replacing side dot or face dot inlays?

[jzucker]

I have a bass that has really dark inlays on the sides and face of the board and it's very hard to see them in a dark room. I was wondering if anyone had advice on how to replace side dots? I'll likely leave the front facing inlays alone. The bass is finished in poly but just a couple layers and not buffed to a high gloss...

It's a through neck instrument so unfortunately, I can't take the neck off and put it in a vice for a drill press...

 

[RichterScale]

Do you know what material the dots are made of?

 

[jzucker]

Do you know what material the dots are made of?

They look to be abalone so probably not easily drillable...If he had used MOP, I think the visibility would be fine...

 

[dwizum]

Can we see some photos? What are the dots made from?

If the dots are soft - wood or plastic - you can drill them out. Use a pin vise instead of a power drill. Mark the center of each dot with a sharp punch.

If they're hard - like real MOP or abalone - hit them with a sharp awl or punch and they'll crack, then you can pick them out with fine tweezers. If you mangle the holes, you can just drill out to a larger size and put bigger dots in.

Glue in the new dots slightly proud of the surface, then carefully file them flush with a very fine file. Hold the file parallel with the neck so it rides along the dots and use a very gentle touch, letting the weight of the file do the work. As you file, you'll feel a very sudden change in the "friction" of the file dragging along the dots - that's the point at which the teeth have just started to make contact with the neck finish, meaning the dots are flush, and you can stop. Then you can buff the finish. If it's not glossy, try a white scotchbrite to blend any file marks in to the existing sheen.

I like jnn pearl on ebay for dots. They ship from overseas so they take a while to arrive, but they have good quality and good prices. If you're just buying the one set, might not be worth it compared to a more expensive domestic supplier.

 

[jzucker]

They are abalone. They look ok here but they get totally lost in a dark or dimly lit room...

Thanks for the advice.

Can we see some photos? What are the dots made from?

If the dots are soft - wood or plastic - you can drill them out. Use a pin vise instead of a power drill. Mark the center of each dot with a sharp punch.

If they're hard - like real MOP or abalone - hit them with a sharp awl or punch and they'll crack, then you can pick them out with fine tweezers. If you mangle the holes, you can just drill out to a larger size and put bigger dots in.

Glue in the new dots slightly proud of the surface, then carefully file them flush with a very fine file. Hold the file parallel with the neck so it rides along the dots and use a very gentle touch, letting the weight of the file do the work. As you file, you'll feel a very sudden change in the "friction" of the file dragging along the dots - that's the point at which the teeth have just started to make contact with the neck finish, meaning the dots are flush, and you can stop. Then you can buff the finish. If it's not glossy, try a white scotchbrite to blend any file marks in to the existing sheen.

I like jnn pearl on ebay for dots. They ship from overseas so they take a while to arrive, but they have good quality and good prices. If you're just buying the one set, might not be worth it compared to a more expensive domestic supplier.

 

[T_Bone_TL]

Both Luminlay and "home-brew glow-powder inlay" (several threads here have that, though they have not been active recently) might be of interest given the reason you are changing these out.

Filling fret slots with epoxy

 

[Bruce Johnson]

I agree completely with dwizum's explanation of how to replace the side dots.

I personally prefer simple white styrene plastic for side dots. It's more visible in poor lighting than pearl or any other material that I know of. Without getting into luminescent dots.

White styrene round rod stock is available in the plastics section in hobby shops. Plastruct and Evergreen are two popular brands. You can get it in different diameters. I use 1/8" on all my new basses, and my customers love it. But you may not be able to fit 1/8" dots on that fingerboard edge. Those look like 3/32" dia dots in there now.

Use dwizum's procedure; pop the old dots out, glue chunks of the white styrene in with thick CA glue; gently file them flush and smooth. Then clean off the surface of the dot by scraping it lightly with a knife blade.

 

[jzucker]

My dots are abalone so I'm not sure they can be "popped" out. I'm a bit nervous about whacking the abalone side dots on my $4k bass with a punch. I guess if the neck is fully supported on the opposite side it would work... but depending on what glue was used, it may not be a clean extraction. That's my worry...

