Roasted Soloist

[H108P]

I've always had the top 4-6 frets on my main guitars scalloped since back in the 80's, after Steve Vai made the mod popular. After completing this build, I definitely was missing that feature. I'd never done it myself, so I figured I better practice before doing it on this expensive new neck.

I had a cheap Ibanez Indonesian made neck that was going be the victim. I just used a dowel wrapped with 200 grit and attacked it by hand. I tried chucking the dowel in a drill but that proved hard to control and it wanted to walk all over the frets. I also tried doing a partial scallop (think Billy Sheehan's bass) just on the high side of the fret board, but it was had to get the taper over on the low E side to come out clean or even. I ended up going straight across like is typically done.

What you see here only took about 30 minutes total. I started with 220, then worked to 320 and 400. I rolled the edges of the scallop with the 400. For the work on my build, I'll finish out at 600 or higher, but this gave me a good enough idea of how to do this.

 

[stratamania]

You might want to put a couple of layers of tape over your frets as a precaution whilst doing the scallop. 

The higher ones are not too bad to do, but the lower ones where it is wider take a bit more work.

 

[H108P]

I did put down some blue tape when I was doing the 220 grit, but it ended up being very distracting because I found it difficult to tell how even my scallops were. I think I'll split the difference and use tape when cutting with 220, and go without for the finishing grits so that the scallops are even.

I have only ever had scallops on frets 19 through 22 (or 24). I tried an Yngwie Malmsteen Fender and really hated the feel of the scallops on the lower frets, so thankfully I'll be safe from the temptation and subsequent labor of doing the lower frets.

 

[H108P]

Today I went and scalloped the top 4 frets on the actual build. I tweaked my technique for masking the frets so that only the fret wire was covered, but still only used the mask for the initial cutting with 220 grit. Even then, it wasn't that critical. I only used sandpaper backed on one small dowel to do all the work, and next time I will get an assortment of dowels and files. It looks better in person than in the pics, but all I see are the imperfections. The one dowel I had was too small a diameter and caused me to have to cut too deep on the 19th fret, which cut right through the inlay. I'm not at all happy about that. Having a better assortment of different diameter tools for each fret would have made a huge difference.

My OCD makes me ponder fixing the damaged inlay, but for now this is functional.

 

[vwkng1]

Great build, thanks for sharing.

I am thinking of doing a soloist like this and would like your advice:

1) if I go for a contoured heel, any idea of the shorter screws sold by warmoth are the right length if I also ask for the 720 mod?

2) if I go for the 720 mod, which floor height for the hipshot bridge is the correct one? 0.125 or 0.175"?

3) about the hipshot fixed bridge that you used, which bridge routing should be the correct option? The narrow spaced strat hardtail?

Thanks a million in advance!

Regards, Vic

 

[Cagey]

Normal screw size for Fender-style heel/pocket dimensions are #8 x 1 3/4" philips oval head wood screws. If you buy a set with a shorter pair to accommodate the contoured heel, the two shorter screws will be #8 x 1 1/2" philips oval head wood screws.

I use threaded inserts on 99% of the necks I do, so I use machine screws instead of wood screws, but they're still #8-32 philips oval heads and I use either 1 3/4" or or 1 1/2" length screws for a contoured heel whether the pocket is .625" deep (standard) or .720" deep (720 mod). There's only .095" difference between the two pockets and there's enough depth in the holes to accommodate.