# The jig thread



## silent_k (Apr 29, 2012)

A lot of the build threads on this site have included photos and descriptions of self-made tools, jigs, and fixtures for various building tasks (or multipurpose things, like scherzo's super jig). I thought it would be handy to have a dedicated thread for such things to compliment the tutorials and buying guides we have elsewhere. For anyone who has made a tool, jig or fixture and wants to share, post it here! It would be useful to include info about materials and costs, and any advice about putting it together and using it. To start us off, here's a very simple sled for slotting fretboards on a table saw:
































I made this for us on a portable table saw that is otherwise not good for much. It's based on Stew Mac's fret scale rulers and fret slotting table saw blade. Stew Mac includes some instructions for making a table saw sled, but I needed some adaptations to work with my small saw and added things to hold the workpiece in place.

*Materials & Parts:*


Base: 3/4" MDF (plywood would do as well).
Miter slot guide: ultra high molecular weight (UHMW) plastic (keeps the sled aligned with the blade and prevents the sled from moving side to side on the table).
Handles: fir 2x4s (also join the pieces of the MDF base).
Backing board: 3/4x1 1/2 strip of hard maple, into which the locating pin is installed -- note that the pin should be offset slightly from the path of the saw blade and carefully positioned according to the total height of the fingerboard wood and ruler. I placed the pin such that I could cut boards between about 6mm and 8mm.
I also installed two lengths of aluminum t-track running parallel to the blade path that hold a 1x3 piece of maple, held down with plastic screw knobs. The purpose of this board is to hold the fingerboard snug against the front edge where the pin is. I cut a rabbet in the top edge so that for fingerboards that are more narrow than the ruler itself, it can slide underneath the ruler and still contact the fingerboard wood. The track is held in place with epoxy.
Finally, a toggle clamp with a long foot is used to hold the fingerboard and ruler in place for each slotting pass.

To create the slot for the saw blade, I placed the completed sled on the table with the regular 1/8" kerf blade installed, and made several shallow passes, raising the blade very slightly with each pass until I had sufficient clearance through all the different pieces for the fret slotting blade. Then it was just a matter of installing the fret slotting blade in the saw, double stick taping a fingerboard to the ruler, and slotting away.

*Costs:*


Fret scale ruler: $40 (Stew Mac) (I'm also going to be making my own for other scales, baritone, etc).
Fret slotting saw blade: $90 (Stew Mac) These two items are by far the most expensive parts assuming you already have a table saw.
Toggle clamp w/extra long foot: $20 (Rockler)
Aluminum t-track: $18 for a 3 foot piece (Woodcraft)
Knobs: $2 a piece (Woodcraft)
T-bolts: $1 a piece (Woodcraft) 
UHMW: $30 for a 1/2 sheet (4" x 48")
MDF: $8 (Home Depot, comes in 2' x 4' sheets)
Total cost: ~$212 including fret scale ruler & saw blade ($82 otherwise). Totally worth the investment in the amount of time saved, especially slotting boards made of ebony, bubinga, other tough woods.


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## bob123 (May 1, 2012)

Router rails I made ->









- Birch plywood base, quite thick really 
- pine beams
- used rails for overhead ligthing to make the actual sliding part
- used inserts for cabinets and drawers to use as the sliders
-hinges for the base, and velcro to hold it down when not set at an angle.


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## Necromagnon (May 3, 2012)

Very nice thread!
I'll post some pics of jigs I've made (under table router jig) later this week end!
Thanks man!


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## ManuelB (May 3, 2012)

Great thread! It's a cool inspiration for new builders up in here. I'm thinking about building my own guitar in the future and this will help me a lot, cause some DIY tools are mostly as good as bought ones which unfortunately cost a lot.


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## motomoto (May 3, 2012)

If more people chime in with their DIY stuff, this thread should be stickied (if that even a word  )


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## spilla (May 3, 2012)

Sixgunsguitars posted a good video on ytube on how to make a fretboard slot duplicating jig, it can also be used as a normal mitrebox/fret slotting jig if you remove the razor blade. I wont explain how to build/use it as the vid covers that well. But its very simple to build, cost little and works well. Im getting much cleaner fret slots after using this. 

