Beveling top corners at ends of fret slots on a bound neck

[Paul Lupus]

Howdy all, can't seem to remember for the life of me now, how I used to bevel the top "shoulders" of fret slots at either end of an already-bound neck. I'm talking about right next to the binding without: A. popping the binding loose, B. chancing scarring the top edge of the binding, where I like nice clean fret end overlaps.
Any ideas ? Thanks,

Paul

[Ron Frazier]

do it just like you would if it wasent bound.

Ron

[Russell Vance]

Use a pillar file which has two file faces, with a sharp edge and a safe edge. The StewMac fret end files are good for occasional use and are a bit small but the files sold by this Ebay site are great items. Google the Ebay site: Guitar Tools Fret n Supplies Guru and see Ultimate fret end file.

These file are specialist engineering files (large "pillar" files) modified with a sharp flat edge - you can do it yourself but it's cheaper to buy from this guy and they are quality items. We got two of them a year ago and they are still going strong.
Rusty.

[Paul Lupus]

Thanks for your posts Ron and Rusty, but I wasn't clear enough.
What I'm talking about is how I like to create a very slightly bevel at the opposing edges of the fingerboard/fret slot, so when the frets go in on an older brittle fretboard I don't get any chip-out. ( like Frank talks about below in his excellent "fretting 1973 Martin") This is all fine for an unbound board, you just run a very small triangle file across the neck in the slot very lightly, BUT, glued on binding creates a whole other situation. I really don't want to remove the binding and chances are good that one would bump and push the binding out of the binding channel with the nose of a small file trying to get to the ends of the slot. Maybe a very sharp chisel ? (time consuming)
Seems like there must be a way,.....

Per Frank on unbound neck:
12." Bevel the upper edges of the fret slots. With a small triangular file, I bevel the slots to make it safer for the next guy to pull the frets without chipping and to avoid chips when cleaning out the slots and driving frets in."

BTW, NICE files, I'm going to get one !
Thanks guys,
PL

[Randall Curtis Bowman]

Locate your magnifying glasses, unless you're not 58 years old like me. Take a 1/2" straight chisel, and hone it razor-sharp. Immobilize the neck in an appropriate vise or fixture. Don the glasses and take a very light shearing cut using the edge of the chisel. It may take some practice on a sample fret cut in a waste board, but you'll get the hang of it. It takes longer to prepare than it does to actually do
it. The key for me is the magnifying glasses. It's almost like micro surgery. Good luck.

[Paul Lupus]

Thanks Randall and guys, sometimes there just ain't no way around the careful and meticulous procedures if you want seamless outcomes. Guess that's why we get the big bucks, huh ?
BR,
Paul

[Russell Vance]

I see, but sometimes I don't comprehend - it appears everyone here is around 58 (just turned 57) and magnifying goggles are becoming a best seller - Randall gives good advice - it is a precise art and patience is a virtue which we all know - the only people getting rich here are the blokes who sell the magnifying goggles!

[Randall Curtis Bowman]

I have been doing a lot of this lately, on my own work. Not having realized that my fret saw had lost all its set, if it ever had any, I managed to construct 6 necks, two of which were bound, that had about a 1/16" permanent back bow. I think the kerf must have been about 3 or 4 thousandths too tight. Nothing to do, but heat 'em up, pull 'em out, and redo (after having sharpened and set the saw.) Does periodic checking sound like a good idea? Who'd have thought after only 20 boards or so a saw would dull? So I'm getting comfortable with the magnifiers. And, lesson two; sometimes doing a bunch at a time is not a timesaver. By the way, Radio Shack used to sell a couple of sets of mini and micro files, Kronus was the brand, perhaps, that were well-made and stayed sharp a long time. Of course, I think they're no longer in stock. The mini set came with a pin vise. Good luck.

[Ron Frazier]

stu mack makes a fret nipper for bound frets all you do is pull the trigger and it is all done!! I love it.

Ron

[Paul Lupus]

Got the older nipper, it's cool but, you gotta watch it, it'll take off some of the bottom of the fret sometimes too !
I just bought my second set of cheaters, wore the first ones out.( everyone IS 57 !!) I ALMOST bought the ones with lights this time, but couldn't deal with the bling effect.
BTW, on saw kerfs,...
For repairs, I keep a set of inexpensive feeler gauges that have the round, working end squared off. After I measure the fret tang thickness (without the nibs), I can check the width of the slots with the appropriate feeler. Also, I can transfer the depth measurement of the tang as well to the squared off end of the feeler gauge and place a piece of tape on it to mark it. That way, I check the depth of the slots and width in the same operation. The squared off feeler ends allow me to get right next to the binding on either side. Anyway, works for me ! I'll check RS for the files.

[Bob Steinarsson]

To bevel those edges, I use a rather large three corner file (the edges of the file are quite sharp, so the size does not matter). The tip of the file is cut off, so I can start the filing close to the binding and file on the pull stroke. This gives me full control over the whole width of the fingerboard.

[Mike Kolb]

Yep, that's my approach, too. My triangular file is fairly small (but like BS says, the file size doesn't matter)... The end was broken-off years ago by accident and is quite sharp and jagged, so it's actually used more like a "mini-scraper", pulling-back along the slot from where it meets the binding toward the center of the slot.

Re: nippers. They do a good job most of the time, but (like Paul advises) they'll cut-into the bottom of the fret if you're not careful. Frank Ford makes a great jig for holding a fret while a file is drawn-across the tang quite accurately. It gives a lot of control but the trade-off is speed. It really shines for cutting the tang from SS fretwire. Available through LMI.

http://www.lmii.com/CartTwo/thirdproducts.asp?CategoryName=Fretting...

[Paul Lupus]

Great idea, plus it'll make me go through all my files and get rid of the losers. That Frank is one excellent/tricky jig fabricator, rumor is he already has the jig built that he'll be buried in.