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fret markers on fretless guitar

I've come to the point where I'm thinking about adding the nut and bridge. I sent away for samples of corian which arrived and it seems to be very workable. Before I go to far into it I'd like some advice on action at the first and twelfth fret.

This brings me onto my second question: although this guitar is fretless I'd still like to mark fret position and add fret markers. The fret markers I've got covered, what I would like advice on is marking where the fret wires would be on a fretted guitar. I've a couple ideas, 1. Draw frets on with white sharpie or such like, then apply finish over top, or 2. Cut shallow slots into fretboard as if adding fret wire, then filling slots with a mixture of wood glue white paint and wood shaving, sand flush then apply finish.

Any thoughts?

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Permalink Reply by sasquatch on March 31, 2014 at 9:24am

They look really good. And what a great price. Cheers for the link.

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Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on March 30, 2014 at 5:24am

also, I keep a variety of colored guitar picks. red, yellow, green blue black, even fake tortoise shell and abalone. Then just use a paper punch. I use 1/4" for the fretboard and 3/16 for the side markers. Next a fostner or brad point bit of that size to create a flat bottom hole. a little super glue (I like gel for this application) and voila', a nicely dressed up fret board on the cheap...

Medium thickness works best (for me) for this purpose.

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Permalink Reply by Brendan deVallance on March 31, 2014 at 4:57am

Last year a friend showed me how to made a jig to use violin tuning pegs for dot markers. I made some notes on how I did it. The pegs are cheap and they work great.

Here are my notes:

Dot markers how to

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Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on March 31, 2014 at 5:31am

great post... like the way they look... the contrast is so strong...

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Permalink Reply by sasquatch on March 31, 2014 at 9:15am

Yeah they do look great. Love the sharpener and as Sam says contrast is really strong.

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Permalink Reply by Mark Lindsay on March 31, 2014 at 8:36am

All of the suggestions made so far are good ones. I've not tried the clay though - sounds interesting.

Something I played around with is using strips of balsa for the markers. You can find thin sheets of balsa at your local hobby shop - especially one that specializes in model airplanes. I believe I got a sheet of .030 thick balsa to make the markers in the pic linked below.

In the pic below, I stained the neck, then cut fret slots as if I were going to install fret wire, I put a sheet of 220 grit sandpaper on a sanding block and gave the balsa a few swipes to thin it down enough to fit in the fret slot. I put a drop of CA glue on the bottom edge of the balsa strip, then slipped it into the slot. I gave the glue a chance to dry (like a minute or 2) then trimmed it flush on the top and sides with a single edged razor blade. Then I moved on to the next marker. After I had them all inlayed, I sprayed the whole neck with poly, just to see how it looked. It took a little time to do, but I like the look.

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Permalink Reply by sasquatch on March 31, 2014 at 9:21am

I've considered doing something similar with stock I used for the neck, presuming I can cut thin enough slices using my compound mitre saw, this should contrast nicely against my fret board.

Attachments:

2014-03-26 09.04.53.jpg, 3.9 MB

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Permalink Reply by Mark Lindsay on March 31, 2014 at 9:39am

That would look good. If you can't make slices thin enough, you might consider a small piece of veneer. That's basically what this balsa that I have is. It's cheap and plentiful too.

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Permalink Reply by Brendan deVallance on March 31, 2014 at 9:32am

That's a great look, good idea using the soft balsa wood for this purpose.

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Permalink Reply by Kevin Sprague (Knotlenny) on April 2, 2014 at 1:03pm

I like using a silver metalic sharpie, But I only mark the side of the neck where the player can see. Whats the point of marking the fretboard? (just sayin)

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Permalink Reply by Clock The Wolf on April 2, 2014 at 1:19pm

I use a No. 2 pencil!

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Permalink Reply by Eric Kasten on April 3, 2014 at 4:02am

I use BBs... I drill a small hole the diameter of the BB and about 75% deep. A drop of CA glue and a coat of clear polyacrylic and it's done. You can use brass or steel BBs for different looks. They have a nice shine and are easy to see.