Parts:
Razor blade
Timber to make mitre box
Precut fretboard (that has been squared on at least one side) 
Fretsaw


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## scherzo1928 (May 3, 2012)

Disclaimer: I'll be copying and pasting something I sent as a private message a couple of days ago. I won't give some sort of recipe for the jig as that would be EXTREMELY limiting... keep reading to see what I mean.

It's all based on extruded aluminium (woke up upside down today) profiles. Any brand works, and they also make them out of iron and steel... aluminium is good enough for all these aplications. I use the parker brand btw.

Parker - IPS/ALUMINUM EXTRUSION

OK, COPY PASTE TIME:

First of all, I always seem to assemble it together differently. I never put it together with some plans or something, it really depends on the specifics of what I'm about to do. And to show that I'm not simply trying to evade you  Here's a bit of proof... Take the drilling jig as an example.

It can be as simple as this:





Little bit more complicated:





or even worse...





What I'm trying to say, is that once you have the profiles, and some nuts and bolts, you can do whatever you want. Those 3 versions of the drill jig are different, because I was after different things. On the first pic, I was simply removing material to chamber the guitar, and the body was very thin, so that was enough. On the second pic, I needed a little extra height. The third pic is much more robust, because I was making precision holes for bridge posts.

However, here's a list of things I think you should consider before you make yours.

- Perfectly flat surface where to mount the jig. In my case, It's a thick piece of Nylamid. I chose nylamid, because it BARELY moves with any kind of temperature change.

- How long will the "base" rails be? The ones I use are about 1.1m long, but you can definately go longer... particularly if you want to make some bases! BTW, I use the 40mm profiles for these base rails... you might want to use the rig on something thicker, so just stack a couple of profiles.

- Want to route at an angle? Add 4 columns (8" or around 20cm long is more than enough, longer won't hurt (that's what I told her)), 2 new rails for the router sled to glide on, and 2 beams. How far appart should the columns be? Look at the nexy pic:





Far appart enough so that the piece you will machine fits, AND the router sled has enough space to move. Remember the router bit as at the center of the sled, so give yourself some extra room. Depending on the size of the piece I'm routing I'll use different length rails, sometimes around 60cm long, sometimes others. 

AAAnyways, I don't know what each piece is called, but this pic has everything I use for the jigs.





I think those are more than enough to get started. My advice, is that if you find a store that sells these profiles (they also make them out of iron and steel btw) browse around for a while, or ask for a catalog. Trust me, there is NO LIMIT to what you can do with what those guys sell. I barely use a tiny bit of what they sell, but that's enough to get me through for now. Everytime I go to the store I imagine a lot of other things to do with them.

So yeah, get a catalog, grab a beer, and think of all the posibilities!

Last bit of advice. Lubricate the contact surfaces between moving parts with something like WD40 or whatever you find.


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## vansinn (May 3, 2012)

^ regarding lubrication.. WD40 tends to get sticky.
I might think a 'dry' lube like some types of molybdenium grease, maybe mixed with (doorlock) graphite powder, would work better.

Über cool thread, BTW


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## silent_k (May 3, 2012)

Glad to see so much interest -- keep the tool posts coming!

Here's another very simple and cheap jig I made for cutting the taper into the backs of bolt-on necks:


























This is basically a 3' length of plywood with two plywood rails and a plywood sled that attaches to the base of my router. 

*Materials & Parts:*

Base & rails: plywood
Sled: plywood
Aluminum t-track (x2)
Maple shims
Hold-down clamps (x2)
Wood screws

Like the fingerboard slotting jig above, the t-tracks are held in place with epoxy because there isn't enough material under them to use screws. This jig creates a channel down the center of a flush-trimmed bolt-on neck (could be used for a glue-in neck as well) at whatever taper you want for your neck profile. You can then carve back the remaining wood using the channel as your depth reference. Here's how it works: first I always mark the side of the neck with the depth the taper will ultimately be and use that line to establish the proper depth for the router bit. Depending on the desired taper, I put shims between the neck and the base (I usually follow Fender specs for this with a 2mm taper from the 1st to the 12th fret) and then align the neck with the center line of the base, and and clamp it in place on both sides. Then it's just a matter of routing the channel. 

