Fretboard tapering jig.

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Bob Gleason
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Fretboard tapering jig.

Post by Bob Gleason »

I use a little fretboard tapering jig that Sylvan Wells showed me many years ago. I've done many hundreds of fretboards with it and it has worked great. It depends to some degree on my hand skills, which at 78 are diminishing a bit. If you have a foolproof tapering jig, that securely holds the board, I'd be interested in seeing it. An adjustable one would be great, but one that is specific to sizes is O.K. too. Thanks, Bob
BlindBo
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Re: Fretboard tapering jig.

Post by BlindBo »

Hey Bob. Below is a photo of the tapering jig I use on my table saw. It’s commonly used to taper furniture legs. It was relatively cheap from Amazon. It’s reversible which allows me to cut both sides of the fretboard taper. The down side is that the angle setting is VERY imprecise. I have to set it, test on scrap, and readjust it until the angle is as close as I can get it. That’s why after sawing, I then fine tune the cut with a small block plane, and finally shoot the taper smooth. The key is to get the adjustable leg perfectly parallel to the saw fence. It’s a PITA, but, I don’t want to ruin a fretboard.
Someday I may upgrade to a better jig, but, it’s not a priority right now.
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tippie53
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Re: Fretboard tapering jig.

Post by tippie53 »

I score a line and bandsaw off close and sand to line
John Hall
Blues Creek Guitars Inc
Authorized CF Martin Repair Center
president of Association of Stringed Instrument Artisans
http://www.bluescreekguitars.com
Bob Gleason
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Re: Fretboard tapering jig.

Post by Bob Gleason »

John, That is the way I have done it for over 40 years. Probably how most builders do it, but I have always wanted a way to do the cut precisely instead of sanding to the line. I guess I just like jigs that do the work correctly the first time. And BlindBo, I do have one of those taper jigs, but I'm looking for a jig with no setup time, if possible.- Bob
carld05
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Re: Fretboard tapering jig.

Post by carld05 »

I use a sled on my tablesaw. Draw the taper, align the ends of that drawn line with the edge of the sled, tighten the cam clamps and cut. With an 80 tooth blade no sanding necessary.
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tippie53
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Re: Fretboard tapering jig.

Post by tippie53 »

I had tear out too often with the table saw
I tried using the taper jig on my shaper and had chip outs so I just got real good on bandsaw and sanding .
John Hall
Blues Creek Guitars Inc
Authorized CF Martin Repair Center
president of Association of Stringed Instrument Artisans
http://www.bluescreekguitars.com
Dobroguy
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Re: Fretboard tapering jig.

Post by Dobroguy »

Here's mine, which is similar to Carld's sled. I've done about a dozen tapered boards that turned very well. I copied mine from a luthier friend who has done many FBs of various lengths.
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