What is phenolic and what is it made of?
Early Fender Broadcaster, No-Caster, Esquire and Telecaster pickguards were punched out of sheets of phenolic and lacquer finished to cover imperfections in the material. Phenolic is a Phenol Formaldehyde resin and is produced from Phenol (carbolic acid) with formaldehyde in the presence of a catalyst. It can be molded or impregnated into sheets containing linen, fiberglass or paper to form various grades of phenolic. Phenolic sheets can be produced in various colors and sheet sizes. Phenolics are hard, rigid and quite brittle.