If my approach were more production oriented, I could easily add stops to the rails and alignment markers for the necks -- as it stands, I have to be pretty careful not to go too far in either direction with the router, but it's worked OK on the couple of test necks and one actual neck I've made with it. It's flexible enough to do bass necks, too, which is one of the reasons it's as long as it is. It was especially handy doing my latest neck, which used Rick Toone's trapezoid profile. I got a 5/8 diameter bit to cut the channel, the just had to cut out the sides between the channel edge and the edge of the fingerboard. 

*Costs:*

Plywood: $8 for a 2x4 sheet (Home Depot)
T-track: $30 for 2 36" lengths (Woodcraft)
Hold-down clamps: $18 for 2 (Woodcraft)
Assorted wood screws: $1 (I use HighPoint square drive screws for stuff like this because they don't strip and are much stronger than your average HD screw -- also available from Woodcraft)
Total cost: ~$60 (I made the shims from scrap). It gives me a narrow but smoother taper than a bandsaw and isn't as messy or terrifying as a Saf-t-planer!


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## vansinn (May 4, 2012)

Damn.. all those building threads - and now this..
I almost have a basement room at my disposal; just need to ask to building management (for which I'm chairman, hehe) to allow renting it at a low prize, do some basic noise shielding, carry my three large boxes of tools down there, build a few of dem nice toolrigs from from this thread - and get my ass heated up.
I _will_ need someone to bake me nice cakes, though..


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## Munch (May 6, 2012)

Thanks for making this thread, it is and will be awesome! I'll get something up for it soon.


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## BlackMastodon (May 6, 2012)

Nothing huge at all, just a simple way to make fret rockers. I took an old metal ruler I had laying around and got rid of most of the cork lining on the back and then used some metal shears to cut it into various lengths. After that, I just used a metal grinder to smooth out the edges so they weren't razor sharp.





There was a small screw up on that last big piece as you can see, but hey it works.


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## JStraitiff (May 6, 2012)

^awesome idea man! I'm gonna do this cause i suspect I'm having some fret issues on one of my guitars.

I'd really like to see someone's home made fret benders.


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## BlackMastodon (May 6, 2012)

JStraitiff said:


> ^awesome idea man! I'm gonna do this cause i suspect I'm having some fret issues on one of my guitars.
> 
> I'd really like to see someone's home made fret benders.


Done and done 
Project Guitar :: How To Make a Fret Bender
I plan on doing something like this when I get to the point in a build where I will need to do fretting.

And I prefer the fret rockers I made in under a half hour to the almost $25 one from Stewmac.


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## bob123 (May 8, 2012)

Man you're guy's router rails and jigs are WAY better then anything I've ever done haha.


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## Necromagnon (May 9, 2012)

As promised, my undertable router jig:











Very simple: a piece of laminated bought in supply store for half nothing, a cut made with jig saw at the size of the router (this part is probably the most important as it's, I think, important to have a cut that fits weel the size/shape of the router to prevent gaps between table and bedplate).
Then I made two channels to use rods of the side guide of the router, but you can use threaded rod also. Channels are V shape just because I didn't have a 8 mm bit, and also to permit a better position of the rod in a V channel. The depth is calculatedd simply with maths at the beginning to have an idea, and then I just cut and adjust the depth so that the bedplate is perfecly at the level os the table.

And it's done! About 1h30 to do that, 20&#8364; (30/35£US), just the price of the laminated in fact. But for safety reasons, I advise (and I will do the same) to had an interuptor on the table, with emergency stop if you can. It's clearly better.

I'm building a fret slot jig, to use with my saw, I will post some pics when it will be finished.


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## Necromagnon (Feb 4, 2013)

A friend just showed me this gallery of pics from a (italian?) luthier... He's entered my top 3 Godoftools pantheon:
Picasa Web Albums - Filippo Morelli - Tooling


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## AwDeOh (Feb 4, 2013)

^ I nearly spilled my coffee laughing at that router table using the guide rails.. so simple. I feel like a moron for not figuring that one out on my own.

Is your router the type with an on/off switch, or do you have a good way of depressing the lock and trigger when it's under the table?


