What's On Your Workbench?

[TerribleTim68]

For the heavier grit I needed (100), I’m trying garnet paper from Mercer Abrasives. The garnet paper is old technology; it’s nowhere near as clog-resistant as modern, aluminum oxide, coated papers but it was sort of the standard woodworking sandpaper for a real long time and it’s MUCH cheaper than the high-tech stuff. Mercer is a respected brand, perhaps one step down from the top options like Norton, 3M and Mirka.

For 220, which I use a lot, I went with Mirka Gold Proflex. This is top-tier stuff.

For 240, an in-between grit I use less often, I’m trying another Mercer product, this time their coated aluminum oxide stuff. It’s more expensive than the garnet paper but cheaper than the big 3 and I’m curious to see how it compares.

For 320 I went with Norton 3x Pro-Sand. Again, top shelf stuff.

The best papers I’ve used in terms of staying sharp and not clogging are the Mirka and Norton papers listed above and 3M Gold Fre-Cut. I consider all three to be more or less equal and all top quality. I just base my choice on what’s available at the best price. The 3M paper might be a little better than the others when it comes to not loading but they’re all really good.

I’m interested to see if the better quality Mercer stands up to the others. It might end up being a very good compromise price/quality-wise between the big 3 and the no-name junk. Their reputation seems pretty solid. They’re just not as well-known and their product line isn’t as diverse.

For the finer grits, though, 320 and up, I’m not taking any chances anymore. It’s the good stuff or nothing.

EDIT: I almost forgot, I also picked up two rolls of 3M Stik-it in 80 and 220 for my sanding blocks.

I know a few people who swear by the Klingspor stuff. But the Mirka Abranet is supposed to be really good too.

 

[Lo-E]

Today was a good day for filling chips. Armed with a pill bottle of maple dust and a teeny spatula I filled in around the fret slots that had chipped the most.

I’ve re-fretted a bunch of instruments over the years but this is the first maple board I’ve done and I was surprised at how readily it chipped. No big deal, though; most of the repairs will be fully hidden by the new, bigger frets.

After the cyanoacrylate glue set up I sanded the board to 320.

Now I’m faced with a couple of decisions regarding order of operations and I welcome any input.

The first regards frets -
I could fret the neck and then apply the finish or…
I could apply one coat to seal the board, fret the neck and then apply the rest of the finish or…
I could finish the neck and then fret it.
I’m not really sure which approach will serve me best.

The second decision regards the rest of the neck, as I plan to strip and refinish the whole neck -
I could just deal with the fingerboard now and address the rest of the neck later or…
I could strip the rest of the neck now and finish the whole thing at once.

I’m not sure the second decision really matters all that much but the first…. I suspect that will make a difference to me. Thoughts?

 

[mapleglo]

I would put at least one or two coats on the neck before fretting, if not completely finish the neck before fretting. Bare maple will soak up filings from fret work that you'll never get out.

Ask me how I know...

 

[Lo-E]

Bare maple will soak up filings from fret work that you'll never get out.

Ask me how I know...

No need; I have an active imagination!
I was also thinking that just dirt from my hands might be enough of a reason to seal it first. Maple gets dirty awful quick.

 

[Lo-E]

I know a few people who swear by the Klingspor stuff. But the Mirka Abranet is supposed to be really good too.

I’ve gotten good stuff from Klingspor in the past but their prices have gotten pretty high and I don’t think it’s as good as the Mirka/Norton/3M trifecta.

I don’t use the Abranet because I don’t have a sander with dust collection so I wouldn’t benefit from it. I mostly sand by hand.

Just to update, I used some of that Mercer 100 grit garnet paper today and was very impressed. It does load faster than high-tech paper from the trifecta but it cut fairly fast, stayed sharp for quite a while and left a finish that seemed smoother than I would expect from 100. I’ll definitely be considering Mercer for future purchases.

 

[AK4570]

Had some time on Christmas (finally!) to get some frets into this neck.

 

[T_Bone_TL]

Mercer 100 grit garnet paper today and was very impressed. It does load faster than high-tech paper from the trifecta but it cut fairly fast, stayed sharp for quite a while and left a finish that seemed smoother than I would expect from 100.

