fretting about frets

Posted by Craig Cox on June 12, 2010 at 5:41pm
Well, not really. What I'm wondering is how I can cut fret grooves without another expensive tool for now (I just dropped a hundred on an amplifier, and my wife is still smiling but let's not push it, ok?)

Is there a way to do this with a regular old mitre box? How about consistent depth? I built my first cbg fretless, but now I want frets, of course.

You need to be a member of Cigar Box Nation to add comments!

Join Cigar Box Nation

Email me when people reply –
Follow

Replies

  • mike g December 18, 2010 at 9:28am

    I have been using a regular coping saw with an extra fine blade. I have a nice chunk of tool steel that i squared up on my mill. I think the saw was like 12 dollars. you can find a piece of steel that is squared pretty easily without using a mill though. then i just clamp it down and go to town. hey that rhymes.....new song :)305695573?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024

  • Craig Cox June 25, 2010 at 9:10pm
    Of course, I bought the exact pair he said NOT to use! It did require some close filing, and I slipped a few times and caught the fretboard. Oh well, they'll be just fine for a few CBGs, I expect.
  • Wes "I'm Baaaaack" Yates June 25, 2010 at 4:00pm
    Got one more thing... Those nippers, assuming they are diagonal nippers, There is a way to make them really do a great job on frets.

    https://www.youtube.com/user/FretGuru#p/u/4/w8SaZxF_oP4
    and
    https://www.youtube.com/user/FretGuru#p/u/3/fHcn5BSE3OM

    Dis is da b0mBA!

    -WY

    Craig Cox said:
    Bought the Japanese flush cut saw from Harbor Freight ($9.00), and it worked great. Spent a lot on a soft-faced hammer and a pair of nipping pliers, both USA-made but worth it as they are not uni-taskers like the saw which will probably only cut fret slots. Anyway, frets installed in my first CBG and it sounds pretty good. Thanks for the advice, everyone!
  • Craig Cox June 25, 2010 at 3:16pm
    Bought the Japanese flush cut saw from Harbor Freight ($9.00), and it worked great. Spent a lot on a soft-faced hammer and a pair of nipping pliers, both USA-made but worth it as they are not uni-taskers like the saw which will probably only cut fret slots. Anyway, frets installed in my first CBG and it sounds pretty good. Thanks for the advice, everyone!
  • Wes "I'm Baaaaack" Yates June 16, 2010 at 11:22pm
    Si.

    Medium/Higher Nickel Silver is what I used.

    Quoth:
    This wire will fit nicely into a .023" fret slot, which is pretty much the standard for most modern fret wires.

    The HF JFCS works REALLY good.

    -WY

    Craig Cox said:
    Wes, when you say the tangs are .024" I assume you are referring to the width of the tang not the depth, right? And the width of the saw blade is .025" ? I'm thinking I'll buy the medium nickel silver wire from CB Gitty, though I'm wondering if the "narrow/low" might be better for using a slide. any thoughts?
    Wes Yates said:
    Sam +10

    Buy the Harbor Freight Japanese Flush Cut Saw. I guarantee it or I'll buy it from you! fret tangs are about .024"+/- and the JFCS is ~.025 if I recall. Can't beat it. -WY
    Wichita Sam said:
    got a scroll saw?, other wish get a flush cut saw from Harbor Freight about 7 dollars and cut the depth of the teeth perfect for fret tines.
  • Diane in Chicago June 16, 2010 at 7:11pm
    I like the round ones, they are made of harder wood. you can file them down to be just the height you want --- after the glue is really, really dry.

    Craig Cox said:
    toothpicks for frets? wow, that's interesting. the round Asian-style ones or regular old flat?

    werner said:
    I've made my boxes without expensive tools.
    I've cut my frets of my boxes with a regular mitre box. Just a slight cut enough. if you use toothpicks, also the cheapest alternative material for fretwire. You can file those toothpicks easily for the exact height.
    Good Luck, Craig !
  • Craig Cox June 16, 2010 at 7:08pm
    just found this. You gotta love this website, don't you?
    http://www.cigarboxnation.com/main/search/search?q=toothpick+frets
  • Craig Cox June 16, 2010 at 7:05pm
    toothpicks for frets? wow, that's interesting. the round Asian-style ones or regular old flat?

    werner said:
    I've made my boxes without expensive tools.
    I've cut my frets of my boxes with a regular mitre box. Just a slight cut enough. if you use toothpicks, also the cheapest alternative material for fretwire. You can file those toothpicks easily for the exact height.
    Good Luck, Craig !
  • W.M. Peterson June 16, 2010 at 11:09am
    I've made my boxes without expensive tools.
    I've cut my frets of my boxes with a regular mitre box. Just a slight cut enough. if you use toothpicks, also the cheapest alternative material for fretwire. You can file those toothpicks easily for the exact height.
    Good Luck, Craig !
  • Diane in Chicago June 15, 2010 at 8:19am
    Paul Doug made a groovy little jig for cutting frets: http://www.cigarboxnation.com/forum/topics/ok-simple-upgrade-to-my-...

    There are a couple others on the site, if you search "fret jig".
This reply was deleted.