Build Diary: IB-4 (first build)

[Pat Rodgers]

With a little more than a week to go until I start fine sanding the body, I tackled the fret leveling.

Overall, it went pretty well. The big lesson learned: tap the frets down with a rubber hammer to make sure they are all seated properly before doing any filing/sanding of the frets. My initial testing with the fret rocker had a lot of clicking happening on a large number of the frets. By tapping the frets down a bit, I immediately eliminated most of the high spots.

I bought a cheap kit off of Amazon, but it worked pretty well. The rocker was the only component that was virtually unusable due to not being perfectly straight on a couple of sides, but I received a much better quality rocker that was combined with the notched neck level. Still, my next lesson learned is to go ahead and spring for the better quality tools for future builds.

[Trevor Davies]

...
Still, my next lesson learned is to go ahead and spring for the better quality tools for future builds.

Yes, a good rocker is important, and good fret files, and nut files, radiused sanding block... In fact - I think the neck work tools are the ones which need to be the best quality, but they are so expensive when you start guitar building.

I think we all go through the lesson of learning to "spring for better quality tools".

[fender3x]

I think we all go through the lesson of learning to "spring for better quality tools".

Guilty as charged!

So take that into account for this next part... I started using a rocker I made...which was OK. Then I got a couple of cheap rockers with other things I purchased. Also fine. They are usually fine, so you might just try to get another cheap one on Amazon and it will probably be fine. You can also fix your rocker. Glue a bit of 320 sandpaper to something you know is flat and sand the offending edge until it's flat.

You can also make a sanding beam and a knotched straight edge. I "repurposed" a 24" I-beam level for the latter. I made a knotched straight edge from an unknotched straight edge from Harbor Freight using an angle grinder. That was for bass. For guitar, I realized that I could get a knotched one for not much more than a conventional straight edge. They work the same. The store-bought one is prettier...

I got T-style radius gauges cheap on amazon. I also bought a cheap 12" radius block (which is what most kit necks are). Both fine, although some of the cheap blocks not good.

All of these were cheap, but also easy to check. You can even download a PDF to check the radius gauges...and then use them to check the radius block.

Files are another matter. I followed this guy's advice...



...and got the Baroque (Gen 3) file, which works WAY better and faster than using cheap files. He's recommending Fret-Guru files now. The FG is about twice as expensive as Baroque. Either one is a lot cheaper than the Music Nomad or Stew Mac. Haven't tried the others, but the Baroque Gen 3 is worth every penny of the $30 I paid for it. Certainly good enough to keep me from buying the Hosco or SM for over $100.

I also got a cheap end beveling file, and I dress the fret before finishing with needle files and sanding sponges. I don't think my fret ends are as pretty as what some folks do with a dressing file, but it's fast and takes all the burrs off. I mostly still use a cheap set of needle files to take off anything that the sanding sponge doesn't get. Not sure this is cheaper since it destroys a couple of sanding sponges each time I do it. It's just fast.

By far the most expensive luthier tool(s) that I have purchased has been nut files. The consensus is that cheap nut files are worthless. I did my first basses with "needle files" that are actually welding nozzle cleaners. You can do a decent job of cutting a BASS nut with these if you have patience. They are very slow and hurt my fingers, but they work. They are IMHO too flimsy to work on guitar. I was able to make "files" our of a set of feeler gauges, which worked...but was also very slow and hurt my fingers... And also convinced me that I needed real nut files. I think most people here eventually get a decent set of Uo-chikyu or Hosco files. Or SM. I think they are all made in the same factory. I got a set of Hoscos for guitar and bought a few Uo-Chikyus to complete the set for Bass. SOOOOO much nicer.

[Pat Rodgers]

Thanks for the replies Trevor and fender3x, I really appreciate it. Yes, I've seen the prices on SM and Music Nomad tools, and I'm sure they are great quality, but "yikes"

fender3x, I will use all you said above as a reference, that is a lot of great information. I'm actually very happy with the fret leveling for this build, everything is now perfectly level and I think I did a pretty good job of recrowning. The cheap-o crowning file did a surprisingly good job, but I don't expect the file to last; I think they are known to lose effectiveness pretty fast due to a softer metal.