Fretboard Inlays

There's more to it than that. Dots are recessed into the neck, so you'd need to drill (the right diameter, and the right depth), then set the dot, and fill in any space around it. After that, polish it level.

Inlays are precision work, even simple dots or blocks.

There's more to it than that. Dots are recessed into the neck, so you'd need to drill (the right diameter, and the right depth), then set the dot, and fill in any space around it. After that, polish it level.

Inlays are precision work, even simple dots or blocks.
... and for good results, not just any drill bit. This is one of those jobs that is easy if one has the tools and knows how to use them. But if not, one's next post is something along the lines of "How difficult is it to repair or replace a fingerboard?"

As far as the quoted prices go, $60 seems okay for labor, assuming the work is well executed (ask to see a sample if available). For parts, just under a buck a dot is what one would pay for pearl or abalone from Stew-Mac -- that's $10 for a typical guitar. Though most guitar shops would probably charge double or triple their cost for less expensive parts -- this is a fairly standard practice in repair businesses, so I'm not sure I would quibble on that either. You could offer to supply the dots to save a few dollars.

Good luck -- Greg

thanks for the replies

"This is one of those jobs that is easy if one has the tools and knows how to use them" -I don't have the tools nor do I think that if I had the tools I would know how to use them. However, any good sites or advice on replacing the fingerboard? It cant hurt to look into. Worse comes to worse I'll just take it to the shop and cough up 80$ :P

A shop should do fingerboards unless you have advanced woodworking skills, a mind for math, a healthy curiosity, and a willingness to screw things up and start over. Pockets stuffed with cash won't hurt either.

If you use a 'pre-slotted' fingerboard, you'll need to make sure the scale length is right for your guitar, and that you position the nut (or zero fret) in the right spot - otherwise your guitar won't play in tune throughout the range. If you use a fingerboard blank, you'll need to exactly position the fret slots, and cut them to the proper width and depth for frets.

You'll need gluing equipment. Several types of clamps - you've got different shapes to deal with at various points (the tongue over the body, the neck over the heel, the rest of the neck), and some cauls so you get even pressure.

Then you've got the radius to deal with... this is the monster of fretboard work. Classical guitars are easy - they're flat. For other guitars, picture a traffic cone: a cylindrical shape that's smaller at the top. Take a slice out of that cone, and that's how a fretboard is shaped - at the nut end it's a cylindrical radius that ranges from about 7" to about 20", depending on the guitar. As you go down the fretboard, the radius increases... it's a really complex geometric shape. Most fingerboards get wider as you move down the neck, too, just to complicate things further.

That means getting some precise tools for shaping and sanding.

Then you've got to put the frets on.... cutting the wire, bending the radius, setting the frets (don't forget supports for the neck while you hammer them in), leveling them, finishing the ends.

After all that, you'll need to do a standard setup - truss rod, intonation, action height.

This is one of those jobs where even if you know what you're doing, it's cheaper to have a shop do it. You'll spend several hundred dollars on tools alone.

I mentioned "replace the fingerboard" as a consequence of screwing up an inlay job -- not as a serious suggestion. Assuming your current fingerboard is in good shape, the right person should be able to do the inlays. Dots should be a piece of cake for the experienced.

-G

Just as a matter of interest Sally, what kind of guitar is it?

gnease-"I mentioned "replace the fingerboard" as a consequence of screwing up an inlay job" - sorry, I missunderstood that...I thought you ment in order to get proper inlays I would need to replace the entire fingerboard (which didnt't make a ton of sense but who am I to question? :P ) And the fingerboard is in very good condition...the guitar is farily new.

DemoEtc-The guitar is a Martin DCX-1E ...beautiful guitar. It was slightly used when I bought it but still in great shape. I could go on for at least a few more paragraphs ranting about how great the guitar is...but i'll use some self control :D .

The drill bit need to make the hole for the inlay dot is called a Forstner Bit. This bit makes a flat bottom hole.

