MikeHuntt
Newbie
- Messages
- 1
I'm modifying a guitar neck to use in just intonation, i.e., with unequal fret spacing like this:
I've thought about using split/curved frets like the photo but that seems pretty complicated for a DIY project, so this will be a fretless neck. I made a prototype a while ago to try it out, pretty rough - I pulled the frets with nail clippers, filled the slots with wood filler, and used tip-ex to draw the new 'fret' markings straight on the wood. It plays well enough but now it's time for something higher in quality.
So far, I've stuck a new neck on an old strat-style body, pulled the frets, and put a layer of black Milliput epoxy over the fretboard (I'm hoping this will give more sustain than the bare wood). Once I've sanded the radius, my plan is to carve out the fret positions and fill them with white Milliput, then sand again. I also want to put markings along the side of the neck for the equivalent of frets 3, 5, 7, 9, 12, etc. I've kept a small chunk of Milliput seperate to practice on.
Can anyone give me some advice for this? I know how to measure the fret positions but I'm not sure how to cut them properly. How deep should I cut to make sure they don't get sanded out when finishing? Would a scalpel blade work or would it make a big difference if I invest in some more specialised tools? How can I cut out the split fret positions without messing up the fingerboard at the sides? Would I need to do anything different considering the fingerboard material is epoxy rather than wood?
I've thought about using split/curved frets like the photo but that seems pretty complicated for a DIY project, so this will be a fretless neck. I made a prototype a while ago to try it out, pretty rough - I pulled the frets with nail clippers, filled the slots with wood filler, and used tip-ex to draw the new 'fret' markings straight on the wood. It plays well enough but now it's time for something higher in quality.
So far, I've stuck a new neck on an old strat-style body, pulled the frets, and put a layer of black Milliput epoxy over the fretboard (I'm hoping this will give more sustain than the bare wood). Once I've sanded the radius, my plan is to carve out the fret positions and fill them with white Milliput, then sand again. I also want to put markings along the side of the neck for the equivalent of frets 3, 5, 7, 9, 12, etc. I've kept a small chunk of Milliput seperate to practice on.
Can anyone give me some advice for this? I know how to measure the fret positions but I'm not sure how to cut them properly. How deep should I cut to make sure they don't get sanded out when finishing? Would a scalpel blade work or would it make a big difference if I invest in some more specialised tools? How can I cut out the split fret positions without messing up the fingerboard at the sides? Would I need to do anything different considering the fingerboard material is epoxy rather than wood?
