fretboard extension

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marshall.amps

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Im making a guitar and I have the body and the neck cut out and shaped. The neck is long though, I think I could get probably 28 - 30 frets on it. I want to buy the finger board with the slots for the frets cut already. But i cant find them with 28 or 30 frets i waswondering if it will work to just buy one with 24 or 22 and take a peice of that same wood and make a fingerboard that will hold the last 4 or so frets to cover the rest of the neck.

Im not sure if im going to fre it or if ill pay some one to fret it.
 
If you intend to fret the extension separately, your intonation will probably suffer.

I presume you want to add frets to produce higher notes than a standard 24 fret guitar. If that is the case, I don't think it is really practical - frets 25 to 30 will be too narrow to finger effectively.

How did you end up with this issue? What was your scale length to begin with?

And I presume you know that if you buy a fingerboard with pre-cut fret slots, or even an entirely pre-fretted fingerboard, it will have to conform to a pre-existing scale length.

The phrase 'the neck is long though' worries me.

The neck should be as long as you intended it to be. Given that you wanted to buy a pre-cut fretboard, the fact that the neck is long is not something you should be discovering now.

Good luck with it, though.
 
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I'm with 32-20 here, I can't imagine what you could have done to end up with a neck longer than expected. Or were you planning on using a single pickup and running the fingerboard on up closer to the bridge?

This whole thing sounds fishy and bordering on a joke to me. :rolleyes:
 
metalhead28 said:
I'm with 32-20 here, I can't imagine what you could have done to end up with a neck longer than expected. Or were you planning on using a single pickup and running the fingerboard on up closer to the bridge?

This whole thing sounds fishy and bordering on a joke to me. :rolleyes:
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You hit the nail on the head there metalhead-I think he has a woodshop but no plan for the guitar he is building! See his other posts on this subject. :rolleyes:
 
Ah, the fun of not fully understanding how important scale length is (or... what it is?). Unless you have some decent skills in repairing mistakes, you're going to want to start over with a full-size sketch and a template. Assuming you don't have your truss rod installed or the channel routed, it should be a relatively easy task to get it cut down to the correct length. However, if you have already done your taper, you're probably SOL as it will be thinner than required (I've been there before, one of the biggest headaches imaginable... but, I got it fixed, so it's more than possible). If you have already routed the truss rod channel, you will have to do some inlays to try and regain integrity for the sections that will no longer be routed (unless you're making a rear-adjusted channel, in which case there'll be no change). No offense, but judging from your past posts, I'd recommend you take a good month or two to plan your build, research how to do it, and even get a person who knows exactly what they're doing to assist you with at least the important steps (gluing, measuring, cutting, routing... well, basically everything). It's your money wasted so do what you want, but please, remember that power tools are dangerous. Don't let a lack of experience be what keeps you from playing guitar with two full sets of fingers.
 
timthetortoise said:
Ah, the fun of not fully understanding how important scale length is (or... what it is?). Unless you have some decent skills in repairing mistakes, you're going to want to start over with a full-size sketch and a template. Assuming you don't have your truss rod installed or the channel routed, it should be a relatively easy task to get it cut down to the correct length. However, if you have already done your taper, you're probably SOL as it will be thinner than required (I've been there before, one of the biggest headaches imaginable... but, I got it fixed, so it's more than possible). If you have already routed the truss rod channel, you will have to do some inlays to try and regain integrity for the sections that will no longer be routed (unless you're making a rear-adjusted channel, in which case there'll be no change). No offense, but judging from your past posts, I'd recommend you take a good month or two to plan your build, research how to do it, and even get a person who knows exactly what they're doing to assist you with at least the important steps (gluing, measuring, cutting, routing... well, basically everything). It's your money wasted so do what you want, but please, remember that power tools are dangerous. Don't let a lack of experience be what keeps you from playing guitar with two full sets of fingers.
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Wasting your time.......myself and others including Light tried to get him to at least buy a book....now he wants to have extra frets....let him hang himself
 
jpw23 said:
Wasting your time.......myself and others including Light tried to get him to at least buy a book....now he wants to have extra frets....let him hang himself
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You should listen to him.
 
I haven't checked the 'guitar' section in a while, and I see ol Marshall is still up to his usual dumb threads. Kid doesn't know a tube from a plectrum and he wants to build a 30-fret guitar? Where is Darwin when you need him?
 
So have you got that "book" yet that I and others advised you get?

If you have you will have the answer to your questions right there in front of you. If not get it now because the mistakes you are making now are going to cost you far more than the £20 or $30 the book will set you back. You cannot just start cutting up bits of wood and stick em together to make a guitar in the same way as you can't start jamming in a band unless you have the basic chords and scales under your fingers. Well you can but it will sound shit!!

The design of any stringed instrument starts with the vibtating string length. From this everything else follows. If you take a prefretted f/b and add extra frets the bridge is going to have to be in the same place. If you've cut you neck to long then the bridge is gonna be way to far up the body of the instrument and your going to have no room for pickups etc. There is a very good reason why the basic form and function of stringed instruments are as they are and they have to do with the physics of the vibrating string at their core, and the ergonomics of what will work for the human body. This isn't new info, these principles have been around for over 20 thousand years...

In answer to your original question. Yes you can add further frets without too much problem, but I'm not going to tell you how. I'd rather you came here and said "I've made a big fcuk up how can I fix it?" at leats then you be aware that you are doing things wrong.

If you really can't afford the book or for some reason prefer to read online go HERE and read there new builders FAQ and then register and read the library discussions. You will learn a lot. DO NOT post there asking similar questions without doing your home work and reading a lot first. There are a lot of seriously good hobby builders and quite a few pro's there. I will blow you out of the water myself if you make a TIT of yourself ther. If you think, read and then ask I will help everytime.
 
