mattharris75 Posted July 15, 2007 Report Share Posted July 15, 2007 OK guys, two questions. First the one in the thread title. I am now planning on binding my fretboard. It's already on the neck, the board is taperd and radius'ed (I know, probably not the simplest order of operations here, and I will do it differently on the next build). I'm looking at the stew mac binding router bit: Stew Mac Binding Router Bit I'm also looking at this curly koa binding: Koa Binding The binding thickness is listed at .080". The bearing sizes they have for the bit don't match up with this size. The closest thing is .075". However, Stew mac also says that the bearing sizes have an extra .012" built in to account for swelling and glue thickness. I realize that the difference may be small, but i'm just trying to pick the proper bearing for this binding to minimize the amount of sanding I have to do. Does anyone have experience with this particular tool and binding combination? If so, which did you use and how did it work for you? OK, second question... Since i've already got a radius to my fretboard, cutting the binding channel seems a bit tricky. I do have access to a router table. My thoughts on a jig for this consisted of cutting a 12" radius on a small piece of 3/4" MDF, cutting it in half so that there are two identical cauls, and taping them to the fretboard so that the neck slides square to the router bit. This seems easy enough, but since I assume this is a fairly common situation I was wondering if any of you guys had a method that is particularly simple or that you prefer for whatever reason. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattharris75 Posted July 16, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2007 Nobody has a clue, ehh?...You bunch of worthless amateurs! Well, if I don't hear differently i'll probably just assume, based on the confusing way that stew mac phrases it, that the .75 is going to be my best bet. And i'm going to go ahead and create a couple of cauls to cradle the fretboard to cut the binding channels unless anybody has a superior method. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted July 16, 2007 Report Share Posted July 16, 2007 I have no idea man, this is exactly why I'm going to make my own binding, because their description is a little confusing. I do have the bit and a .90 ball bearing. If you want any measurements, I don't mind taking some for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegarehanman Posted July 16, 2007 Report Share Posted July 16, 2007 I bought the whole set and I just put my binding and/or purfling against the bit and see which bearing takes the cake. As a rule of thumb, if no bearing seems to be a perfect fit, I prefer to cut the channel to narrow as opposed to too wide. It's much easier to scrape off .01" of extra binding than it is to sand off .01" of a guitar body. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattharris75 Posted July 16, 2007 Author Report Share Posted July 16, 2007 Thanks guys. Sounds like i'll make an educated guess on the size of bearing to order. May get 2 or 3 that seem the most likely. Chances are i'll need them all at some point anyway. As far as a jig for the binding channel. Anyone have any suggestions other than what I was thinking? Discovering new ways to do things and thinking through problems is great, but sometimes it's better just to learn from the masters. No reason to re-invent the wheel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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