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## Gregori (Feb 4, 2013)

My homemade pickup winder: http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/lu...tomizations/226749-i-built-pickup-winder.html






I think I spent around $50 on it, but I had some of the parts already. I'd imagine someone could build the same one for $80-$90 with all new parts(and it would probably be better than the stewmac winder, which is about $400).

Money can be saved it it's unfinished, but MDF is just so ugly...


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## AwDeOh (Feb 4, 2013)

^ Get busy and show us some results!


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## OfArtAndArsenal (Feb 4, 2013)

This thread is relevant to my interests!!
I've found two in particular that I thought were really cool. Maybe a little complicated, and more trouble that they are worth, but still.
I should also disclaim that I cannot speak to the efficiency of these jigs, as I have neither built nor used either. Yet...

Pederson Custom Guitars Neck Shaping Jig - YouTube

and

Fretboard Radius Jig - YouTube

The second one I plan on building something similar to do the radius on a body, among other things.


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## immortalx (Feb 5, 2013)

I still don't know how i missed this thread, some awesome jigs here 

Here are my rough attempts at some home made machinery 

Non oscillating spindle sander with pattern bearing. I had a friend build me several different diameter plastic drums on the lathe. The motor base is adjustable in height, so i can lower the spindle until the bearing touches the template.






And here's my thickness sander made from scrap. Not a monster of accuracy... but it removes material so easily, i couldn't live without it!


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## AwDeOh (Feb 5, 2013)

^ Very nice - are you just buying the appropriate motor and mounting it all together yourself?

I'll be flipping a Jigsaw under my router table in the next few days, adding a steel guide at the blade tip and seeing if I can cut the stock for a neckthrough with it - pics will ensue.


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## immortalx (Feb 5, 2013)

Thanks man, i just had the motor laying around and build it without any sort of planning. That's why it looks rough 
That idea with the jig saw sounds interesting!


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## Necromagnon (Feb 5, 2013)

Nice dude! A thickness sander is so usefull, mostly for small thickness work (like binding thinning or acoustic top, back and sides).

Do you have a picture of the core of your spindle sander? I'd try to make one to mount on my under table router to sand sides of guitars easily, but I've no idea on what to use for the core.



AwDeOh said:


> Is your router the type with an on/off switch, or do you have a good way of depressing the lock and trigger when it's under the table?


No. I use a power strip with switch on it, but it's not the safest. I will install a on/off switch relay (to prevent it from starting automatically), with an emergency stop on it.


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## immortalx (Feb 5, 2013)

Thanks man! I don't have a pic but i can take one if you wish. It's just a 20mm steel shaft threaded on the top. I insert the drum, then the bearing and secure with a nut.


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## Necromagnon (Feb 5, 2013)

It's about the drum, I've some problems. Do you buy it directly like this (I'm not use with this, and didn't search a lot...



) or did you use some drum and stick sand ribbon on it?


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## immortalx (Feb 5, 2013)

The drum is made from a material called teflon, i think it's proper name is PTFE.
It comes in rod form and looks like this:




You just have to open a hole in the middle and turn it on a lathe to be a perfect cylinder.
I attach my own sandpaper this way:




Measure the perimeter of the drum, and mark a line of the same length on the sandpaper roll, starting from a corner. Now if you remove the triangular piece, the sandpaper should roll nicely around the drum. I've cut a slot on one end of the drum where i insert the corner of the sandpaper. On the other end i secure it with a cable tie.


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## Necromagnon (Feb 5, 2013)

So simple... That's why I didn't think about it. I always try to do complexe while there's no need for it... I'll go check my plastic left overs (I worked in a plastic machining workshop, so I took out a lot of left overs there where throwing away). Thanks for the tip!


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## Mr Wright (Feb 11, 2013)

I found this when searching for templates: 1959 Les Paul Build - Telecaster Guitar Forum

That guy details the construction of almost every jig in his build. There are a ton of good jigs in there.

When I finally grow a pair and start my build I'm going to try to document all the jigs I make like this.


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## AwDeOh (Feb 11, 2013)

Necromagnon said:


> As promised, my undertable router jig:



I've built one of these over the weekend Necro, did you do anything on the underside to secure the router from beneath, like a clamp or an arm that pulls the router into the table more firmly?


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## Necromagnon (Feb 12, 2013)

AwDeOh said:


> I've built one of these over the weekend Necro, did you do anything on the underside to secure the router from beneath, like a clamp or an arm that pulls the router into the table more firmly?


