Dressing Frets, another method especially for hard fretwire.

Got a new way of doing something? Or maybe an old method that needs some clarification.

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Kim
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Dressing Frets, another method especially for hard fretwire.

Post by Kim » Sun Aug 10, 2008 8:13 pm

Well,

I fretted a board today with LMI's EVO gold fret wire and the process I use is much like Bob showed in his earlier tutorial (thanks Bob) but with a nifty tool added. Mike Ziegler over at Luthierforum posted this yesterday which is his take on a similar idea.

http://www.luthierforum.com/index.php?s ... c=5639&hl=

My method also incorporates the use of dental tools. A couple of years back, I picked up an old GMF dental lathe complete with quick release morse tapper shaft ends, one end being fitted with a small chuck for abrasive stones and what not (maybe a flexi drive?), and the other with a rubberised ceramic wheels. Best part is I got this tool for $25, but if you want one you will need to fight off the lapidary guys as they are popular for polishing stones.

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I think the rubberised ceramic wheel that I have is the same compound that Mike showed in his thread but at around 100mm when new, this is just a lot bigger version.

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The GMF dental lathe, which is very old school and well built, is wisper quite, so much so that I done most of this work in my shed at 3am this morning without disturbing the neighbors. So, using this sweet tool, (I am sure you could just as easy spin one of these 1/4" bore rubberised ceramic disk in a drill or Foredom but it would be noisier) this post will attempt to explain how I dress fret ends.

As Mike, and Allen suggest, LMI's EVO Gold Wire is much harder than standard nickle, sort of mid way between nickle and stainless if you like. So being harder it is naturally enough harder to work. The upside is that this is good for fret wear and as it is a gold coloured alloy, it looks great as well. If you are not aware, this EVO wire is not plated, it is actually a gold coloured alloy.

Anyhow, for cutting this wire you have 2 choices, first you can use a really expensive set of cutters and whilst this should be fine, you do run the risk of damaging a good tool because when you need to squeeze hard to make a cut, the jaws could chip when they suddenly clash against each other when the wire gives. The other alternative is to face grind a $2.00 set of Chinese made cutters and ignore the damage, I choose the later.

So, once again please excuse my old 3meg Sony Cybershot images but tis all I have. Here is the wire cut to length, I like to go just a tad longer than required.

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Next, as these frets will go into a bound freatboard, I cut the tang from one end of the fret using some Stewmac fret tang nippers.

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Again I take a touch more tang than is needed so that the end can be dressed back so it will be clean and polished just in from the edge of the binding.

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Now this tangless end is put to the abrasive wheel and ground back shaped with a curve so it will sit just inboard of the outer edge of the binding when the tang, working as an index, registers against the inside edge of the binding when resting in the fret slot, this will come in handy later for positioning for the press or hammer. I do this shaping by holding the wire 'tang side up', this gives a clean finish to the underside of the fret end.

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Then the fret is flipped over and a bevel is formed on the upper end by rolling the fret end over the edge of the wheel. This entire grinding takes but a few seconds as the ceramic wheel cuts smooth and clean.

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With this end done I put the nipped tang in the slot registering as described above and flush cut the other end to length. I then repeat the grinding process on the freshly cut end first cutting the tang back so it is just a tad shorter than the fret slot. I then use a needle file to clean and level the area where the tang was removed from each end. This makes sure that the ends will sit flush with the board and will decrease the chance of the ends 'springing' later on down the track.

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Next I fold over some 2400 Micromesh cloth onto my leg and shape in the bevel on each end of the fret to form a ball end. This only takes a few rolling wipes with the cloth on a soft surface, hence the leg, and your done. I just work one side, then the other then the centre and that is all that is needed.


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Now I work through the grits up to 12000 and they come up schweet. They do loose their gold colour a little when freshly worked but as they oxidise a little it shall return.

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Cheers all

Kim
Last edited by Kim on Sun Aug 10, 2008 10:08 pm, edited 3 times in total.

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Dennis Leahy
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Post by Dennis Leahy » Sun Aug 10, 2008 9:45 pm

Thanks, Kim! The individually completed frets look great, and the completed bound and fretted fingerboard looks like art. Thanks for the tute! When I dig through all the crap stored in my (eventual) shop and turn it into a shop, I will find a dental lathe like yours. There's one in there somewhere.

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Post by Allen » Mon Aug 11, 2008 6:09 am

How do the fret tang nippers like the EVO alloy Kim? I don't know if I got a bum set, but mine sometimes struggle cutting regular fret wire.

They do look very nice, and I'll get some the next time I place a LMI order.
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Kim
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Post by Kim » Mon Aug 11, 2008 5:44 pm

Allen wrote:How do the fret tang nippers like the EVO alloy Kim?
My set seem to cut just fine Allen. As you no doubt understand, the tang is a lot thinner than the crown, so unlike cutting through complete wire, the hardness of the gold wire does not seem to present 'that' much more of a challenge to the end nippers than would standard wire. Having said that, one certainly can notice a difference when cutting EVO and Nickle.

