kolanski Posted March 10, 2009 Report Share Posted March 10, 2009 I think it's time that you step into neck building. It's not that hard, and very rewarding. I've only been here since November and I know that I've heard that at least 10 times! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avengers63 Posted March 10, 2009 Report Share Posted March 10, 2009 I think it's time that you step into neck building. It's not that hard, and very rewarding. From the research I've done, I'd need AT A MINIMUM: leveling beam, proprietary sandpaper for the leveling beam, fret clipppers, fret press, beveling file, and a dressing/polishing kit. All that adds up to $300-$500, and that's for the cheap stuff. To get the RIGHT stuff, I'm looking at $750+. And that's if I buy radiused & slotted fretboards. If I do my own, it'd be even more. I'm just not going to spend that much money on the tools. From a quick Stew-Mac lookaround: "Essential fretting tool kit" - $165.30 stick-it sandpaper kit - $86.33 3.75" fret beveling file - $43.90 total - $295.53 And again, that's getting it the cheapest route possible with the least expensive tools. Jaws set - $220 OR fret press system - $164.72 fret bender - $89.90 tang nipper - $47.64 nut slotting files - too much to discu$$ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
factory5150 Posted March 10, 2009 Report Share Posted March 10, 2009 It was hard for me to justify the cost for all the fretting tools. Then I thought doing a few fret jobs for customers would pay for the tools, then its profit from then on out. I personally think its more fun building a neck then a body, its much more rewarding to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WezV Posted March 10, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 10, 2009 i agree wthat building necks is great fun - and i think for my first all i had was: *a router to do the truss rod slot *a fret saw to make sure the slots were the right depth * 8" wooden radius block *a rubber faced hammer * a flat file for levelling the frets * various small files for shaping the frets my point is that it can be as cheap or as expensive as you want it to be - dont forget that most of teh rfetwork tools you do buy can also be used to make sure all the necks you buy are set-up correctly and playing as well as they can but sure, i do make replacement necks starting from around £150 with obviously loads of options... or i might even have an older neck that can be rejuvinated and have its headstock docked off for less Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j. pierce Posted March 11, 2009 Report Share Posted March 11, 2009 FWIW, John - I use regular sandpaper and spray adhesive on my leveling beams. I'm not sure it's the best method, but since I have plenty of each on hand, it's less than ordering stickit sandpaper. Also, you can get stickit paper for less than stewmac sells it in other places. You can make a fret bevelling file setup yourself for cheaper. It's not incredibly difficult to grind safe edges on small files for dressing. There's lots of ways you can save money, but for me, the big one was that once I had the tools, the costs of a neck in wood, truss rods, and what have you, even when buying a pre-slotted board, were considerably cheaper than the cost of a new neck of the calibre that I would be pleased using on my projects. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
westhemann Posted March 11, 2009 Report Share Posted March 11, 2009 I shape my necks with a rasp and sandpaper...every other tool is the same as I use for bodies.Except for the fret hammer... Yes...I hammer my frets and I have no problems with it. I do have a radius block for finish sanding my fretboards..I buy the boards pre-radiused and slotted...I have slotted and radiused boards...but it is more trouble than I like Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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