoise binding very well:



The insert that came with the guard:

[Dru Edwards]

It looks fantastic Dave!! I'm still laughing to your response to your own question "will it impact tone".

[Diamond Dave]

Originally Posted by Dru Edwards

It looks fantastic Dave!! I'm still laughing to your response to your own question "will it impact tone".

Thanks, Dru.

[briluster]

I like the tortoise pickguard matching the binding...subtle but nice.

[Jim Owen]

Hi Dave,
Nice work. You definitely bought the best pick guard available--those are top-notch tortoise guards. It really fits with your binding.

[Diamond Dave]

Thanks guys. I had a little money to burn after I sold a guitar recently.