Fretboard pt. 1

I’ve been mucking around a bit with the fretboard while waiting for glue to dry in other places, now I have loads of progress to share. I’ll split it into two installments. 

First pic is the rosewood board running through the drum sander. It was close to thickness already so I just needed the marks from the bandsaw to be gone. 

Then masking tape is applied to the underside of the board, and to the top of the fretboard. CA-glue holds the strips of tape together and everything in place. 

It was fiddly to set the depth stops to the exact depth, and the same depth, but I managed. I remember buying this expensive bit of kit from Stewmac, three weeks after the purchase they released their upgraded model with bearings and knurled thumb screws. I was fuming then and if I’m completely honest I’m still fuming. 

See? This is what we want. 

In a flash of inspiration I came up with the pattern for the inlays. I drill straight through and use plastic rods that I cut flush with a chisel. 

And sawing to width and the correct taper. The edges were planed after sawing. 

And this is where I’ll leave you for now. Fretting is underway and I dare promise that post will be gripping.