Cheers

Kim

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Bob Connor
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Post by Bob Connor » Mon Aug 11, 2008 5:59 pm

I've changed methods Kim and now dress the frets after I've installed them in the finger board.

I just couldn't get all the ends to line up well enough so that when you sighted down the neck to check for relief you could see that the fret ends were uneven.

Drove me spare so I use the Stewmac file-embedded-in-the-lump-of-plastic tool.

Image

This thing anyway. :D

I'm still not happy with the fret ends so I'm hoping to chew David Collins' ear while I'm in the States or maybe get a demo.
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Kim
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Post by Kim » Mon Aug 11, 2008 6:36 pm

bob wrote:
I just couldn't get all the ends to line up well enough so that when you sighted down the neck to check for relief you could see that the fret ends were uneven.
This is why I suggest cutting the wire a tad longer than required. The rubberized ceramic disk offers good control as you work and it is worth taking the time to get the first end of each fret spot on. As explained above, this then will allow the tang on that end, say for arguments sake all on the bass side, to act as an indexer when rested in it's slot and up against the inside of the binding on the bass side. This method offers a lot better chance of getting all the fret ends to line up when pressed home.

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I guess it's hard to tell from these image, I really do need to get with the program and upgrade the camera, but this board turned out OK and I am sure the next will be better.

By the way, the board is bookmatched Mulga with black dyed maple and and cheesewood purflings.

Cheers

Kim

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Post by Kim » Mon Aug 11, 2008 7:12 pm

Just another thought on alignment, you could easy set up a stop on the tang nippers to get the tangs cut uniformly, a grinding jig that uses the uniform tang as an index to get the grinds uniform and a fence which sits on the edge of the fretboard to allow uniform placement of the fret ends for pressing.

Another thought for noobs, it pays to work from fret 20 down to # 1 so if you muck up a fret along the way and it's now too short for it's slot, it wont be too short for the next slot down.

Cheers

Kim

Paul B

Post by Paul B » Mon Aug 11, 2008 8:46 pm

bob wrote:I've changed methods Kim and now dress the frets after I've installed them in the finger board.

I just couldn't get all the ends to line up well enough so that when you sighted down the neck to check for relief you could see that the fret ends were uneven.

Drove me spare so I use the Stewmac file-embedded-in-the-lump-of-plastic tool.

Image

This thing anyway. :D

I'm still not happy with the fret ends so I'm hoping to chew David Collins' ear while I'm in the States or maybe get a demo.
That thing works pretty well, but you still need to tidy em up and de-burr etc. I like mine when I follow up with stewmac's fret end dressing file (or whatever it's called).

Nice work Kim, BTW.

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Post by vinman » Thu Sep 25, 2008 9:10 am

Kim, this is the first time I've seen it done this way. I think I'm missing some steps. After your fingerboard is bound, are you measuring each fret to fit perfectly before installation, or is there still work to be done?

How are you setting the frets, hammer or press? I've seen where some will put a slightly smaller radius on the fret wire so that when it is set the tangs will move a bit lateral and lock the fret. Are you getting the exact radius on the wire as your fingerboard?

Vince

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Post by Kim » Thu Sep 25, 2008 4:09 pm

vinman wrote:Kim, this is the first time I've seen it done this way. I think I'm missing some steps. After your fingerboard is bound, are you measuring each fret to fit perfectly before installation, or is there still work to be done?

How are you setting the frets, hammer or press? I've seen where some will put a slightly smaller radius on the fret wire so that when it is set the tangs will move a bit lateral and lock the fret. Are you getting the exact radius on the wire as your fingerboard?

Vince
Vince,

The FB is slotted, radius-ed, tapered and bound but just prior to binding, I do relieve each slot just a tad with a small triangular file so it will better seat the underside crown of the wire itself. In the above tute you will see I mention that I cut each fret a little OS and then grind back to the desired length and fit with the wheel before polishing out by hand.

It is better to start with the longer frets first and work your way up the board. This way if you do happen to go a bit over board with the grinding and shaping making a fret a little too short, you can the move it up the board to the next slot or even the one after and it should fit fine. That is why in the image below, each fret is being held in it's own numbered place within the holder because each fret is carefully made to fit it's own appointed slot.

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All LMI wire comes in or from a role of a tighter radius than required. Even if I had a fret bender, I would still want to be making the radius of the wire tighter than that of the FB. Doing so helps make sure that the fret ends don't pop due to spring back. This being the case, I do not bother trying to alter the radius at all direct from LMI, there is just no need. I simply cut, shape, fit and polish and then move on.

As for how I fit the frets? I press them in using my drill press and matched radius fret cauls which I bought from John Watkins of cncguitarparts. John has since closed up shop but Stewmac has similar. Its an easy and accurate method and keeps the fret even across the slot.


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Cheers

Kim

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Post by kiwigeo » Thu Sep 25, 2008 9:48 pm

There ya go showing off ya tools again........jeesh!! :?

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Post by Bob Connor » Thu Sep 25, 2008 10:00 pm

kiwigeo wrote:There ya go showing off ya tools again........jeesh!! :?
I'm glad that was plural. :D
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