Removal

• 1
  SG guitar heads have tuners on either side that turn in opposite directions.guitar head image by Adkok from Fotolia.com
  
  Remove the old strings by turning the tuners to loosen them. Cut them once sufficiently loose to avoid snapping and pull one half out of the tuning pegs on the SG head and the other half from behind the guitar.
  
  
• 2). Unscrew the small screws that keep the pickguard on the SG body with your screwdriver. The number of screws varies depending on the shape of the pickguard, but a standard SG uses 14 screws. Place these screws in a safe place and keep the different sizes separate from each other.
  
  
• 3
  It is not necessary to remove knobs from on top of the SG pickguard like on this guitar.guitar image by Chris Edwards from Fotolia.com
  
  Pick up the bridge--the piece the strings were resting on--and place it to the side.
  
  
• 4). Remove the pickguard by simply lifting it up. Place it out of the way. The pickguard should come right off over the SG pickups, so there will be no need to remove those and fiddle with the wiring.
  
  

Replacement

• 1). Clean the surface of your SG with a soft cloth. You may need to lift up the pickups gently to get under the surface they were resting on. You may want to clean the neck of your guitar at this time as well.
  
  
• 2
  Your new pickguard should fit right where the old one sat.stratocaster image by diego cervo from Fotolia.com
  
  Place your new pickguard in the same spot as the old one. This piece should rest right over the SG pickups and the holes for the screws should be aligned.
  
  
• 3). Screw in the screws with your screwdriver in the designated holes. Tighten them as much as you can without damaging the new pickguard.
  
  
• 4
  Your new strings will be pulled through the body of your SG to anchor them.classic solid body sunburst electric guitar image by alpy7 from Fotolia.com
  
  Restring your SG using your new strings. Be careful to not wind the strings too tightly before tuning your guitar.