Fret hammer

[New2bass2]

I found my grandfather's shoe hammer I think , not positive
It isn't copper , old steel I'm guessing .. no green discoloration
Just patina

 

[Rip Van Dan]

Back in 1972 while playing a club in Kalamazoo, Michigan, we managed to get a private tour of the Gibson factory. I'd swear they were seating frets with a wooden mallet. Of course, that's a really long time ago.

 

[superheavyfunk]

Never call your band To Be Confirmed; You either get double booked or nobody goes to see you.

Years ago, I was in a band that we called “TBA” or, “To Be Announced”. We played exactly one show and we rocked. lol

It was a thing we used to do often: Make a band, give it a ridiculous name, write enough material for one set and then play exactly one show. Other names we went through were Space Anaconda, Autopilot, Free The Mammals, and Reindeer BBQ. Sometimes I miss those days haha

 

[Freekmagnet]

12oz brass dead blow hammer. I keep one in my shop.

Dead Blow Hammer 12 OZ Brass Head Dual Multi-Purpose Mallet PVC Molded Head | eBay

 

[Bruce Johnson]

That little hammer that you have would make a decent fret hammer. It looks like a good size and weight. All it needs is a hard plastic face on one side and a brass or aluminum face on the other. Find a small block of plastic like Delrin or polypropylene or nylon, and a small piece of brass or aluminum. It would nice if they were round, about the same diameter as the head, but square or rectangular will do too. Attach them onto the faces with some good strong double-sided tape.

Tapping in frets with a hammer is gentle, careful work. If you need to swing the hammer more than 2", then something is wrong. You should not be pounding them in like nails.

 

[New2bass2]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CztDtU8L6kPeZUJxP4L9Du84rMwusQhguTa7bw0/?igshid=NzBmMjdhZWRiYQ==

Rocky

 

[Bruce Johnson]

I found my grandfather's shoe hammer I think , not positive
It isn't copper , old steel I'm guessing .. no green discoloration
Just patina

That's a classic Tack Hammer. Did you know that the back side, with the slot, is magnetic? Or at least it was a long time ago. Tack Hammers were used mostly for upholstering furniture. You'd stick a tack on the magnetic end, hold the fabric taught, and smack the tack in. Then flip the hammer over and give it a few more taps.

It could work as a fret hammer, if you put some pads on the tips, like I described above.

 

[ardgedee]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CztDtU8L6kPeZUJxP4L9Du84rMwusQhguTa7bw0/?igshid=NzBmMjdhZWRiYQ==

Rocky

"This account is private"

 

[Dirk Diggler]

I prefer using a press over a hammer, and have never needed glue to hold frets.
Properly cut slots and proper tangs on frets will seat perfectly fine.

A stainless steel hammer is asking for problems.

Good luck and happy learning.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

TBD

Presumably the abbreviation for the Turner-Bachman Drive before they reordered things and went into overdrive and actually got people to go to gigs.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

Back in 1972 while playing a club in Kalamazoo, Michigan, we managed to get a private tour of the Gibson factory. I'd swear they were seating frets with a wooden mallet. Of course, that's a really long time ago.

No, they were to knock the headstocks off on the relic models.

 

[New2bass2]

"This account is private"

Not private anymore ,. Is this rocking terribly bad ?

 

[Thumpin6string]

I want to be....your fret hammer

 

[Beej]

Not private anymore ,. Is this rocking terribly bad ?

It's too long to tell, I check 3 frets at a time, so I can tell which one is high. Check out the StewMac resource section for videos.

 

[New2bass2]

That's a classic Tack Hammer. Did you know that the back side, with the slot, is magnetic? Or at least it was a long time ago. Tack Hammers were used mostly for upholstering furniture. You'd stick a tack on the magnetic end, hold the fabric taught, and smack the tack in. Then flip the hammer over and give it a few more taps.

It could work as a fret hammer, if you put some pads on the tips, like I described above.

Yes sir , a tack hammer
My grandfather had a shoe store for eons , I think he use it to resole shoes in the 50's .. I have found a hard piece of plastic , I was going to try to place that on a high side of the fret and give it a mild but solid wack ..

 

[New2bass2]

I have a fret leveling set coming , I'll have a rocker soon ..

 

[fjbass78]

Fret Hammer is a good band name

Ha, i was just thinking the extract same thing.

 

[cvsurg]

Fret Hammer is a good band name

I thought "Fret Hammer" was an old Peter Gabriel song....

 

[bobdabilder]

If I'm going to hammer in frets and not press them in, I use a caul insert and hammer that. I keep one just for this as it will get deformed over many years of use.

So I'm new to bass and new to fixing or learning the craft .
I bought a cheap glarry bass to experiment with ,.
So can a stainless steel hammer be used as a fret hammer ? I think it's stainless
It seems really hard ,.
Here is a picture of what I came up with .

 

[Gilmourisgod]

I kind of covet one of these:
https://www.amazon.com/Dead-Blow-Ha...d=1700148415&s=hunting-fishing&sr=1-8-catcorr

But this is what I got in a Lyman gunsmith kit, works fine.
https://www.amazon.com/Lyman-703129...AMMER&qid=1700150079&s=hunting-fishing&sr=1-2

One thing about any brass-faced hammer, you can put a hell of a dent in your shiny new board if your aim is off (from bitter personal experience). I only use the plastic face now, or put a couple fret polishing shields down around it before whacking.

I mostly just use one of these, works perfectly, and a fraction of the price of the Stewmac version.
https://www.amazon.com/Jiayouy-Luth...id=1700153226&sprefix=fret+caul,aps,96&sr=8-3

Ive never used one of these, but I see them a lot on YT fretting tutorials:
https://www.amazon.com/G-W-Brass-Fret-Setter/dp/B07GC8J24Y/ref=sr_1_33?crid=3UE3JCXF7WZML&keywords=fret+press+caulk+with+inserts&qid=1700150360&sprefix=fret+press+caul+with+inserts,aps,83&sr=8-33