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I was gettng ready to order Stew-Mac's fret beveling file when I ran a search and saw that many of you simply made your own. What kind of file should I be looking for? I imagine it should be a fine cut, but want to make sure.

the finer you use the less polishing later but at the same tine the faster the wear I have two files and one base or holder. One med and one fine. I knock the rough burrs off with the med and then fine tune with the fine.

hey James;
I built my own & it works fine. It's easy to make if you have a tablesaw. Mine is less than an inch wide where it contacts the frets... More would be better.
While you're at it, make a levelling file with the other half of the file you sacrifice to the job.
I don't use mine often, but it does come in handy once in a while.
Cheers. Dan

I used a single cut mill file in mine. Works well.

Thanks

The best I've found for this job is a Japanese sharpening file from Lee Valley; it's very fine-toothed and while it cuts metal very well, it almost refuses to cut wood at all (which is a good thing!)

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=1&p=32951&cat=1,43072,43089&ap=1

If I'm in a big rush then I use something else, like a 100-grit sanding block or another file, to take off the top bit of material first.

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Bob Garrish
Former Canonized Purveyor of Fine CNC Luthier Services

I have the stew mack files on wood blocks. They are excellent and leave almost no lines/grooves etc on the fret ends. I also made several others too. Made 1.25" stock Walnut blocks about 6" long. I broke off files (score with a cutoff wheel and break) and used epoxy to glue them on. Essentially I made one with a smooth file, one with a med file and one with a rough file. The rough file can also be used as a rasp for cleaning up neck contour work etc.

Really the stew mac stuff is excellent and worht the price. But on a budget, or in a pinch the items you make around your own shop can work just as well.

Joe

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Joe

hi james
if your using a tablesaw you might as well make two at least
have one with the file protruding a bit more out from the block

so it wont SLIP as easy
you can really easily mar many many frets if you dont pay attention
Mabye it might be a good idea to get quite a rough file for this one and do it slowly
rather than what i did... and go fast with the smooth one and let it slip

Has anyone made a block with depth adjustment and quick release file change
it would be a neat tool

I like your idea about a quick release. What I imagined after reading Michael's post was a block with two threaded inserts, two screws of some sort, and files with holes to match.

Hey Bob, could you explain the difference between the two files you linked? Surprisingly Lee Valley was rather vague in their description of what a safe-cut file.

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Aoibeann

Thanks Bob. I have one of those and use it for starting nut slots. I'll try it on frets too.

I'm new here, but this is what i did not three days ago finishing the frets on my first guitar.

I just took a mill file i had and snapped off the handle on my anvil. Took it to the grinder and rounded out the sharp corners.

Then i took a block of walnut about 2 1/2" x 6", just slightly longer than the file, and made two table saw cuts. One at 40 degrees, and one at 90 degrees. I had to make one full cut and then shaved a bit more on the second pass to get the file to fit tightly. I just know it in with a mallet.

So now i've got one block, with two "settings" and it works really well.

bren

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brendan 3.0 new and improved, with better interpersonal subroutines

A question since I've not yet used or seen one of these. Does the wooden block need to match the radius of the frets (I'm assuming it rides on the frets while filing the ends of the frets)? Seems logical that it would match the fret radius......yet I see only one version available so it must not matter. If it doesn't ride on the frets, how does it work?

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Formerly known as Adaboy.......

It is flat and rides on the top of the frets Darryl albeit without contacting more than a 1/4 or so of the length of the fret if that makes sense. Once you try it, you'll see how easy it is to keep a consistent angle. No need for it to match the radius. By the way, you spelled your name wrong

I believe the same fret beveling file that Stewmac sell is available from Brown's Guitar Factory, cheaper. On their website (after the intro), click on Tools, then choose tool number 3. See it? Two lengths available....

Dave F.

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Cambrian Guitars

"There goes Mister Tic-Tac out the back with some bric-brac from the knick-knack rack"

the one i built doesn't, and i was a bit worried about it. But i made the 90degree slot deep enough so that only about 1/4" of file hangs down. That way there's no chance of the file hitting the side of the fretboard and tipping isn't much of an issue.

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brendan 3.0 new and improved, with better interpersonal subroutines

I noticed that my handmade bevel file rocked on the frets making it somewhat unstable. So I radiused the bottom to fit my fretboard radius. Now it is very stable and I like the control that this gives me. It may be a minor thing, but why not radius it?

When using the Stew Mac type of setup on frets that you have successfully installed in pristine condition, metal particles can quickly build up under the wood or UHMWP block and scratch the tops. I usually cover the tops with a layer of tape before using mine and blow off the block frequently.

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It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.

I don't use a file at all. I use a coarse continuous diamond sharpening stone. Makes quick work and leave very fine scratches, equivalent to 320 grit sandpaper. Real easy to bring up to a polish after that.

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Randy Muth
RS Muth Guitars Website
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