Indexing Jig

Indexing Jig

Developed this jig to ensure precise indexing of the fretboard and neck when assembling.  The alignment holes are used to drill into the neck, fretboard and utility jig.  The indexing holes are used to align:

    • the neck in place during the contouring and shaping phase
    • the neck in place for routing the truss rod channel
    • the fretboard during the fret slotting phase

I was limited to the size of the print bed so I split it up into four sections ensuring it would maintain the centreline using material stiffness while reducing material usage.  

Neck Mount Jig

Developed this jig to ensure precise indexing of the neck and body when assembling. The bottom (black) is designed to fit in the cavity of the body to transfer the hole alignment.

The top is designed to have the neck slide to the back-stop, which is aligned to the end of the body cavity, and then maintain centreline using the adjustable fingers on the sides.  The fingers press evenly on the neck and can be locked in place by tightening the screw in the centre.  The head of the screw is oriented for access at the bottom once the jig is pulled out of the body and secured to the neck.

The holes at the four corners are to align the neck mount and the two holes in the middle sides align with the indexing jig, with the option to drill through the neck to transfer to the other side of the neck.

Modular Radius Sanding Block

I developed this tool after searching for weeks for a similar device.  I could only find solid wood or aluminum radius blocks with a single radius per side.

This modular sanding block not only allows for interchangeable profiles but allows for monitoring correct alignment when using custom compound radius profiles.  It also has a height limiting feature with the guide feet to ensure the fretboard does not get over sanded making it too thin.

Since I was making the tool, I opted to make the compound radius option:  9.5″ at the nut and 14″ at the heel.

Fret Slot Cutting Jig

I developed this tool once I realized my abilities to translate the fret markings from the template to the fretboard were limited.  The template has the centreline and fret locations CNC’d out resulting in a ‘V’ channel I didn’t want to risk cutting at an angle, cutting in the wrong location or ruining the template so I developed this jig.

This jig mounts to a length of Aluminum 4040 extrusion that has two channels (used for the neck contouring jig). I use the length of the extrusion and some additional centreline guides to assist with maintaining alignment.

The jig holds the template upside down, and using the indexing jig with dowels, attach the fretboard face up.  There are two clamps (on either side of the cutting slots) that hold the work firmly on the ridge to prevent any shifting during the sawing.  Moving the the registration slots on the template down the work the cutting slot can ensure that each fret slot is cut  perpendicular to the centreline.  The depth of cut can be monitored with the scale on the side.

Neck Contouring Jig

I developed this tool to assist with the accuracy of forming the compound radius profiles for the 1st and 12th (or 16th) fret on the back of the neck.

I based this jig off of a similar one described here. The example used parts made with CNC, which I don’t have access to.  But I do have access to a 3D printer.  So I developed the parts to use for this jig.  I created a handle that mounts to the Aluminum 4040 extrusion in order to control the rotation of the work. The indexing jig allows for the consistent centreline alignment.