metallisomething Posted July 21, 2004 Report Share Posted July 21, 2004 has anyone ever used the Dual fret scale templates from STEWMAC? http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Fretting_suppl...15.html#details they look like a good idea, and you get two different scales with each order, so the price isnt bad. you also get the little spring loaded pin so you can hook it up to a fence and just follow the notches. seems like this takes the guess work out of measuring the distance of the frets, if anyone has any opinions on these id like to hear 'em Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krazyderek Posted July 21, 2004 Report Share Posted July 21, 2004 they work fine, and thank god they switched to metal templates, the acrylics ones had a tendency to crack and even snap in half when trying to peel them apart from the fingerboard. the most important thing if you're going to use a table saw, apart from the right blade and have a good tight miter fence, is to joint and plane the peice of wood to attach to the miter fence, and to make sure you joint the edge of the fingerboard before slotting, last thing you want is a pivot point, half way thru fretting you want all your frets perfectly parallel for the best possible intonation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metallisomething Posted July 21, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 21, 2004 thanks, man. i wasent planning on using a table saw for the fret slotting. i have a Dozuki saw that should do the trick, the kerf is a little less (about 0.018") than the fretwire but i can make it work, probably by passing through the slot more than once with the saw, making sure to keep in the center. however, i am planning on making a mitre box for the saw to be used in conjunction with the scale templates, if anyone has done this i would like to know how you built the box and how it went thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krazyderek Posted July 22, 2004 Report Share Posted July 22, 2004 I thought the same thing when i first started getting geared up for making guitars. Several frusterated hours later i returned the dozuki saw cause it didn't have the proper curf for the fret wire i wanted to use ( 0.023" ) Cutting fret slots needs to be done incredibly accurately, which as i also learned is extremely hard with standard miter boxes or a carpenters square. I ended up just buying the stew mac fret miter box. Although it took over an hour to get setup properly it was well worth it, every fret slot was PERFECTLY parallel. Eventually i just ended up getting the table saw blade, it pays for it's self almost after one fret board in time saved. There is some wire that has a tang width of 0.019 but you want to make sure it is, and use only that wire with your current saw otherwise you'll be rolling down a hill in a one wheel wagon. Even a difference of 0.005 can cause serious problems down the road when trying to get your neck to stay nice and staight to get good action. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveq Posted July 22, 2004 Report Share Posted July 22, 2004 I bought the miter box for doing occasional slotting (adding two slots to a pre-slotted board) and it worked great for me. For doing a complete fretboard, it also worked very well but my wrist was killing me by the time I got through it. I ended up buying the table saw blade and built a fixture for it. It is expensive but it is so much easier and quicker using the table saw than doing it by hand. If you think you'll be doing your own fretboards and will be making more than a few, consider the table saw blade - it will be worth it in the long run (if you plan on making more than a few). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigdguitars Posted July 23, 2004 Report Share Posted July 23, 2004 I made a miter box for my fret slotting. it look exactly like the stewmac one. I made it out of oak, and had my wood shop get everything milled to perfect 90 degrees. Mine is a little hard to see when I am cutting so I need to be careful. If I can find a pic I will post it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metallisomething Posted July 23, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 23, 2004 derek, thanks for the info i still think the Dozuki will do. you can tilt the saw slightly to cut away tiny amounts of wood on either side of the slot to widen it. i know it has to be perfectly accurate, but the fretwire itself is probably not conisitant enough to be called perfect. not to mention that the tangs on the wire dig in and push against the wood. people make fretboards all the time with just a saw and a sanding block as a "fence" to slot the board. i was thinking about buying the stewmac mitrebox. how exactly does it work so the slot is perfect? where can i find this 0.019 fretwire? would not the truss rod and neck keep the fretboard straight regardless? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metallisomething Posted July 27, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 27, 2004 does anyone know of a product/ saw blade, for a table saw that is the thickness of the fretwire? where can i get the .019" fretwire!!!!!!!!!!!!!???????????????????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metallisomething Posted July 28, 2004 Author Report Share Posted July 28, 2004 what else can used to cut the fret slots!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krazyderek Posted July 28, 2004 Report Share Posted July 28, 2004 does anyone know of a product/ saw blade, for a table saw that is the thickness of the fretwire? where can i get the .019" fretwire!!!!!!!!!!!!!???????????????????? rhoads sells stainless steel fretwire that i beleive has a 0.019" tang, just run a search for stainless steel fret wire in the classifides, stew mac and lmi both sell the table saw blade for fretting, but in 0.023" curf's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ACSpike Posted August 4, 2004 Report Share Posted August 4, 2004 My father and I also built a mitrebox for fret slotting and measuring. Pictures here. I can't speak as to its accuracy but I think the design could be tweaked a bit. It consists of plywood,40 thread per inch rod, a few coupling nuts and a circle cutter. Brazing the nut on removed most of the play in the threads. 40 turns moves the fretboard an inch. I used a spreadsheet to calculate turns per fret and the face of an old clock to measure fractional turns. Planned to add a counter and a motor, but that was in '96 and it hasn't happened yet. It also hasn't seen much use. Might be an idea for someone who wants to do many different or odd scale lengths. I liked it because I'm cheep/poor and the parts only cost a few bucks. For me it definately beat the ruler taped to the fretboard method. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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