doug

An old method of fretting involves fret slots that are too wide, and wood glue. The idea is to put glue in the slot then clamp the fret until the glue dries. Sounds like a big fat pain in the butt to me. It's works for many companies including Martin. Thick glue should fill up the space around the tang, and plug up the end grain. This in itself should be enough to hold that fret for a good long while. Thin CA doesn't gap fill, that's why I would hesitate with that option. -Doug

You could cut a strip of wood maybe 1/4" thick and 1/4" wide long enough to span several frets. Place another flat board over it and the fingerboard and gently clamp. The flat board will press the 1/4" board down onto the fret end. Thin glue may not be the best method, but that's just my opinion. I'd use a toothpick or glue syringe to pump a dab of glue into the end while the fret is popped up. Then clamp it down. You might want to remove as much of the squeezed out glue as possible while it's still wet. Hopefully you've sealed your fingerboard prior to putting your frets in. This will make extraneous glue easier to remove. CA will require a solvent like acetone to remove it so consider that in your choice of glues. Disclaimer: I press my frets in so I don't get loose ends, so what I suggest above is only a suggestion or one possible way to make the repair. -Doug

I can never figure out how to post a picture on this forum. Send me an email and I'll send you a picture of a deep tenon neck under construction. That way you'll have a way better idea. It's the natural quilt top Model 04 on my web site which has the neck going all the way to the bridge. -Doug

Just make sure it's deep enough so the pickup cavities aren't deeper than your heel. -Doug

You'll need to use your imagination. Make as tight a fit as possible. There's no perfect way to get a really tight glue line with a plug that I know of which is one reason to us epoxy. As for that neck pickup cavity use an inlay router bit setup. -Doug

Remember also that common dowels are end grain. I would suggest making plugs with a plug cutter so you get face grain. Several months after the finish has cured you might otherwise see the plugs. Use thick C/A (if not a structural concern) or epoxy as suggested. Tightbond may not shrink or expand the same as the base wood, thus a thicker glue line manifests itself under the finish at some point. This is a result of too much glue or not enough clamping most of the time. Not enough clamping can result in too much glue between the pieces. -Doug

Maybe on the next one don't thin the headstock to its final thickness until after drilling the tuner holes. This way you give yourself room to remove the chipping. It doesn't sound like you have much of an issue if the tuners cover it, so don't make a bigger mess trying to fix it. As for mistakes along the way: It sucks, but we've all made "firewood"... live and learn I guess. -Doug

True... the dust settles in the deep scratches of course grit abrasive. Sand them off, and with it will go the ebony dust (don't use too much pressure or it will grind in). A blast of air just gets the already loose stuff off. Once the deep scratches have been removed there is no place for the ebony dust to cling. I use 3m 180 grit AO abrasive like a washrag for wood... Doesn't matter what color woods or combinations of them, it cleans it perfectly every time.

Sanding the back of the neck with a grit such as 180 or 220 prior to doing much with the ebony will greatly reduce the amount of ebony being smeared into the lighter wood. I find these light/dark combinations to be sort of a pain, however by sanding the whole back evenly up to a finer grit really helps. Something else to consider: when your abrasive gets "dirty" don't use it anymore. It may only be a few strokes. Compressed air works miracles! No matter what combinations of wood I've used, blowing the dust off does the trick. Then in those pesky areas like along the edge of your fingerboard where it meets the neck shaft, use long lateral strokes being careful not to 'cross the line'. Again, don't wipe the dust, just blow it off. Tack cloths leave residue. It's always a bit of a challenge to bind ebony with nice white figured maple. However, it is remarkable how simple compressed air can solve the discoloration issue. Ebony dust on your hands will also make keeping your neck clean a real pain in the back side! Get that black residue off frequently with soap and water. The type of abrasive used will also make a significant difference. AO on not-so-stiff backing works great. Just a couple tips for ya... -Doug

Stewmac sells a router base for your Dremel. They also have a special bit with a pilot. Alternatively you could get the carbide binding router bit and use a table mounted router. SM sells both.

Getting the fingerboard level BEFORE fretting works wonders. After the frets are installed the neck might take on a slight backbow so a straightedge is all that's needed to tell when you've adjusted it straight again. If your slots are the correct width for your fret tang there should be little change in the neck after fretting. Starting out level reduces the amount of recrowning necessary later on. Setch summed up the rest...

That's what I was think too, Setch. Sounds like the nut is way too high causing the strings to get closer to the fingerboard as you get closer to the bridge instead of the other way around. Fret your strings at the second fret and see how much gap there is between the srting and the top of the first fret. It should (personal preference) be just about touching the fret.

Sometimes this can happen with too much glue in the point, then not enough pressure during clamping. We're splitting hairs here though... The glue line should be non-existent for the most part, though there may be some slight visibility of the glue. Basically, if the glue is visible then you may very well end up with the ridge you describe. The wood itself will shrink and expand with humidity/temp changes of course. The glue, on the other hand, changes differently. The glue, the finish, and humidity/temp are all related. Later, we sometimes get a surprise like you did. Over the years I've figured out that a glue line is less visible if the two adjoining surfaces are not too smooth. You could rough the surfaces with 100 grit prior to gluing to "fluff" it up. Surface prep is huge. -Doug

$6bf around here, unless you go to a Rockler or Woodcraft. I think they get significantly more. I buy from the guy our local Woodcraft store does, but I had been doing that many years before Woodcraft came to town. The quality has been very good so there is little waste. Now if I could only get wenge for less than $17bf I'd be happy...

