those last 6 F-5 frets

[Stephanie Reiser]

Building an F-5 for someone who has asked that I leave the last 6 frets off on the extension. She also wants simulated frets there. I am racking my brain trying to figure out what to use as a false fret. Tried to convince her to let me go ahead and fret it, but she would rather not have them. This mando has larger than normal frets (banjo frets). I thought that I had read once where Lynn D. uses slivers of plastic milk container, but I made one and it doesnt look good. Have any of you run into this probem? and if so, what do you use? Thank you in advance.

[sunburst]

I've thought of shim stock. I'm not sure if you can find nickel silver shim stock, but I'm pretty sure you can get stainless steel.

Silver of several different alloys is available from jeweler's supply houses.

For shim stock, try MSC, McMaster Carr, or Grainger.
For silver, try Rio Grande, or Grobet.

[Stephanie Reiser]

Hmmm... shim stock - that's an idea.
Thanks John!

[Gibson A5]

Maybe you can cut a shallow fret slot and pound a thin wire in it? #Just a thought.
Bill

[tope]

I have done a few mandolins with banjo wire and had a scalloped fretboard end with thin mando wire on the end and they look good.

[Antlurz]

You might consider routing channels down into the fretboard however deep the height of the frets are, and then install the regular frets. That way, they would be a good match, but the tops of them would be level with the surface of the fretboard.

Ron

[Stephanie Reiser]

those are pretty good ideas. Thanks guys!

[Lynn Dudenbostel]

Hi... never used milk carton, but I sut the slots in the extension deeper than the other slots and use 0.020" thick while plastic to fill in the slots. It fits the slot nicely and is easy to install, either before or after you bind the board. I get my 0.020" thick plastic at art supply stores or hobby shops. Usually a good hobby shop has a display rack of various shaped plastics... sheet, tubular, square, and rod stock, usually in black or white. I think model train people use it in making buildings and such. Good art supply stores will carry it also. If you get lucky, you'll even find the proper white and black rod stock for side position dots. I've used fret wire in the past, and just ground it down to the surface of the scallop, but it's slow going and tough on sanding drums.

Lynn

[Lynn Dudenbostel]

Sorry, that should be "cut" the slots and 0.020" thick "white" plastic. IT's early for a Sat. morning yet....

Lynn

[Stephanie Reiser]

Hi... never used milk carton, but I sut the slots in the extension deeper than the other slots and use 0.020" thick while plastic to fill in the slots.

okay, then it was white sheet plastic stock from an art supply house. I knew that it was plastic 'something'. That sounds good. Maybe even Walmart would have it; I'll check.
Thanks Lynn, and everyone else.

[Lynn Dudenbostel]

Never seen it at WalMart, but if you get creative, I'm sure you can find something. There are solid white milk jugs and bottles, as opposed to the kind of translucent type. Might find something there you can slice up... after emptying it, of course!

Lynn

[Antlurz]

Lots of different kinds of little white medicine bottles would/should fit the bill.

Ron

[Big Joe]

You can use strips of Maple in the fret slots and sanded even with the fingerboard. The light wood inlain into the ebony looks great and unless you are pretty close, it looks like frets.

[Michael Lewis]

Soft aluminum or binding material. Why not just scoop the "Florida"?

[Greenmando]

I have a "drawing Jig" for square wire as well as the rollers for my rolling mill with square cuts in it for reducing round wire stock to square wire. You should be able to find nickel square wire in most jewelry supply stores.

Seems like faux frets should be made in the same material as the frets.

[danb]

Flat silver wire?

[J. Wiens]

Dan speaks no lies, do a google search for sterling silver flat wire or channel wire . I managed to find some in a .018 x .054" size that's perfect for what you're talking about

JW

[Stephen Perry]

I've always thought a little engraving would be nice there. Just something simple to break up the bare slab. I suppose a little inlay would be interesting. A small gold coin, for example! Anything looks better than sawing the thing off.

[arbarnhart]

Along the lines of Steve's suggestion, a "fish skeleton" inlay could be in interesting look.

A luthier buddy of mine sent me a little piece of shower surround, which you can get at home improvement stores, which is another (very reasonably priced) source of white (and almond) thin plastic sheets.

Impressive list of responders. Now that I am posting, there goes the neighborhood.

[Rroyd]

Dixie Gun Works (I'd bet you are familiar with them, considering some of your past projects) used to have silver wire of different dimensions, and most likely still do, plus lots of different types of sheet stock, that might work. #Or maybe solid silver solder wire (no flux) glued in wider slots and then dressed down flat. #I saw one that had MOP strips inlayed in the scooped extension that looked like frets from a few feet away.

[Lynn Dudenbostel]

The trouble with silver is, once it tarnishes, it will be fairly difficult to see... you'll loose the effect. I like Big Joe's idea of maple Holly would work great too, if you can find it. It's much whiter than maple and would work great there.

Dude

[Joe Mendel]

I used maple to convert a fretted electric bass to fretless for a customer several years ago & he is still quite happy with it.

[Stephanie Reiser]

I am liking that idea of the thin maple that Big Joe thought of, and also the white plastic sheets from the art shop. I have used sterling before in FLintlock wire inlays, but it indeed does tarnish and then needs occasional upkeep. I also like the idea of using that area as a place for a small MOP inlay in the future, but the fretslots are already cut to consider it for this project.
I will use either the maple or the white plastic; I cant decide between the two. But my deadline is end of August and it can be put in at anytime.
Thank you again for all of the great suggestions.
(Back to french-polishing.)

[Greenmando]

I was thinking about the silver tarnishing as well, thats why I was thinking about nickel which the frets are made of. I think silver could work if you varnished over it but polished silver and nickel do not have the same look.

[Dale Ludewig]

I've found that it's probably better (if you're using a standard fingerboard) that by the time you get through the fret slots to flat surface, that "Florida" as Michael referred to it, it can get mighty thin. So I also vote for the "fake" fret solution. My best to date has been maple. It looks nice. As Lynn said, holly would be even better. But this square nickel wire is really interesting. I've used silver wire in the past in inlays, but it was finished over with lacquer, so tarnishing wasn't an issue.

One other solution, if you're not cutting your own slots, is to order a fingerboard from Randy Allen or Steve Smith- you can specify how many slots are cut, leaving the "Florida" area free of slots, so that area can just be flat and blank. But that assumes the customer would accept that. I think it's a clean look. The customer decides, not?