This thread is in response to a request in another thread to show some pics of what I was verbally attempting to explain. I forget who, so maybe someone else will find it interesting too.
The machine itself I got from Larrivee a long time ago when they upgraded to a hydraulic motor gift system, a great improvement...
(side view)
(kinda sorta front views)Basically a three roller rig with the motor at the back.
The vertical part has a concave plate with a compound radius cut in. This is the nut end.
Extension end..
A 3"x 108" belt runs over the plate, just like a regular vertical belt sander.
the fingerboard has witness lines drawn on it to check progress and gets centred on the plate. Then you turn the machine on being careful not to change the neck shape by pushing too hard.
Check progress, repeat as needed, hopefully in only two passes.
Sand until there's a little horseshoe over the tongue left. This assure you don't grind out your fall away. Feather the transition with a flat cork block and 220 and...
Voila!Perfectly straight, even fingerboard, unless you err. It's definitely a high risk process to the guitar, but once you get the knack, it is extremely fast and reliable, taking only about a minute or less all told.
I'm glad I didn't have to think it up myself!
Cheers,
Ed
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I guess it is probably not as scary as it looks. It is impressive and would certainly speed up the process. I too radius my boards after the neck is attached to the body, but I'm still doing that all by hand. Not sure I'm ready for one of these yet, but it is a new take on radiusing that I hadn't seen before and it is pretty cool. 