Official Luthiers Forum!

So I was looking into getting some of the diamond files on StewMac for fret work and I was wondering if anyone here uses them and what they think about them. The ones I'm specifically looking at are:

Offset Diamond Fret File
Diamond Fret Levelers

The second one I am looking into not only for fret leveling, but also possibly for sharpening tools.

So for those of you that have used these products, what is your impression of them? Do they work well? Also, how long do they last?

They work fast and are easy to maintain. I like them when filing nuts. I don't for leveling frets and I do like diamond crown files for recrowning frets. So it is sort of a mixed bag.

Is there any specific reason you don't like them for leveling frets? Is it a performance issue, or just a matter of personal preference?

The shavings are dust fine and get everywhere. When leveling you are cutting a lot of frets at a time in most cases and I prefer the heaver shavings that a file produces. When crowning you deal with one fret at a time and it is not that big of a deal to mess with dust fine shavings.

I use a diamond file for crowning, and they're amazing for that. For leveling I use one of my aluminum sanding blocks or a straightedge if it's just a spot level; I find diamond files just don't cut as well for that process.

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Bob Garrish
Former Canonized Purveyor of Fine CNC Luthier Services

Like Mike I use a straight (as in no bend in it) mill file 8" long.

I use the diamonds for crowning and they work great!
I've had them for 3 years now and have done at least 100 fret jobs and they still cut great!!

Mike

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Mike Collins