One of the reasons that garnet was the old standard is that the grains fracture comparatively sharp (so they cut wood, microscopically) rather than merely being hard lumps that abrade it. At least as my fuzzy memory remembers it from long ago edumacation.

As for loading, a pass with a brush nozzle on the shop vac can help relieve that.

 

[Lo-E]

As for loading, a pass with a brush nozzle on the shop vac can help relieve that.

That’s what I do but the modern, coated papers still clean up better even with the vacuum.

 

[Videojunkie]

One of the things I love about my wife is that she will buy things off my wishlist without really understanding what they are for. (She once bought me a scope mount that sat in a drawer for 2 years waiting for the scope to go with it... but I digress. )

This time, she asked me, and after fretting the Rick-man and the SCP, I came to the conclusion that my drill press is really not suitable for pressing frets in.

I now have a real 1T press for setting frets! Yes, it's overkill, but it's big enough that I think I can get into nearly anywhere I need to press a fret...

Took an hour to get all of the nasty cosmoline off the dang thing and set it up...

Now... what project bass do I need?

 

[Pep]

I have 3 things on my workbench (or about ready to go there).

1984 Ibanez RB850 Roadstar II - Sand down to bare wood and repaint the body.
Also, repaint the headstock.

2025 Squier Jaguar H-Series - Modify headstock to make it smaller.
Rout for J-bass pickups.
Move inout jack to the side.
Drill hole for mini toggle. Order new
pickguard, order Reverend Thick Brick 4 pickup,
order J-bass pickups. This will be set-up like a
US version of the Stu Hamm Urge Bass.

4-10” Vertical Bass Cabinet - I have nearly everything. Just need to assemble.

 

[JIO]

Final stages... https://www.talkbass.com/threads/headless-24-fan-fret-5-string-project-the-g5.1676614/page-4

 

[Lo-E]

The frets arrived three days ahead of schedule - a nice surprise.

They don’t measure out to the.118” as advertised but, at .115”, they’re still the biggest frets I’ve ever used and they’ll be fine. The .003” is about the thickness of a human hair or a sheet of paper. Am I going to know the difference?!?

I got out my old Stew-Mac fret slot saw only to find a fair amount of surface rust. The pitfalls of having my shop in a damp basement. I got out the rust eraser and the paste wax and cleaned up the saw. While I was at it, I fixed an issue that has bothered me in the past; the leading edge of the plastic fence on that saw was never very smooth and it sometimes left marks on my fingerboards so I sanded it smooth and polished it so it wouldn’t happen again.

After that detour I was able to make sure that the slots were the right depth for the frets and then I applied a protective coat of finish:

I’m undecided as to whether I should go ahead and do all the coats before I fret it. I probably will.

 

[Lo-E]

While I waited to put a second coat on I started thinking about frets. I’ve never owned one of those nifty, hand-cranked fret benders and I do so little fret work I never really saw the point. It’s not like I’m running a production shop here.

I have gotten tired of using the puny, little fret bending pliers I made for myself 20 years ago and decided to try a different approach. I took some scrap cherry and made myself a little bending form:

It could have been a slightly smaller radius but it works.

I got to use some 19th century technology to flatten the sides while I was building it:

And then I bent and cut the frets.

I’ve decided I’ll completely finish the fingerboard and then fret it before stripping and refinishing the rest of the neck. As @mapleglo pointed out, raw maple gets really dirty really easily so it seems reasonable to me to leave the back of the neck protected by the existing finish. If I refinish the back now I’m likely to scuff it all up when I file the fret ends.

 

[Slidlow]

My brother pickup up what he thought was a Squire strat body and neck just before the holidays for $19. I’ve cleaned the body and discovered a nice two piece ash body. Looks like an actual fender body someone attached a Squire neck to. I’m going to clean it, natural finish and mount a Fender neck and hardware. Bonus piccolo six string.

 

[AK4570]

A bridge prototype. The large block on the bottom will be inletted into the body and function as both bridge anchor and thru-string ferrules.




I'm thinking the next iteration will change that block from 1/2 x 3/4 to 3/8 x 3/4

Happy New Year, All!

 

[Lo-E]

Happy New Year, everyone!

