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Finding the Right Fret Saw

I think many eventually come to a point where they want to start fretting their guitars. That's where I have arrived. Not knowing much about the procedure, I pretty much jumped into it with both feet.

Finding fret wire was easy--it's actually inexpensive. Where I ran into trouble was when trying to find the right saw for cutting the fret slots. It's just natural for me to try saving a few bucks, but sometimes that inclination works against me, and this is a perfect example.

I first went to Amazon in search of a cheap saw that would serve the purpose of cutting the fret slots. Twice I thought I had found the right saws, twice I was terribly disappointed--either the cut was too wide or it was too narrow. The tang on the fret wire is .023", and apparently the fret slot must also be .023". Taking hints from a YouTube video, I went to the hardware store and bought yet another inexpensive saw, and again I was disappointed. I had purchased three saws and none worked.

So here is the lesson I learned: sometimes it's just better to pay the extra money than keep banging your head against the wall trying to save a few bucks. I now have ordered a "fret saw." from StewMac. What could have cost around $31.00 has actually cost around $60.00 when I account for the three saws I purchased earlier.

If I were to advise anyone on fretting, it would be to buy a saw that is intended for fretting. Don't waste your time trying to find a cheap replacement.

StewMac Fret Saw

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Permalink Reply by Eric Davis on December 13, 2015 at 1:58pm

That was the one I was shooting for, but what I purchased didn't work. Maybe they don't sell it anymore.

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Permalink Reply by JL on December 14, 2015 at 1:05am

I have tried the Harbor Freight saw, it was ok, the frets fit the slot, but a test pull and they come out more easily than I was comfortable with, so I ended up super glue-ing when I used that saw. so it has now migrated to be a dedicated 'cutting the neck notches in the box' saw.

I'm now trying the Irwin saw from lowes and first test was on a 3/8 wide scrap from an oak fretboard and it was satisfyingly tight. Also the blue discoloration on the teeth from the EM heat hardening was a perfect visual depth gauge for the slots. The downside is it as a bit more flexible than ideal and it takes a careful touch to not flex it while cutting so that you don't flare the slot on the handle side of the cut (thank god for superglue)

So I am thinking of gluing a depth stop to the side of it to stiffen it up and no longer have to blow the sawdust away to see if I've cut deep enough, but a proper fret saw is going on my Christmas list.

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Permalink Reply by JL on December 15, 2015 at 12:57am

Irwin dovetail detail saw 213104 $14 at lowes

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Permalink Reply by Cory LeBeau on December 16, 2015 at 8:32am

I think I have a dovetail saw too.Its rectangle.It was like $13.I've only done some test frets and they fit nice and tight.What I really need is a mitre box and depth guide.I saw a vid of Speal fretting and he made this real simple jig w/ 2 pieces of wood and a couple rubber bands.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Craig on December 16, 2015 at 8:39am

I use a cheap plastic triangle framing square as a guide for the saw. There's all sorts of easy ways to do things, if we just take a couple of minutes to think about how to do it. Usually we don't think about it and smack our foreheads when someone else does. Life can be full of DOH! moments. LOL

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Permalink Reply by Cory LeBeau on December 16, 2015 at 10:51am

True that!: )

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Permalink Reply by Cory LeBeau on December 16, 2015 at 11:04am

Hell yeah!!!!

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Permalink Reply by Paul Craig on December 16, 2015 at 9:21pm

Now that's cheating.

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Permalink Reply by Cory LeBeau on December 18, 2015 at 4:58am

Does he have those for sale?

Link?

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Permalink Reply by Jim Woods on December 16, 2015 at 7:16pm

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Permalink Reply by Jim Woods on December 16, 2015 at 7:16pm

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Permalink Reply by Eric Davis on January 1, 2016 at 1:21am

Okay, my StewMac saw arrived and works perfectly. I now know that I could have saved myself a lot of time and money had I just went with a known tool that works.