No. Only gravity. And also the fact that the piece your machining keep it down in place. 
The space for the router bedplate is really tight, and also the rods channels. So it doesn't move even with no wood on it.
I think you can do a security on it that holds the router down, but I'm not sure of the use. I'd better add a finger guard over the bit (that prevent you to place your fingers to close from the bit), an emergency stop (2, accessible by knee and foot), a dust aspiration, etc.


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## AwDeOh (Feb 12, 2013)

Cheers for that. Mine is cut into a removable plate rather than the table itself, since I'll be doing the upside-down jigsaw in the same table. I think I just need to get the plate/table and router/plate connections a little tighter.

Such a simple idea, works really well!


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## Necromagnon (Feb 12, 2013)

AwDeOh said:


> Such a simple idea, works really well!


And the idea is not mine, I've to admit. I was thinking about a jig like that, but my concern was always on how to fix the router without loosing to much height. The solution of the rod is the one of a fellow amateur luthier also (that works really awesome, btw!).

For the reverse jigsaw, I'm personnaly not very found of it. never try it, but just imagining it makes me cold sweat...


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## AwDeOh (Feb 12, 2013)

I'll be getting a new jigsaw to do it with in a few days, and I have an old one that I can salvage the roller guide from - so there'll be a roller guide on both ends of the blade, which will hopefully stop any deflection so I can cut stock into veneer thickness really nicely.

And of course, it'll have plenty of protection, a finger guide behind it, and those wooden push tools to push the stock through.


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## lettsbasses (Feb 12, 2013)

Cool thread.
I tend to not bother with too many jigs as my workshop is small and easily cluttered. I find a pair of levels either taped or clamped to the bench along with router sled do most jig work that I need. Things like neck tapers scarf joint etc are done on the bandsaw and jointer. I've spent a long time honing my jointer control and I get a high level of accuracy this way now. Fret slotting of course requires a box. The drilling jig looks useful and also the thickness sander which is something that I've often felt the need for. Mainly for burrs and other tough to thickness pieces.
Again, great thread!


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## AwDeOh (Feb 12, 2013)

lettsbasses said:


> Cool thread.
> I find a pair of levels either taped or clamped to the bench along with router sled do most jig work that I need.



Is that setup for planing stock down? Or for routing out cavities, like an alternative to bearing follow guides?

Also what router(s) do you prefer?


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## ElysianGuitars (Mar 26, 2014)

Not sure if there's been a topic like this yet, but there's one similar to it on LuthierTalk, so I thought it'd be a good one here.

First jig I wanted to share is my fanned fret slotting jig... I try to make my jigs as minimalist as possible...









My sled is made in such a way that it works for multi or single scale slotting. The templates are made in CAD (I use ekips FretFind to make a DXF, then extend each line out). The pins on my sled are 6" apart. I print out paper templates and then use a scratch awl to make the pilot for drilling it with a fresh 1/4" bradpoint bit. The pins on the sled (the most recent incarnation) are metal 1/4" rod. My first board wound up being a lefty board by accident (still have it, just in case it's ever needed), but this makes it so I can easily have standard fanned setups and make new boards accurately every time. Needing so much plexi makes it a little costly compared to other methods, but I'm pretty sure it's the least expensive way to do reproduceable multiscale boards.









Next up is my truss rod slotting jig.







Extremely simple. You need a collar cut setup, I made it for a 3/8" collar. I use the risers to double stick tape the template to a neck, and mark the end of the rod in pencil on the template.

Here's a slot I routed with it:






I'm hopefully going to be building a compound radiusing jig soon.

Also, if anyone needs a spray booth rolling rack idea:


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## Necromagnon (Mar 26, 2014)

There's already a jig thread, but nice jigs! I specially dig the one for fan fret slotting!
(PS: I don't have the link to the original thread, but you should be able to find it with "home made jigs" or some similar keywords).


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## ElysianGuitars (Mar 26, 2014)

Necromagnon said:


> There's already a jig thread, but nice jigs! I specially dig the one for fan fret slotting!
> (PS: I don't have the link to the original thread, but you should be able to find it with "home made jigs" or some similar keywords).