I’m up to three coats - or maybe it’s four - on the fingerboard and I think I can do two or three more and have enough built up to level sand and fret it. Maybe by the weekend…. maybe not.

Across the shop, however, things weren’t looking as good. I decided I wasn’t happy with the finish on the body. What was looking pretty good initially started to look bad after the finish cured.

Since I had already stripped it back and started over once I figured I might as well keep at it until it’s right.

I sanded back to 400 until I was through the ugly parts and I’ve applied a generous coat.

Oddly enough, the sides looked good so I’m only addressing the front and back. That actually makes things a little easier because I can build slightly heavier coats without worrying about drips on the flat surfaces.

I’m doing the back first and we’ll see how it goes. With heavier coats I hope to do six coats and then level it and take it from there.

This finishing thing…. It’s not easy.

 

[Gervais Cote]

Happy New Year, everyone!

I’m up to three coats - or maybe it’s four - on the fingerboard and I think I can do two or three more and have enough built up to level sand and fret it. Maybe by the weekend…. maybe not.
View attachment 7400458

Across the shop, however, things weren’t looking as good. I decided I wasn’t happy with the finish on the body. What was looking pretty good initially started to look bad after the finish cured.

Since I had already stripped it back and started over once I figured I might as well keep at it until it’s right.

I sanded back to 400 until I was through the ugly parts and I’ve applied a generous coat.
View attachment 7400460
Oddly enough, the sides looked good so I’m only addressing the front and back. That actually makes things a little easier because I can build slightly heavier coats without worrying about drips on the flat surfaces.

I’m doing the back first and we’ll see how it goes. With heavier coats I hope to do six coats and then level it and take it from there.

This finishing thing…. It’s not easy.

The wood grain on that body :

 

[Matt Liebenau]

Happy New Year, everyone!

I’m up to three coats - or maybe it’s four - on the fingerboard and I think I can do two or three more and have enough built up to level sand and fret it. Maybe by the weekend…. maybe not.
View attachment 7400458

Across the shop, however, things weren’t looking as good. I decided I wasn’t happy with the finish on the body. What was looking pretty good initially started to look bad after the finish cured.

Since I had already stripped it back and started over once I figured I might as well keep at it until it’s right.

I sanded back to 400 until I was through the ugly parts and I’ve applied a generous coat.
View attachment 7400460
Oddly enough, the sides looked good so I’m only addressing the front and back. That actually makes things a little easier because I can build slightly heavier coats without worrying about drips on the flat surfaces.

I’m doing the back first and we’ll see how it goes. With heavier coats I hope to do six coats and then level it and take it from there.

This finishing thing…. It’s not easy.

I feel for you. Finishing can be tough. In my experience you keep at it until it’s right or call it good enough, assemble the instrument, then in a year when you can’t stand it anymore you keep at it until it’s right. Best to get it now.

 

[Lo-E]

I feel for you. Finishing can be tough. In my experience you keep at it until it’s right or call it good enough, assemble the instrument, then in a year when you can’t stand it anymore you keep at it until it’s right. Best to get it now.

I didn’t do myself any favors by trying to learn on such an open-grained piece of wood. I made it worse by trusting that this high-solid finish product would effectively fill the grain easily. All the problems I’m having can be traced directly to my dodgy decisions.

The nice, tight-grained fingerboard is going just fine.

 

[Matt Liebenau]

I didn’t do myself any favors by trying to learn on such an open-grained piece of wood. I made it worse by trusting that this high-solid finish product would effectively fill the grain easily. All the problems I’m having can be traced directly to my dodgy decisions.

The nice, tight-grained fingerboard is going just fine.

Yeah, it’s ash? That’s almost always going to need a separate grain filling step for a completely flat final finish. I’ve found cherry, alder even Radiatia pine will fill with 2-3 coats of Createx Autoborne sealer then a sand back then another coat or two if I went through anywhere but I wouldn’t try that on ash or mahogany or something similar. The West Systems is going to come out for that. Leaving some of the grain works too though. I haven’t posted in my thread for a while but I’m working on that guitar and, since it’s too cold to spray here, I’m trying oil based wipe on polyurethane and it’s working nicely but the mahogany or mahogany like body and neck wood will definitely have grain showing.