CudBucket Posted November 8, 2004 Report Share Posted November 8, 2004 to cut my fret slots? I've been trying to cut the fet slots in my fret board with a new Stew Mac fret saw. It's the one with the depth stop. Any way, it doesn't really cut through the fretboard so easily. I'm finding that it's taking way more time than I thought. I've only cut 7 frets and I've put in about 2 hours. Maybe I should try another (better) saw? Thanks. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CudBucket Posted November 8, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 8, 2004 And another thing: I noticed that on some of the slots I've cut, the width of the cut is a hair wider at the edges of the fretboard than in the center. This could be from me pushing the saw too hard and causing it to flex. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mushy the shroom Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 What are you cutting? Ebony is a lot harder to cut than rosewood or maple. Another thing, though, is the teeth may be clogging. I doubt it, because that saw has wide teeth. One thing you may think about is how much time you spend measuring, lining up, and actually cutting. Some people just cut slower than others. I used that same saw when fretting a 36 fret neck without a radius. I did it in about 3 hours, then did a crappy job dressing the frets on a grinding wheel (test guitar). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CudBucket Posted November 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 I'm not really sure. I thought it was rosewood but now I don't know. The saw seemed to cut through red oak more easily. I bought it off Ebay and seem to remember it being Honduran Rosewood. It's very hard stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Rosenberger Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 Rub an old Candle on the sides of the saw, that'll help lubricate it while cutting the slots Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krazyderek Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 (edited) sounds like you haven't got the miter box setup properly if you are using the stew mac one, the brass blocks need to be right up against the side of the saw, i have to use general pupose white grease to move my saw thru the miter box i keep my saw that tight, i also don't use the brass blocks for depth at all, so lower them as close to the teeth as you can but still be able to get the blade in and out for the box, that along with tightening the blocks to the saw will help prevent any twisting of the saw (the butterfly slots you mentioned) use a peice of a coke can or some little peice of thin metal and score a mark for your depth to check the slot depth that way ( much more accurate then a pencil or pen mark on paper) once you have the saw lubricated in the box it should fly thru the wood, unless it's an old saw, then you might just want to get a new sharp one, or if it's still getting "stuck" in the wood, definitly try scott's candle trick, or pick up a can of dry coat it's a tool cutting edge lubricant that's how i had my box setup and i can slot a board in under 30 mins.... but i do have pretty strong arms EDIT: woopse, you're using the saw free hand, ok, well buy the miter box and the fretting template... then follow the above... the box will easily pay for it's self in one use by the sounds of how long it's taken you so far (no offence intended) Edited November 9, 2004 by krazyderek Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CudBucket Posted November 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 Thanks for all the help fellas. I'll try some candle wax. Yes, it's the saw with the stop but no jig. Regardless of cutting fret slots, I would have expected that I could go through would faster than it does. The cuts are clean. It just takes so long for it to get there. Thanks again. Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gabriel Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 Does your neck have a contour? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CudBucket Posted November 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 Does your neck have a contour? I'm cutting a non-radiused fretboard blank. It's not on the neck yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CudBucket Posted November 9, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 This is the fretboard. Does it look like Rosewood to you all or some rock-hard-monster-granite type thing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devon Headen Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 I'm not sure what that is. It's no rosewood I've ever seen. Perhaps it could be a rosewood sapwood? I don't know if such a thing exists though. The grain pattern does remind me of rosewood, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mj_gant Posted November 9, 2004 Report Share Posted November 9, 2004 I don't know what kind of wood that is, but I can tell you one thing...you need to find out! Reason being, if it's a very hard, dense wood, you may want to consider a glue in method for fretting. Maybe you could try your saw on a scrap piece of rosewood, or ebony and see if it saws with the same results. You really need to know your wood to offset problems later on. M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DannoG Posted November 10, 2004 Report Share Posted November 10, 2004 How accurate is the color in the photo? It looks kind of like tulipwood to me, only more reddish than yellowish. It's quite hard. Just a guess though. Can you take a photo that shows more grain, ideally a closeup that is in focus? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CudBucket Posted November 10, 2004 Author Report Share Posted November 10, 2004 The color is pretty accurate on the left side. I found the paypal transaction for this wood and it was listed as Honduran Rosewood. I'm pretty sure that's what it is. It's known to be harder than Brazilian and Indian Rosewood. BTW, I got the slots finished last night. I found that by using my homemade fence to get the cut started, if I removed the fence and the depth stop, I could cut much faster. The depth stop and the fence, plus me hold the the blade lightly against the fence slowed me down. I updated my site. www.downinfrontht.com Thanks everyone. Dave PS Next project task: Make a slotting jig for my tablesaw! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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