Make the neck pocket angled. As the others have pointed out you'll have a better neck joint in the end. Shimming the template really is the simplest way. Not only is the geometry of the neck pocket skewed some if you use the heel to get your angle, but you also have to adjust the end of the heel so it is square with the back of the pocket. This will effectively bring your nut closer to your target bridge location. Something else to consider. Because I resuse my neck pocket templates I actually create a wedge shaped template so shims are not necessary. Therefore, I know exactly what angle it's going to be every time. Since the router rests on the angled surface the neck pocket comes out perfect. This method creates a neck pocket that matches the heel geometry exactly. -Doug

27.5" scale seems to be quite popular. Howver if you can get the fingerboard at the scale you want then go for it. A little more tension might come in handy for that B-string as was already mentioned. You need to just take you time with the neck, since it's about the most important component. Be sure to clamp well and evenly. Level the fingerboard before fretting. If you want a lighter neck, use lighter wood. If you want the strings higher off the body then a TOM would do. However, if you like lower strings you could recess the TOM or use a top mount bridge. You shouldn't have any structural issues. -Doug

I'm sure we all proceed in various ways. In short, here's a few comments: 1. Neck pocket prior to carving. 2. Pickup routs after neck pocket, but prior to carving. Flat bottom like normal. The rings are tapered. 3. Fit the neck and locate your exact bridge post locations. 4. Doesn't matter if the bridge is on the carve or flat because it rests on the posts. Don't be too anxious to drill stuff, and be sure holes won't disturb your carve attempt. (I drill last, even after clear coating) On a TOM the bass side of the bridge is set back 1/8" or so further from the nut. -Doug

I've heard that wicking wood glue under the ends will work. This, reportedly, does two things: it swells the slot because of the water, and it will hold the fret. I know an old accepted practice for fretting is to make the slots too big and drop the frets into wood glue. Many high value vintage guitars employed that method. Super glue could also be used but it will get onto the fingerboard. It's a pain to remove gracefully. To clamp, make a radiused block that spans several frets. Make one that also rests against the back of the neck. Use a clamp to gently squeeze. The only thing you're doing is holding the fret still while the glue hardens. You cold also pull the frets, partially fill the slot with the trusty sawdust/CA mix and re-slot the area after the mixture sets. Then press your frets back in being careful not to have the barbs in the same place as the fret you pulled. If it were me, I would pull the frets and fill. Be sure your frets have enough radius to them prior to insertion. -Doug

How is a natural aspect of the wood a "blemish"... ?

The best thing to do is lay it out. The adjustment slots where the studs go are pretty long so you have a lot of wiggle room. I typically put the low E stud 1/8" farther from the nut just like a "normal" TOM bridge. Measure the length of the slots, then put the post holes in the body so the studs are centered in the slots. This will give you room for adjustment.

All tools have limits...that's why we needs so many! These would be useless for fingerboards as noted, but laying out exact positions of stuff or whatever you need on the button is way easier with those rulers. There are several aspects of guitar making that need more accuracy than a tape measure provides (to be on the safe side anywway). For waht it's worth... mechanical pencils help a lot because the line width always stays the same. A little bit here, a little bit there all adds up. -Doug

One of these are your best friend! They have little slots for everything and a machanical pencil makes the accuracy complete. I don't know how anyone ever lived without one... Incra tools rock! Get them at a whole lotta woodworking supply shops or direct at woodpeck.com. -Doug

Primarily put the angle in the pocket. Then you can adjust with the heel. The amount of wood taken off the heel if you need to would be so very little that it's hard to discern even. Yes, by angling the heel and not the pocket you would be changing the "fit" of the neck by altering the relationship of the neck pocket to the heel. Some may think this is a bad thing, however if you keep it to a minimum it won't really matter. You neck pocket sites should be nice and snug anyway. Sounds like you've got it under control. Don't use too much neck angle with this type of bridge or it will end up way high off the body. -Doug

I use this bridge all the time... The studs need to be moved farther from the nut than a TOM so lay it out. I use 1-1/2* for neck angle, though you might want to use 2 depending on your whole setup. Adjust the neck angle with the bridge lowered all the way. I use a straightedge down the neck with a pointer attached where the bridge goes. Once the angle adjustment makes the pointer touch the body that's it. You can place the bridge with 2 sided tape(not carpet tape though) to the body then use the straight edge to get your neck angle. That would represent your lowest possible string height, too low actually. Since your strings only "go up" from there the neck angle is just right. -Doug

The most important thing is to let your new found piece of lumber sit and age for a really long time. Thick wood can be a troubling issue. I won't make a neck from anything thicker than 4/4 unless it's aged 12 months or longer. If you're planning some form of single action truss rod afair it would seem like stability is priority number 1. -Doug