change the inlays?

Cowboy Dan!?

Cowboy Dan!?

New member
would it be possible to have a dot inlay taken out and replaced with an abalone dot inlay?

if so, how much would it approxamatly cost to have a luthier do it?


also.......is it possible to add abalone binding a neck and headstock that doest have a binding?

again, how much would it cost to have a luthier do it?

thanks guys.
 
Re: change the inlays?

I'm having JohnJohn take out my plastic inlays on my favorite strat neck right now, and replace them with abalone. Not sure on what the exact cost will be, we haven't talked that much about it. He's also crowning and leveling the frets for me, and doing some re-finish work on the neck as well.

If he doesn's post into this thread, send him an e-mail and ask him.
 
Re: change the inlays?

Jeff_H said:
I'm having JohnJohn take out my plastic inlays on my favorite strat neck right now, and replace them with abalone. Not sure on what the exact cost will be, we haven't talked that much about it. He's also crowning and leveling the frets for me, and doing some re-finish work on the neck as well.

If he doesn's post into this thread, send him an e-mail and ask him.
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thank you sooo much!
 
Re: change the inlays?

changing the dots is not hard to do at all. I am not sure what anybody else would charge but, I would do it for about $100.00. It would be possible to bind the neck and headstock in abalone. It would be very expensive though. I am guessing the frets would have to be taken out to do it. So it would be the cost for the supplies, binding work, and fret job. In another words, save up alot of money or get a good loan!!!!
 
Re: change the inlays?

theodie said:
changing the dots is not hard to do at all. I am not sure what anybody else would charge but, I would do it for about $100.00. It would be possible to bind the neck and headstock in abalone. It would be very expensive though. I am guessing the frets would have to be taken out to do it. So it would be the cost for the supplies, binding work, and fret job. In another words, save up alot of money or get a good loan!!!!
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if changing the dots are not hard would it be possible for me to do it myself? what sort of tools would i need?

would it be cheeper to find a new neck with the abalone, if so where could i find one?

sorry for all the questions

thank you for helping.
 
Re: change the inlays?

I dont know where you could find that neck. I guess it would be possible for you to do the dots yourself if you are somewhat handy. As far as the tools you need a drill press, brad point drill bits, glue, abalone dots, and sandpaper. That is if your finger board is rosewood or ebony. If it is maple you may have to re-laquer afterwards.
 
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Re: change the inlays?

Cowboy Dan!? said:
if changing the dots are not hard would it be possible for me to do it myself? what sort of tools would i need?

would it be cheeper to find a new neck with the abalone, if so where could i find one?

sorry for all the questions

thank you for helping.
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As far as the binding goes, Gmwguitars.com have necks on their guitars with abalone binding. I know they can install these on your neck. I am not sure if they will build a complete neck with out buying a guitar though. I hope this helps. Good luck!!!
 
Re: change the inlays?

o yeah forgot, this is for a bass guitar :smack:

thanks a lot though man.

i might try putting the inlay in my myself............with my luck somehow the neck will blow up into a million pieces though :smack:

do you know where i can find a tutorial about this stuff online?

correct me if in wrong but to put the neck binding on ill need the binding, the fretwire, a fretwire bender, some sanding tools, something to cut slots for the fretwire, and definatly glue........then i sand down the sides of the fingerboard so the binding will fit on, and then put fretwire back on, right?

i think i changed my mind about the headstock binding........it would be a bitch and i dont think it would work very good with this headstock.
 
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Re: change the inlays?

well it is not that easy. I do not know where you can find a tutorial. The dots you could probaly do but, I would not recomend doing the binding yourself. It is very hard to do right. Also I recently invested about $1400 in tools to do fretting, binding, inlay, and various guitar work. As far as the binding, You cant bend real abalone. Its very brittle. it has to be cut out to match it perfectly. The sides of the fingerboard dont get sanded. They get routed out. Most likely with a precision router of some sorts. I use a precision router base for my dremel with an edge guide on it. I can precisly adjust the depth and width of the cut with it. it is complicated to do this. Fret work can also be very tricky.
 
Re: change the inlays?

my dads best friend is a carpenter, do you think he would have the tools to do all the routing and stuff for me?

then all i would have to do is glue the stuff in sand it, and cut grooves for the fretwire. would i need all new fretwire or could i salvage the old fretwire?

if i **** up the neck(its on a $180 bass, thats why i want to try it myself), ill just replace it with like a off brand $100 fender p bass neck and id be happy :)
 
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Re: change the inlays?

The grooves are already cut for the fret wire. You would want to use new fret wire. You need to know how to clean the slots properly before installing new fret wire. If you want to get into fretting I would recomend learning how to do it by watching videos, or getting someone to show you how to do it. You will also have to invest alot of $$$$$$ in special tools. At this point I would discourage you from doing it yourself. There is a whole lot more to it than pulling out frets, sanding, and putting back in frets. As far as the carpenter, he might have a few of the tools but not all of them.
 
Re: change the inlays?

o alright........i guess ill forget about the binding then, i dont think i should pay like 5 times more to put in on there then i paid for the bass :laugh2:

thanks a billion for your help though man :)
 
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