Fretboards

I'm updating some of my methods to get more consistent results. That includes how I make fretboards. I've made a new jig to taper then and now use a set of specially designed router bits to radius the fretboards.

The tapering method is not my invention but is shown several places on the internet including:
http://www.anzlf.com/viewtopic.php?t=2169

Taper jig, the movable fence is set a specific distance from the edge
and a spacer used to create the taper

Close up of the spacer, narrow end first then the wide end

Radius router bit, this one is a 16"

Full set up for routing, need a bit better dust collection

Fretboard attached to the carrier

The result, quite smooth right off the router

Two Fingerboards Ready

The two fingerboards for the Parlour guitars are done. Ready to be attached to the necks then fretted.

I also glued on the peghead overlays an roughed out the shape..

Getting there....

Attaching the Neck & Fretboard

Things are moving along and really starting to look like an instrument now, the neck & fretboard are attached to the body (bolt on mortise & tenon joint) and the next step is to carve the neck.

The bridge is also made but will not be permanently attached until after finishing the Mandocello..

Finishing the Fingerboard

So a few posts ago I cut the slots in the fingerboard. Now it needs to be tapered to the correct shape bound and the marker dots and frets installed.

It is rough tapered on the band saw and fine tuned with a apron plane or a block plane whichever is handy.

Then the fingerboard is bound, I am not a big fan of the look of unbound fingerboards, I don't like seeing the fret tangs, I know it is common in classical guitars but not something I like. Usually I use a contrasting wood for binding but this time since I am keeping the decoration simple I just used some 1mm strips of ebony I had ripped off the fingerboard before slotting.

The dots are installed and finally the frets.. With a bound fingerboard the tangs of the frets must be removed from the end of the fret where it overhangs the binding as there is no sot in the binding to receive the tang. There are special made nippers to do this or various contraptions to hold the fret while you file off the tang (nippers don't work on stainless frets) But I just took some cheaper common nippers and ground a slot in them so the fret sits flat

A half done fret and nippers,
you can just see the slot ground into the bad of the nippers

Close up of fret

Completed fingerboard with gold mother of pearl marker dots

Cutting Fret Slots

I have done this several ways, when i first made instruments I measured and hand cut each slot, it was a tedious process and easy to make errors when you are dealing with fractions of a millimeter. I think moved to a manual system from LMI that used templates for various scale lengths. This was a much more accurate system but still a bit slow.. So today I started using a special blade in my table saw and a little home made jig and the templates form the LMI manual system.. Works great and is very quick and accurate, takes about 1 minute to slot a fretboard.

The fret board is attached to the template with double sided tape and just held against the jig which has an indexing pin.

Table saw, jig and template

Indexing pin

In position to cut slots

One minute later

Nice and accurate

Blade with stiffeners