I figured such an important thread would have already been stickied


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## SpaceDock (Mar 26, 2014)

but that thread sucks....http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/lu...izations/196229-self-made-tools-jigs-etc.html


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## ElysianGuitars (Mar 26, 2014)

By the way, my fanned slotting jig is an adaptation of the jig Dingwall uses to slot fretboards. Theirs uses steel plates and a different kind of saw, so mine is more focused towards the home builder/small builder.


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## BlackMastodon (Mar 26, 2014)

That fret slotting jig is awesome! Does it cut through the plexiglass every time, though? And do the pins stay clear of the blade?


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## ElysianGuitars (Mar 27, 2014)

BlackMastodon said:


> That fret slotting jig is awesome! Does it cut through the plexiglass every time, though? And do the pins stay clear of the blade?



No, the plexi is on top of the fretboard... Pins are clear of the blade.


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## Hollowway (Mar 27, 2014)

Is it just me, or is that a wide-ass fanned FB? How many strings is that beast going to be?


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## ElRay (Mar 27, 2014)

Another thread had a link to this jig:








Ray


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## Necromagnon (Mar 27, 2014)

I was still searching some ideas to do fan fret while using stewmac like scale rules, and I was stuck because using a regular slotting box is not really possible to comply with fanned fret. While your idea with pins is really great for that...


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## Skoude (Mar 27, 2014)

The fret slotting jig looks great! How do you prevent the pins hitting the blade as they seem to be in line with the slot?


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## Necromagnon (Mar 27, 2014)

Skoude said:


> The fret slotting jig looks great! How do you prevent the pins hitting the blade as they seem to be in line with the slot?


I think they're just shorter than the depth of cutting, simply.


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## Skoude (Mar 27, 2014)

Necromagnon said:


> I think they're just shorter than the depth of cutting, simply.



You mean they are mounted above the sled surface on blocks (or something) which are around the same thickness as the fretboard?


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## Necromagnon (Mar 27, 2014)

Or maybe they are just slotted already and the blade can go through?


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## ElysianGuitars (Mar 27, 2014)

Necromagnon said:


> Or maybe they are just slotted already and the blade can go through?



In the initial design that's how it was. I switched to metal pins and offset them when I had to remake the jig after my shop flooded.


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## BlackMastodon (Mar 27, 2014)

Hollowway said:


> Is it just me, or is that a wide-ass fanned FB? How many strings is that beast going to be?


I count 9 strings on that beast. Could've been a bass too, judging by the spacing. I definitely think we should make this the official jig thread.

I need to cook me up a good scarf joint jig.
Something simple like this maybe:


Or this one:
http://sailfar.net/forum/index.php?topic=3498.0


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## Necromagnon (Jul 19, 2014)

As shown in the Soloist thread, I built a very simple and cheap jig to drill side dots, and it work very great.

Here are the pictures of the jig finish, I guess it's easy to understand how it works. 





















The jig is completely fixed. Only the fretboard move on the black piece. I didn't put an index for use with special rules (you can't use your fret slot rules :/ ), but I'll probably add that later. Right now, I just mark on the fretboard the axis of the hole (on the front surface, the one with the inlay basically), and just push it aligned. It's not best right now, sure, but at least, if the holes are all aligned when lookings the side, it's the best part and the most difficult, imo, to reach.


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## immortalx (Jul 19, 2014)

That's very cool man, I'm stealing it!


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## Necromagnon (Jul 19, 2014)

immortalx said:


> That's very cool man, I'm stealing it!


Feel free to do so, it's here for that.
Also, feel free to send me some exchange money on my bank account.


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## AwDeOh (Jul 19, 2014)

I like it - awesome to see some process on the build too, Necro. So is there a plunge mechanism for pushing the bit in, or do you push the fretboard into the fence?


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## Necromagnon (Jul 19, 2014)

Thanks 


AwDeOh said:


> push the fretboard into the fence?


This.


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## immortalx (Jul 19, 2014)

Necromagnon said:


> Feel free to do so, it's here for that.
> Also, feel free to send me some exchange money on my bank account.