Yeah, the mimf (careful how you type that) forum is an invaluable resource, but they don't suffer fools gladly.

Listen marshall, I do admire, on one level, what you are doing, and although not necessarily informed, you are definitely committed. You can fret any vibrating string length (within reason) to play equal tempered music, but, as muttley said, you need to establish your scale length first.

Have you done this, and if so, what is it, because your chosen scale length will dictate whether or not you can buy a pre-cut fingerboard. Obviously, they only come in the most common scale lengths.

If you have somehow found yourself with a non standard scale length, there are numerous online fret placement calculators, but you will have to cut the slots yourself, and getting it right is a problem, given that the calculator will give you measurements down to the hundredth of a millimetre.

I've done this before and, even with the most meticulous measuring and cutting, the results were not perfect.

Get back to us on this because, although your attitude isn't that appealing to a lot of people here, I have seen the pictures of your guitar so far and you have put quite a bit of work into it. It would be nice to see it finished.

Once again, good luck.
 
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If you want a fingerboard that long, you are going to have to make it yourself.


Go buy a book.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
timthetortoise said:
No offense, but judging from your past posts, I'd recommend you take a good month or two to plan your build, research how to do it, and even get a person who knows exactly what they're doing to assist you with at least the important steps (gluing, measuring, cutting, routing... well, basically everything). It's your money wasted so do what you want, but please, remember that power tools are dangerous. Don't let a lack of experience be what keeps you from playing guitar with two full sets of fingers.
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I started this project with some scrap wood I had in my shop so no money lost in this project realy.

I know how to use power tools dont question my smarts about using those, my dad bout em when I was 8 and I have been using em ever sence so Im no hack (but not as much when I was little of coarse).

Im not sure how much more farther im going to go with this guitar cause now I have to spend (im trying to save) money but I have a question about (cant remember what its called) innotation or something with the fretts be ing off. My question is does the distance between the frets mess with the pitch(I know it does but the next one is what im talking about) as well as the frets being parllel?
And does it have anything do do with the bridge being placed parallel to the frets?
I dont know if you understand my question but there it is.

No offense timthetortoise
 
32-20-Blues said:
Yeah, the mimf (careful how you type that) forum is an invaluable resource, but they don't suffer fools gladly.

Listen marshall, I do admire, on one level, what you are doing, and although not necessarily informed, you are definitely committed. You can fret any vibrating string length (within reason) to play equal tempered music, but, as muttley said, you need to establish your scale length first.

Have you done this, and if so, what is it, because your chosen scale length will dictate whether or not you can buy a pre-cut fingerboard. Obviously, they only come in the most common scale lengths.

If you have somehow found yourself with a non standard scale length, there are numerous online fret placement calculators, but you will have to cut the slots yourself, and getting it right is a problem, given that the calculator will give you measurements down to the hundredth of a millimetre.

I've done this before and, even with the most meticulous measuring and cutting, the results were not perfect.

Get back to us on this because, although your attitude isn't that appealing to a lot of people here, I have seen the pictures of your guitar so far and you have put quite a bit of work into it. It would be nice to see it finished.

Once again, good luck.
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Sorry about my attitude.

I asked a dumb question about the adding more frets like that I just didnt think about it before I asked.

I would like to see it finished and work better that the squire bullet and strat I have but i havent put a hole lot of work into it, well it is the best I cant do but its no fancey guitar thats woth thousands if I finished mabee $400 at the most but I would keep it.
 
Yes, distance between the frets and (on a 6 string at least) frets being perfectly parallel is of the utmost importance to intonation and correct pitch. A miter box is invaluable when slotting a fretboard, but I'd recommend doing like others have said and buying one premade. Also, you'll probably want to take it to a luthier to get it fretted. I just finished my first fret job and it was a huge pain in the ass that I will not be happy to undertake again.
 
I and others have answered these questions in the past. you need to go do some research and learn how a guitar is put together. The specifics of the fretboard and fretting I covered in answer to your previous questions HERE

That book still not arrived then??
 
hey, why don't you build it fretless? than you can let your ears do the work.
and yes bridge and frets have to be parallel... well actually ou could make it fancy and have the bridge on an angle and all the frets on angles but it takes alot of math to figure out exactly what angles the go at ect... not my rocomadation. but i say, keep trying. I had a plan to guild my guitar. but becouse I didn't look forward to all the mesurements and EXCACT spacing (that I read from a BOOK) my templates are now hanging on my bedroom wall, for another day when i have a bit more patiance and a bit more $$.

good luck. you'll need it.

p.s. you could do what I'm doing currently and buy a cheepo guitar and mod it to your specs. (floyd rose on les paul, thread)
 
muttley600 said:
I and others have answered these questions in the past. you need to go do some research and learn how a guitar is put together. The specifics of the fretboard and fretting I covered in answer to your previous questions HERE

That book still not arrived then??
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ok then if you dont want to answer then dont. im not making you, and dont think i havent done any research.
 
Nick_Black said:
p.s. you could do what I'm doing currently and buy a cheepo guitar and mod it to your specs. (floyd rose on les paul, thread)
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Nice idea.
 
ok then if you dont want to answer then dont. im not making you, and dont think i havent done any research.
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Oh but we have!! Now get someone else to help.... bye
 
Marshall...before you try to extend the fretboard to 30 frets I suggest that you go to a music store and pick up a mandolin off the rack to play. Now see how easy it is to fret those notes about the 12th fret on up the neck. It appears that will roughly be the spacing of those frets you want to add-just to see if it is worth the effort to add them...
 
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