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http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Fretting_supplies/Polishing_and_abrasives/Ceramic_Fret_Polishing_Wheels.html

I tried these wheels recently and found them way too coarse and hard for fret polishing. They acted more like grindstones than polishing wheels.
I noticed that they were different colors than the purple (lavender?) and gray wheels that I had used previously.
Anyone know a different source for these "dremel size" wheels. I think they may be a craytex material.
Thanks
Nelson

Try this Nelson.
http://www.shorinternational.com/WheelPointRubber.htm

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Matt Jacobs

"Don't tase me bro"

I've used some on occasion, but I don't recall which grits I have to be quite honest. I don't use them for frets typically though. Copper/nickel/zinc is a pretty soft alloy, and it really doesn't take much heat or friction at all to move and mold the metal around. I did some quick tests with them a few years ago to see how easily they could move metal, and I remember digging through a fret without much effort. They certainly can be used for frets, but those who do generally know not to use the highest speed on the dremel, not to use too much pressure, and most of all keep it moving and don't hover in one spot. I think a good polish with these is just as much the technique as it is the tool.

Rather than cutting a crown in to them for frets, I shape them to a V point to polish things like Strat saddles, string trees, etc. And yes, they are available in quite a large range of grits and sizes. In recent years I've gotten mine from the goldsmiths upstairs, who I'm sure got them from someplace like Rio Grande Jeweler's Supply. You'll find a lot of cool specialty tools in a place like that. That's actually where I first heard of the radial bristle wheels, similar to the ones I now use for frets polishing.

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Eschew obfuscation, espouse elucidation.

I use cheap 1.5-2 inch stitched cotton wheels and jewelers rouge ... as shiny as it gets.

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

I do it like Tony only using semi-chrome.

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Jim Watts
http://jameswattsguitars.com

http://www.worleyswonderjewelrycleaner.com/shop/SemiChrome.html
Is this the polish you mention, Jim?
I like the idea of the buffing wheel and need to give it a try.
Thanks for all the info, guys!
Nelson

I've seen the results of David Collins' fret treatment. David discussed his technique at the Ann Arbor meeting. Those 3M radial abrasive wheels that he refers to are definitely on my list! It not only polishes the top surface but also gets the intersection of the fret and FB without harming the wood...and faster than anything I have tried so far.

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JJ
Napa, CA
http://www.DonohueGuitars.com

I just used a 10 inch wheel on a pedestal and rouge and the results were outstanding.

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Billy Dean Thomas
Covina, CA

"Multi famam, conscientiam, pauci verentur."
(Many fear their reputation, few their conscience)

JJ--I must have missed the part about the "3M radial abrasive wheels". Can you or David elaborate on the wheels and the method?
Thanks
Nelson

Nelson...check these out. Perhaps David will elaborate on his experience.

http://www.contenti.com/products/abrasives/131-403.html

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JJ
Napa, CA
http://www.DonohueGuitars.com

Nelson, That's the stuff!

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Jim Watts
http://jameswattsguitars.com

Interesting stuff! Never heard of them.
Question on the photo. Does it look like the pink and the blue wheels are mounted backwards on their mandrel?
Nelson

Yup, those are the same things, though I use the 6" versions mounted on a home made arbor. Those small ones were how I discovered them though - another thing I got from the jewelers upstairs. To be useful you really need to stack half a dozen on the mandrel. And yes, those two in the pics are mounted backward. I've never tried using the little ones for fret work actually.

There's a run down of how I do it and how the system began to evolve over in this discussion.
http://www.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10102&t=14758

_________________
Eschew obfuscation, espouse elucidation.