Fretboard leveling
Every steel string guitar has fret board that has an arc from side to side. Manufacturers vary the arch from about 7.5” to 20”. This arch is intended to make it easier for the human hand to make bar chords. The nylon string guitars do not have this arch.
On older guitars that have had the frets replaced or dressed this arch tends to get flattened out and irregular. The best fretwork requires special radius blocks to keep the radius true. At Emily Caroline Hand Crafted Guitars we would not think of dressing frets or replacing them without using the correct radius blocks to keep the neck true. We also 'pre-radius new fret wire to identical radius of each neck to eliminate lumps. In this way the new wire seats closely to the fretboard and requires less dressing.
Starting a re- fret job with a true accurate radius results in high quality fretwork.
Every steel string guitar has fret board that has an arc from side to side. Manufacturers vary the arch from about 7.5” to 20”. This arch is intended to make it easier for the human hand to make bar chords. The nylon string guitars do not have this arch.
On older guitars that have had the frets replaced or dressed this arch tends to get flattened out and irregular. The best fretwork requires special radius blocks to keep the radius true. At Emily Caroline Hand Crafted Guitars we would not think of dressing frets or replacing them without using the correct radius blocks to keep the neck true. We also 'pre-radius new fret wire to identical radius of each neck to eliminate lumps. In this way the new wire seats closely to the fretboard and requires less dressing.
Starting a re- fret job with a true accurate radius results in high quality fretwork.
Often there is a difference between the level of the fretboard and the level of the frets.
The deep gouges you can see in this fretboard to the left require special attention. Often other repair men will dress a fretboard by hand resulting in an irregular surface. The first step in a proper repair is shown here, by using a special ruler that reads the fret board, not the frets.
The deep gouges you can see in this fretboard to the left require special attention. Often other repair men will dress a fretboard by hand resulting in an irregular surface. The first step in a proper repair is shown here, by using a special ruler that reads the fret board, not the frets.
Then using the proper radius block on both the fretboard and then the frets