I'll send you a copy of the following jig I've made and we are even 

So, this is a fretboard radius drum sander. The drum on which the sandpaper is wrapped, was turned on the lathe with a 16" radius across it's length. It works like a regular drum sander by raising the table underneath with a threaded rod. There's an MDF carrier screwed on a drawer slider on which the fretboard is attached. The axis is driven by a mere hand-drill.


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## JuliusJahn (Jul 19, 2014)

immortalx said:


> I'll send you a copy of the following jig I've made and we are even
> 
> So, this is a fretboard radius drum sander. The drum on which the sandpaper is wrapped, was turned on the lathe with a 16" radius across it's length. It works like a regular drum sander by raising the table underneath with a threaded rod. There's an MDF carrier screwed on a drawer slider on which the fretboard is attached. The axis is driven by a mere hand-drill.
> 
> *snip*



If you made it convex, you could make your own sanding radius blocks! (I guess you can also just use that jig to make a board, slap sandpaper on it, and make one, or even better yet sand the fretboard with the jig itself(?) depending on how accuracte you had it made)


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## immortalx (Jul 20, 2014)

Nice idea about the radius blocks! 
I'm not sure I understand the bit in the parenthesis though. That's what i use it for, to put a radius on a fretboard blank:






This is a board as it comes out of the jig and it only needs hand sanding with progressively finer grits. Checked with a radius gauge and it's spot on!


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## Necromagnon (Jul 20, 2014)

I have in mind a radius-o-matic also, but a bit different than yours. I wanted to make one from a belt sander placed under a table, and the fb blank is stuck on a pendulum or something like that with radiused block on each end. You then just put the fretboard over the sander, and swing it left/right to have a radius all over the board. The advantages is that you can easily obtain compound radius.


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## JuliusJahn (Jul 21, 2014)

immortalx said:


> Nice idea about the radius blocks!
> I'm not sure I understand the bit in the parenthesis though.




I meant that if you take your jig and make a radius'd board, then slapped some sandpaper (grit side up) then ran a maple block over the "fretboard" to make a very long radius block, sort of like this.
http://hostedmedia.reimanpub.com/TFH/Step-By-Step/FH05DJA_HANSAN_11.JPG

Obviously, if you put a convex contour on your jig you could just use it like a curved planer, if that makes sense. 

Anyone ever think of doing this? I might try it this weekend and it'd save me 300$. Need to make a table saw from an old circ saw first though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3f_8NF74DyI#t=70


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## DistinguishedPapyrus (Nov 15, 2014)

Just finished this jig for leveling/thickness-ing guitar bodies last week. Since the pic was taken I've added a few stops to the sled to limit how close the router can get to the edge. This thing was built completely from ply wood, screws and titebond original. The plywood is some of the higher grade red oak veneered stuff from home depot, I made sure each joint was square and straight before gluing and I gotta say I'm really impressed with how sturdy and rigid this jig came out to be. I can put my full weight in the middle of the main tray and it only flexes about 0.1 - 0.2". It's pretty accurate too, its got about + or - 0.025" tolerance throughout the full area the router can travel.


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## BlackMastodon (Apr 12, 2016)

I'm reviving this thread and requesting that it get stickied as the Jig and Homemade Tools Thread.

Inspired by Hywel's 2016 Home Depot build, specifically this post:
http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/4562314-post52.html

I have made a fret end nipper of my own, using a cheap sheet metal nibbler. This one specifically:
http://www.amazon.com/Parts-Express...RACO?ie=UTF8&redirect=true&ref_=cfb_at_prodpg

So, here we are:





With the dremel this took all of 5 minutes. All I did was grind a channel near the part where it bites down for the fret crown to sit while the tang gets cut away.

One important note, though, is that I made sure to lock the nibbler in the most closed position (it came with a pin) so that if I got a little zealous with the dremel (which I did), it didn't grind down the cutting edge.

Here's more shots:
















She works, even if the picture is blurry:






So there ya go. $14 and 5 minutes with a dremel. If you don't have a dremel, do what Hywel did and use a triangle file and some elbow grease. Better than shelling out $65 + shipping to StewMac (of course they try to sell you 3 different ones for each fret size ).


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## Hywel (Apr 13, 2016)

BlackMastodon said:


> 5 minutes with a dremel. If you don't have a dremel, do what Hywel did and use a triangle file and some elbow grease.



