Yellow Cedar L-1

[ruby@magpage.com]

1) Clean the slots with my altered linoleum knife

2) Remove parts of the fret tangs to allow for the binding at the ends

3) File these areas flat with the bottom of the crown on a hardwood block with a small groove in it

[ruby@magpage.com]

1) Ready to install

2) Liquid hide glue in a syringe, tap in the frets, then clamp them down with hardwood cauls with the right radius on them

3) I clamp in 3 locations across the fretboard, then repeat

[ruby@magpage.com]

1) Nip the ends flush

2) File flat with the board's edge (pushing the file the OTHER way to avoid distorting the fret ends)

[ruby@magpage.com]

1) File flat along the fret ends, then file at a slight angle to taper them a few degrees - I think I like about 20 degrees

2) Clamp the fretboard to the neck using small cauls with the radius in them to be sure the board edges are getting pressure.

[Danl8]

The pearl on the fingerboard looks so nice. Such a refined look.

[ruby@magpage.com]

1) Now for the nut - I copied a nut that Martin used on ukulele's in the teens and twenties when I built a Style 3 dreadnought uke. I think it would look super on this guitar

2) Take down a piece of ebony veneer to .06"

3) Using my thickness planing jig on a cheap belt sander holding on with my vintage parallel pliers, take down a bone saddle to .08". Should have done the ebony on this thing too - can't think of everything

[ruby@magpage.com]

1) Glue everything together - left the bone a bit thicker for final sizing

2) Angle the nut end of the headstock veneer to match the head angle against the nut

3) Fit the nut in, glue the veneer in place, and take out the nut

[ruby@magpage.com]

1) Couldn't resist - drilled the tuner holes and it looks great with the ebony buttons

2) Now for my headstock logo in abalone. Print it out, cut it apart, and glue it onto the pieces

3) Cut it out using a jeweler's saw from my wife's shop - the teeth are amazingly tiny - 40 per inch??

[ruby@magpage.com]

1) File the edges to clean them up. Learned all about inexpensive abalone - it's laminated and wants to crack apart. Try gluing together a couple of these tiny pieces!

2) Stuck on with shellac

[ruby@magpage.com]

1) Been very rainy here in Maryland. The sun came out as it was setting and I noticed this . . .

2) . . . Alaskan Yellow Cedar is translucent. I tried this with a maple, rosewood, mahogany, oak, and osage orange guitar, and nothing