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Well, the subject pretty much says it all.

I have a fretboard that the owner wants 1/4" dia paua dots on. I'm thinking because it's paua, I can inlay them before radiusing (16" radius) the board.

Thoughts?

Also, can I use one of those router jigs for radiusing the board after the dots are inlayed or will the router bit chip and tear out the shell?

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After.
Might be ok on the centrally located dots but the 12th fret dots would probably be lost when radiusing unless you set them down....too much trouble.
Don't know what the router would do to them.

Anytime I have an inlay that requires a spot out near the edge, I always radius first Rod. Infact, I inlay just before I fret once the board is pretty much fully levelled and the lie is right.

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Tony Karol
www.karol-guitars.com
"let my passion .. fulfill yours"

You can do it either way Rod ! .
set the dots at the 12th a bit deeper than the rest!
Then radius the board.
I always dot before radiusing -I use a sanding jig to get the radius -so tear out is not a problem.

Mike

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Mike Collins

No dots but FWIW, I've done a few sets of blocks & split blocks, which extend to about 1/4" from the (unbound) fingerboard edge. I use .060" MOP (& sand to a 12" radius) and have only ever inlaid them before I radius. Never had a problem.

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Dave
Milton, ON

I inlay on the fretboards first than radius with a sanding block. I suppose on a 10 or 12" radius, the edge inlays could be an issue, but certainly not much of an issue on a 16" radius.

Most of the times, I run my dots down the center. Even at the 12th frets. Personally, I don't think the position markers on the front of the guitar is for the player. Its much more for the viewer. The dots on the side...now thats a different story.

Joe

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Joe

I always inlay first,but my material is 1/16" thick and i have never had a problem.I wouldn't run a router over an inlay though.I would just sand to the radius i need.

Right on Dave. These inlays were done before radius. I radius sanded this to 12" and have no issues. They did not look thin or anything on the edges.

Cheers!

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Joe

Thanks folks. Since they are paua dots which are solid shell I'm not to worried about change in color, just sanding through at the outer edges of the 12th fret dots. I'll just lay them down a tad more and all should be fine.

Thanks again for all the quick replies.

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"There's really no wrong way, as long as the results are what's desired." Charles Fox

"We have to constantly remind ourselves what we're doing....No Luthier is putting a man on the moon!" Harry Fleishman

"Generosity is always different in the eye of the person who didn't receive anything, but who wanted some." Waddy Thomson

Joe, nice axe Love the f holes.

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My Facebook Guitar Page

"There's really no wrong way, as long as the results are what's desired." Charles Fox

"We have to constantly remind ourselves what we're doing....No Luthier is putting a man on the moon!" Harry Fleishman

"Generosity is always different in the eye of the person who didn't receive anything, but who wanted some." Waddy Thomson

i do fretboard inlay after radius but before final leveling. That way I don't run the risk of sanding through an inlay edge on wider inlays.

I have always done the inlays (round dots, diamonds, and hex blocks so far) after radiusing and the results have been good so far. Usually I do the inlays just before final sanding and fretting. Even this one:

--Steve in Roseville

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---Steve

I inlay after the radius is set.
Here's an old tip:
Get some flat toothpicks and cut them into lengths longer than the diameter of your inlay. Put a small drop of superglue on the inlay, spray accelerator on the toothpick and join them. After the cavities are cut or drilled, you can place the inlay with the toothpick running in the direction the strings would run. This will hold the inlay at the apogee of your fingerboard radius anywhere on the fingerboard (down the center, out at the edges, etc) while the inlay glue sets. Then just pop the toothpick off and finish sanding the inlay to the FB radius. This will minimize the amount of material removed from the inlay edges and make some future repairperson a lot happier when a fret job/fingerboard leveling is required.
Don't ask how I know that!

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Hank Mauel