Dammit, I actually own a Dremel and didn't think to use it for this. That would have saved a lot of time. 

I made a drill bit/counterbore for neck ferrules. I struggled a bit with getting the hole for the recessed ferrules centred over the hole though the heel into the neck so I made a piloted 10mm bit from a cheap countersink bit from eBay.






On top is the original bit. I ground off the countersink part to make the bit drill flat bottom holes and reversed the drill bit to make sure it won't damage the original hole.

Ok "made" was probably a strong word but hey, it makes my life easier!

Drill the 4.5mm holes though first with a normal bit and then change to this thing. Centre the pilot in the existing hole and drill to the correct depth for the ferrule and you're done. Guaranteed centred every time!











I used a 4.2mmx10mm countersink bit which suit my M4 neck bolts and 10mm screw cups but there are plenty of sizes available. Cost me about £4.50 in total.


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## pondman (Apr 13, 2016)

I just drill the ferule recess first with a Forstner bit then the screw hole after.
Bullet proof.


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## Hywel (Apr 13, 2016)

pondman said:


> I just drill the ferule recess first with a Forstner bit then the screw hole after.
> Bullet proof.



Also a good option. But then I don't have an excuse to acquire more tools.


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## BlackMastodon (Apr 20, 2016)

Making my own fret beveling file out of a 2x4, a couple nuts and bolts, an old leather belt, and of course a file.











I cut a 35 degree angle (I think it was 35 anyway... I cut the block a couple years ago) into the block to hold the file and drilled some holes for screws to hold it. They didn't work too well since they would get loose pretty often, that's what the old leather belt is for. I cut off a strip of it and split it in half since it was already ripping. This will fit along side the file and give something for the bolts to hold on to.

I used some JB Weld to make sure the nuts hold in the wood and don't jingle around.






I also can't put into words how much JB Weld stinks. It's right up there with cutting pearl.


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## J_Mac (Apr 21, 2016)

Good necrobump! Like this thread, sticky would be ace.


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## BlackMastodon (Apr 21, 2016)

On the subject of fret beveling blocks and StewMac, does anyone know what material they use for the block itself? I've seen it used before, but have no idea what to search for. At some point I'd like to make a version 2 of the fret beveling block if this one doesn't turn out as well as I'd like.

Link for reference:
Fret Beveling File | stewmac.com


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## Winspear (Apr 21, 2016)

I've been wondering about tuner buttons for a while. This is genius
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioA...gsIBWF1QellJNkySsFPWzLRu6Zg7zYn6pT4PuS9332Vbw


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## ChAoZ (Apr 22, 2016)

I made this "jig" to slot multiscale fretboards with a fret2find template - works well


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## JuliusJahn (Apr 22, 2016)

BlackMastodon said:


> On the subject of fret beveling blocks and StewMac, does anyone know what material they use for the block itself? I've seen it used before, but have no idea what to search for. At some point I'd like to make a version 2 of the fret beveling block if this one doesn't turn out as well as I'd like.
> 
> Link for reference:
> Fret Beveling File | stewmac.com


Its probably HDPE which is just plastic thats hard and low friction coefficient. I made 2 blocks last month out of ash and cant complain. Thin kerf table saw blade is the same thickness as the Grobet files leeV sells for 7$


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## BlackMastodon (Apr 23, 2016)

Well the block worked fine until I tighten one of the screws a bit too much and it pushed the nut away from the block, breaking the JB weld.

It would also be a lot more effective if I had a flat file without a handle.and maybe if the block had a bit of a radius to it.


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## pettymusic (Apr 24, 2016)

BlackMastodon said:


> Well the block worked fine until I tighten one of the screws a bit too much and it pushed the nut away from the block, breaking the JB weld.
> 
> It would also be a lot more effective if I had a flat file without a handle.and maybe if the block had a bit of a radius to it.








Here's my fret bevel file. I used those cheap Japanese file from H.F. stuck it in a vise and knocked the handle off with a hammer. I cut the slot for the file slightly thinner than the thickness of the file and hammered that bad boy in there. I got the idea from a YouTube video.


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## pettymusic (Apr 24, 2016)

Ah! Here's that video for the fret beveling file

https://youtu.be/-UwT2tKzQpU


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