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I just took a look at Hesh's fine procedure on fretting his faux bound fret board and had a thought.

How many of you relieve the fret slot (triangle file run over the edge) to avoid chip out if and when the frets need to be replaced.

Every time I've gone to put frets in any of my guitars (all bound fretboards) I forgotten to file the edges or relieve the fret slot.

So, is this a friendly reminder or do most builders NOT relieve the fret slot at all?

What say ye?

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I'm a reliever...before the binding is glued on.

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JJ
Napa, CA
http://www.DonohueGuitars.com

Yep, triangular file...lightly take the edges off.

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i am a believer. it makes getting th fret centered in the slot a lot easier. it is difficult to do when refretting a bound board, where i have tried a number of ways. none are easy.

whilst most do not think of it in these terms, i feel it also makes removing frets without taking chips that much easier as well.

so if you think you will ever refret your creation, it will save you some potential grief down the road.

I'm smacking my forehead now thinking of my recently bound fret board, I knew better than that.

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Jonathan Kendall, Siloam Springs AR

Yep, I bevel mine. From what I've read, the biggest reason is to keep the FB slots from chipping when pulling old frets to refret.

Ron

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Ron Wisdom

Somewhere in the middle of Arkansas......

Hesh, there is of course as usual great advise here by Michaeal and the others.

Yes, it's a very good idea for reason's mentioned above.

I would think for the bound fretboards, one could take a folded piece of 120 grit and put a thinned down piece of spruce between the fold and run it back and forth to bevel the leading edge of the fret slot. that should take care of if.

Hesh, I bet John could add it to the faux bound boards very easily. Might ask him about it.

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"We have to constantly remind ourselves what we're doing....No Luthier is putting a man on the moon!" Harry Fleishman

"Generosity is always different in the eye of the person who didn't receive anything, but who wanted some." Waddy Thomson

Yep, I bevel. It's even doable on most radiussed boards, since triangle files are small, and there's a handy curve in place already.

Yup. I bevel too. First learned to do this from Mario's site, then saw that Tim McKnight also does this as per his fretting tutorial in the Jigs/Tools section of the OLF.

Good enough for those guys, good enough for me!

-Mark

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I bevel, Don't know where I got the idea but I do it. I might be missing something because I've never made a bound fret board but couldn't you bevel before binding?

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I bevel after I bind the board and it seems to be the last thing I do before fretting. I use a small triangle file and the hardest part is making sure I dont file over my bindings, just keeping it on the fret slots. I sand down my burr created with the file with some 600 grit and press the frets right in. I think this makes a huge difference when pulling frets.

Blake

i learned something new, thanks folks!

Aha! Another thing learned here today! Marvellous!

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[QUOTE=Rod True]I would think for the bound fretboards, one could take a folded piece of 120 grit and put a thinned down piece of spruce between the fold and run it back and forth to bevel the leading edge of the fret slot.[/QUOTE]
Also, if you've got a set of those "paddle" diamond files, they'll do the trick. They're nice and stiff, too, so you can get a clean bevel.

[QUOTE=Dave Rickard]couldn't you bevel before binding?[/QUOTE]
I think most people do, Dave. In Hesh's case, though, he's got some CNC'd boards with short slots, which give the appearance of binding.

Especially need beveling if there is shell passing over / through the slot, (I bevel the inlaid shell with the triangle file).

Why do I know this?

Paul

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Paul Bordeaux
http://www.bordeauxinlay.com

Heh! Good reminder, Paul. Thanks.