How do I bind a fretboard?

Dan Pennington - 11:35am Jun 17, 1999

I like the look and feel of bound fingerboards, so my second acoustic guitar will have one. I can't find much info on doing the binding. Neither Cumpiano & Natelson nor Sloane have any info and I can't find anything in the Forum Library about fingerboard binding. The StewMac book, "Fret Work" shows how to install the frets in a bound board but nothing on the binding. The most info I found is in the Roger Siminoff book, "Constructing a 5-String Banjo".

Is it so simple that it is taken for granted? Have I missed something in the Library? There must be some secrets or helpful hints floating around.

HELP!!!

Dan, the Siminoff book covers bound fingerboards pretty well, you may want to check out the mandolin book also for other insights. The main problem with bound fingerboards is undercutting the frets. I definitely recommend that you put in the frets so that the tops of the frets go the entire width of the fingerboard. "Don't Fret" is pretty good about telling you how to install the frets. As long as you have the fret-tang nipper from Stew-Mac you should be able to go forward with fear and trepidation but end up with great results. Don't fear, it's not THAT bad.

Hi Dan, I've only done two bound fingerboards so there may be a better way but the way i do it is to set up a large board of MDF or the like. As long as it's flat. Then I screw down a piece of 1/8" fiberboard. I then take a second piece of fiber board and screw it down so that it's at the same angle as the taper of my fingerboard. By doing this I am able to cut the long pieces of binding (cut them oversize) and when glued and pushed between the pieces of fiberboard this puts equal pressure on the bindings and also ensures thae bottom of the binding and the bottom of the fingerboard are flush. If the fingerboard has a twist to it just clamp it down the MDF. Hope this helps.

I've done it successfuly with just glue and fatback tape. You've got to be sure that the edges of the fingerboard are square and true, and that the binding doesn't drop below the top or bottom edge of the fingerboard when you glue it up. Be sure to balance your tape tension so you don't pull the binding away from the bottom or top edge of the fingerboard. When its dry, carefully level it with a scraper and sanding boards.

Dan, Benedetto's book covers it all on headstock and neck bindings, with the frets extending over the binding, and I gotta say, I love the look feel, the whole deal. If you want the neck binding to meet at the nut with the headstock binding it can be just a little tricky using the fingerboard stop. It's a couple inch span of spruce that sits under the veneer, and it's widdled away to match the headstock angle, and on the other side is the fretboard end. Be careful of a couple things as I have found from trial and error, the depth of the veneer and fingerboard stop, collectively at the fingerboard edge, will measure the depth of your binding. You don't want to dremel or rout deeper than that meausrement, or you will have this ugly looking hole to fill where the fingerboard meets the headstock. The 1/8th inch looks pretty cool, and seems to be a perfect match for everything. AND...depending on your scale length etc..you might want to add 1/4 inch or so to the total length of your neck in rough profile to account for this fingerboard stop. I have found dremelling a wider gap around the headstock than the bindings call for a little easier when gluing and taping, say, a slender b/w first, glue and tape, let it dry a couple hours, clean the channel, and apply a larger white strip....or whatever, and tape that. Then clean it up with scaper, sand paper etc. Nothing worse than having all that binding hangin off the edge to have to scrape off. I tried the brads as suggested in the book, what a horror show, tape works fine, and no holes to sand out. As David pointed out make sure the tension on your tape is even so that it holds the binding securely to the bottom of the channel and also at top pulling into the neck or headstock. The first couple times through I suggest making the design fairly simple , without real wild curves etc...far less heartache. You can miter or butt end the bindings on the headstock...Benedetto suggests a small razor sharp chisel, pfffttt, I'd lose a finger for sure :)...I just use a sharp eye and a small saw, and some files, cleans up pretty good. Watch that dang glue in the fretslots...nasty stuff! Follow the radius softly with a scraper to even your bindings to match the radius. Flat file where the bindings meet FIRST to almost level with the wood, saves you a lot of reglue time, then scrape flush with the wood. Easy does it, I despise rework.hahaha. I'm going to press my next few sets of frets in. It seems the bindings want to work loose with all that hammerring :)..and as John Knowles would say..it's right under your fingertips...go slow and you'll get it!!! *wink* :)

Julian, Mike, David, & Chris. Thanks for responding with all this good advice. I really like Mike's wedge board clamping setup. Seems like it would save time by not having to trim/scrape excess binding from the bottom of the fingerboard. And I will get a fret tang nipper to do the fretting.

Alternatives for trimming the tang off the overhanging bits of the frets are: 1) grinding them off with a Dremel and a diamond bit, 2) cutting off the excess with a pair of flush-ground end nippers and removing the rest with a file. Stew-Mac's special gizmos look as if they are a better choice than either of them, but I can't speak from experience.

Stew-mac's fret slot cleaning chisel is definitely worth the few cents it costs. It fits into an Exacto handle and is great for removing dirt, sanding dust and excess glue from the slots.

I can't praise the Stew-Mac fret tang nipper enough! It's well designed and does a wonderful job. I also use it on unbound fingerboards. You can cut your frets to the perfect width so that you have very little risk of messing up the side of the fingerboard when you smooth the fret ends. Not a really cheap tool but you'll never regret the money.

I have also made fret cleaning chisels out of saxophone springs. They are made from really good steel. If you hang out at music stores or repair shops maybe you can talk the repairman out of a few of the bigger ones. They are just a straight blued needle spring but if you are inventive you'll find a lot of uses for them (such as pins through the fingerboard when gluing or as positioning pins for bridges).

I believe that the StewMac tool is related to the nippers used in radio work to cut a hole in sheet metal. If you have a friend in the repair business or one who works on amps you might be able to try it out..

George,et al, The sheet metal tool is called a "nibbler" rather than a nipper. my experience has been they are quick but leave a rough cut.

I bind all my fingerboards and have done quite a few with an easy system. I glue the binding on before I crown the fingerboard. Use the glue sparingly so very little gets into the fret slots. I have made up a "workboard" with the same taper as the fingerboard and about the same length or a little longer. This is simply a piece of 1-inch thick hard maple. I have several lengths of 1/4" elastic tape (available at variety stores or yardage shops). These come in lengths of about 10 - 20 feet long (and pretty cheap) and have several lengths sewn (or tied) together for a good long length. Other width tapes are available, but I find the 1/4" works best. To prevent accidentaly glueing to the workboard, I lay a strip of newspaper between the workboard and the fingerboard, and tightly wrap the whole affair like a cacoon with the elastic tape. The tape holds the binding snug against the fingerboard and also down on the workboard. If the fingerboard has any twists in it, a couple small c-clamps will flatten it against the workboard. Simple and easy! I also use this same elastic tape for many other operations in the construction of guitars. To trim the tang from the overhanging part of the fret, I grasp the whole length of the fret tang with a pair of end nippers, but with the tang side facing out and hanging over the edge of the nippers about 1/8". Support the end nippers by hanging or leaning against the edge of a bench vise and 6 ot 7 whacks with a file will neatly clean off the overhanging piece of the tang.

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