I agree completely with dwizum's explanation of how to replace the side dots.

I personally prefer simple white styrene plastic for side dots. It's more visible in poor lighting than pearl or any other material that I know of. Without getting into luminescent dots.

White styrene round rod stock is available in the plastics section in hobby shops. Plastruct and Evergreen are two popular brands. You can get it in different diameters. I use 1/8" on all my new basses, and my customers love it. But you may not be able to fit 1/8" dots on that fingerboard edge. Those look like 3/32" dia dots in there now.

Use dwizum's procedure; pop the old dots out, glue chunks of the white styrene in with thick CA glue; gently file them flush and smooth. Then clean off the surface of the dot by scraping it lightly with a knife blade.

 

[dwizum]

It's not a job for the faint hearted, and it's pretty tedious work, but it's also not as bad as it sounds. With a very sharp punch it just takes a couple little taps to make an abalone dot crumble. The glue doesn't really matter since you're basically pulverizing the dot. Then you just pull out the bigger pieces with needle tweezers and clean the hole with a drill bit in a pin vise.

And, worst case, after pulling out the broken chunks, you can drill out the holes to a bigger size to make them more visible, which covers a lot of sins in terms of your removal technique. And/or fill any minor gaps or chips with rosewood dust mixed with glue.

 

[nickpc]

Dumb question time - wouldn't some kind of sticker work well here? No risk of damage to the bass to install, easily removable, and easy to replace should one come off.

 

[LukeSlywalker]

Dumb question time - wouldn't some kind of sticker work well here? No risk of damage to the bass to install, easily removable, and easy to replace should one come off.

I actually just did this last month for a gig that I knew had bad stage lighting. Cut little diamonds from my daughters Frozen snow flake stickers lol. It was meant as a temporary fix but they are surprisingly still in place after many gigs and rehearsals. I’ll figure something else out if they ever fall off

 

[jzucker]

That's what I'm wondering. Is there something that sticks well and wouldn't come off all the time? I bought some white dots on amazon that didn't stick even though I cleaned the side of the neck with alcohol prior to putting them on...

Dumb question time - wouldn't some kind of sticker work well here? No risk of damage to the bass to install, easily removable, and easy to replace should one come off.

 

[LukeSlywalker]

That's what I'm wondering. Is there something that sticks well and wouldn't come off all the time? I bought some white dots on amazon that didn't stick even though I cleaned the side of the neck with alcohol prior to putting them on...

I think you’re on the right track. I would try different stickers. Personally, I wouldn’t be drilling in to a 4K bass.

 

[jzucker]

the dots on my bass are 2mm by the way...

 

[dwizum]

That's tiny. I used 2mm dots on my first few instruments and now don't go below 3/32. I'd consider upsizing if/when you replace them.

 

[jzucker]

That's tiny. I used 2mm dots on my first few instruments and now don't go below 3/32. I'd consider upsizing if/when you replace them.

Yeah, my problem is that because of an astigmatism and the darkness and size of the side inlays, I basically can't see them at all.

 

[Bulltrout]

I bought some stick-on glow-in-the-dark side dots that work really well and are totally reversible.

 

[jzucker]

another idea would be white nail polish.

 

[Tom Magri]

I would not touch the side dots a a 4K bass…or $500 bass. Go on Amazon and order some larger stick on side dots and the problem will be solved without possible damage to your bass. If I was going to have them changed…only an experienced luthier should do the work. You don’t want to be learning how to do this correctly on an expensive bass.

 

[Bitterdale]

That's what I'm wondering. Is there something that sticks well and wouldn't come off all the time? I bought some white dots on amazon that didn't stick even though I cleaned the side of the neck with alcohol prior to putting them on...

I have used mailbox reflective stickers and a holepunch to make large and extremely visible side dots.
https://www.amazon.com/Hillman-8434...=Mailbox+Address+Stickers+,aps,71&sr=8-6&th=1
Good quality outdoor adhesive, but still removeable.