SMellmo Posted April 11, 2006 Report Share Posted April 11, 2006 hi there! I'm slowly getting all the infos i need in order to do my first real build. (Lots of preparation, I don't want to screw up!) I was playing with Stewmac Frets Calculator and I compared the result with my Gibson SG. I know my SG have a 24.625" scale. When I measure from the nut to the most forward TOM post it does indicate 24 5/8. The measure at the 13th fret is 13.004" (let's say 13"). If I Measure at the 13th fret with a steel ruler, the 13 inch is not in the center of the fret, but at the edge. I've checked with my Charvel (25.5" scale) And I get the same kind of result..... How does it works exactly ???? (This makes me think that I'll be better off with a pre-slotted fingerboard blank..... but I would really like to do the slotting myself....) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MP63 Posted April 11, 2006 Report Share Posted April 11, 2006 (edited) Maybe I can help a bit SMellmo. The middle of the scale is the 12th fret. Measure from the inside edge of the nut to the 12th fret. Then measure from the 12th fret to the saddle. That should confirm the right measurement. The only thing to remember is COMPENSATION. That is the affect that fretting does to the string. Because it stretches the string a bit, and therefore raises the pitch, the bridge saddle needs to be a bit farther back than the "exact middle" location. How far back depends on the scale (shorter scales are tougher to keep in tune than longer scales) and the string size, etc. The Irving Sloane scale ruler includes compensation, which is about 1/8" to 3/16". That's what you see on acoustic guitars. The bigger strings get more compensation, so the saddle is put further back on the bass side. If you want to figure out your own scale, then you have to read up on the "rule of 18" Which says that the first fret is 1/18th the scale. Then the next fret is 1/18th of the remaining scale. It's actually some number like 19.8787878787, so it's rounded off to 18. But, if you jack up just one measurement, then the whole thing is ruined. Better to use the fret rulers. Places like Luthier's Mercanatile can slot any scale on a fingerboard. I don't know who else might have that feature. Any help? Mike Edited April 11, 2006 by MP63 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fryovanni Posted April 11, 2006 Report Share Posted April 11, 2006 You are going to do best if you can use a fret calculator and print the fret locations then attach the template to the board as your guide. You will find that standard steel rulers will not be accurate enough for you to lay out fret positions(even if it was you would have difficulty marking with a high degree of accuracy. Let a printer be your friend. Fret placement can be modified to help correct for intonation. This can also give you slightly different measurements. Good luck! Peace,Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SMellmo Posted April 12, 2006 Author Report Share Posted April 12, 2006 You are going to do best if you can use a fret calculator and print the fret locations then attach the template to the board as your guide. You will find that standard steel rulers will not be accurate enough for you to lay out fret positions(even if it was you would have difficulty marking with a high degree of accuracy. Let a printer be your friend. Fret placement can be modified to help correct for intonation. This can also give you slightly different measurements. Good luck! Peace,Rich Do you know a fret calculator online that allow you to print the measurement to scale ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fryovanni Posted April 12, 2006 Report Share Posted April 12, 2006 You are going to do best if you can use a fret calculator and print the fret locations then attach the template to the board as your guide. You will find that standard steel rulers will not be accurate enough for you to lay out fret positions(even if it was you would have difficulty marking with a high degree of accuracy. Let a printer be your friend. Fret placement can be modified to help correct for intonation. This can also give you slightly different measurements. Good luck! Peace,Rich Do you know a fret calculator online that allow you to print the measurement to scale ? Try downloading this one. It should give you what you need. If you don't care for that one do a web search for fret placement calculators. Fretcalc 3.10 Peace,Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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