EVO Gold wire on flat board?

[Tavy]

Anyone any experience of putting EVO Gold wire (the 10" pre-radiused stuff) in a flat board? This stuff is so springy and so badly wants to go back to original shape that I'm concerned the frets won't stay put.... but maybe I'm worrying unnecessarily? BTW I realise that Jascar can provide it in straight lengths, but it's a fairly large custom order from the US that I would prefer to avoid if possible.

[Skip Kelley]

Tavy, I have put it in a few flat boards with no problem. It installed like any other fretwire.

[sunburst]

I always straighten coiled fret wire before installing in a flat board. That's one way to learn that it is much easier to bend straight fret wire than it is to straighten "bent" fret wire!
A certain amount of milling and re-crowning is nearly always required to level new frets, when using coiled wire that has been straightened there is more of that.
How do I straighten the wire? First, what doesn't work. I cut a fret slot in a piece of flat steel; a fret slot wide enough for the fret tang to slip in without damaging the barbs. I figured I could hammer the fret straight... didn't work.
I just grab the tang with a pair of flush-ground end nippers (the ones I pull frets with) and bend it to straighten it, sighting the wire to see when it is straight. It's a PITA, but it does the job.

[pops1]

I use the same technique as John to bend or straighten frets.

[Tavy]

OK good to hear it works OK. A little radius on the wire is a good thing even on a flat board IMO, but the springiness of this stuff is way beyond anything else, so I thought I should ask first!

[Tavy]

I just grab the tang with a pair of flush-ground end nippers (the ones I pull frets with) and bend it to straighten it, sighting the wire to see when it is straight. It's a PITA, but it does the job.

That's how I put a radius on straight wire.

[tonydxn]

Here's another idea you may like to try. I usually do repair work with a couple of old carpet tiles on my bench. I put the fret wire with the tang in the pile of the carpet and tap the crown with a small hammer until it's as flat as I want it. I've never tried it with EVO though.

[Ivan Kelsall]

I have 1.5 metres of Evo Gold FW 37080 that i bought from Tonetech in Stockport Greater Manchester about 6 years back. It was of course coiled when i bought it,but it soon straightens out in short lengths. My local luthier uses Evo Gold a lot & he's fine with it,
Ivan