Best used in a drill press where you can set up a fixed depth perpendicular stroke, then you would have to devise a jig to carry the fingerboard level and at the same height. Easier said than done since the back of the fingerboard is round.

All said and done. Let the shop do it.

Michael

Easier said than done since the back of the fingerboard is round.

Virtually all fingerboards have flat backs - the exception would be maple necks with the truss rod mounted from the back, where the fingerboard pretty much = the neck. If you want a really complex inlay, the shop would probably remove the fingerboard so they could work on a stable surface.

One other thing occurred to me about this inlay thing, though... maybe it's a classical guitar. Those usually have fret markers only on the side of the fingerboard, usually just at frets 5 and 7 (sometimes just 5), and installing dots might hurt the guitar's value.

It sure is a beauty!

Having no fretboard markers is sometimes a custom-only option on some guitars - because it looks cooler to some people. I sorta like the Nigel Tufnel guitar with the letters "C" and "F" and "G" inlaid in the fretboard though :)

Anyhow, if you need the position markers and don't want to permanently change the original appearance of the guitar, you might also just put little stick-on dots on the fretboard. They'll get ragged and ugly after awhile, but you can always take them off, clean the goo off with some adhesive remover or fretboard cleaner, and put new ones on. The other idea is to put the dots (or a tiny spot of nail polish) on the edge of the fret board facing you. I had to do that on my classical because it was originally a righty and I had no reference point on the other side. There's only a single dot at the fifth fret, but after awhile I got used to it.

I like the fact that the inlays are there on the fingerboard of my guitars because they look nice and I use them when I am making adjustments but never look at them otherwise.

I find that if I am holding the guitar correct or standing with a strap I can't see them anyway. If I get lost I just use the side markers.

I guess my point is if you don't need them for playing then why go through the trouble of adding them unless it is purely for appearance or to add value to the guitar. My concern would be the potential of a botched job.

I didn't mean there weren't guitars without fret markers... it just occurred to me that maybe Sally was talking about a classical.

Markers help in one situation - when you're playing with another guitarist, and trying to follow each other's changes.

A little over a week ago I played with a guy who had some great guitars... one was a custom Dana Bourgeouis with a really intricate vine inlay on the fretboard. He let me play it for a bit... but when I was playing it, he had trouble following changes I did - the inlay was too busy for him to quickly figure out where I was on the neck.

... it just occurred to me that maybe Sally was talking about a classical....

That's what I was thinking at first. Almost a hundred percent of the time, classicals don't have markers. It's unusual (and pretty cool) to find a steel string that already comes that way. I saw that particular line in a MF catalog and they're *all* without fretboard markers. Normally you only find that on the customized or really high-end instruments (still by special order thoug).

And Nils brings up a good point, you usually don't see them normally when standing. I find myself looking for them when I'm sitting down and playing but I notice, like when I'm on the couch playing in the dark and watching television, I sort of feel my way around by feeling the edge of the frets. It's kinda like a quick reference "Three and the one's the 5th fret, then 7, then 9." A quick mental note and then it's back to watching the show. It's almost subconscious, a tactile thing.

And then there's string players with their strips of tape. Some teachers use it some hate it, either way, the student eventually takes the tape off and just goes by hand position.

But on a steel string like this one, it wouldn't look non-traditional to have dots on the fretboard. It's not rosewood or ebony I think I read somewhere. It's some sort of synthetic material. Might be better to have it done professionally.

Or...use the stick on dots, or the side markers.

But on a steel string like this one, it wouldn't look non-traditional to have dots on the fretboard. It's not rosewood or ebony I think I read somewhere. It's some sort of synthetic material. Might be better to have it done professionally.

You are correct. The fingerboard is "black Micarta" and the neck is "rust Stratabond." I would bet the fingerboard is attached via epoxy or polyester glue, which means if ruined, the guitar is effectively destroyed. Definitely, looks like a job for the competent professional who can guarantee his/her work.