A while back I got to play a Jem 7VWH at GC and loved the scalloped frets on 21-24. I've never seen anyone do it to a RG770 neck. Will it be a problem with the square-heel neck that has the over-hang fretboard? Do the early JEMs with scalloped frets have the same over-hang board? I don't plan on the hand file procedure. I have access to machines and plan on milling with a ball nose tool. I'm guessing that's how it's done factory. Will the sharktooth inlays be a problem? I don't really know how thick they are.
Yeah square heel jem has the overhang and the sharks are deep enough from what i have seen,did see one guy lose the very tip of the skinny end,but it was due to his heavy handed-ness with the file.
ive done 2 shark toohs and both went through the inlay some.
it didnt look that bad but keep it in mind.
those were korea not japan so might be different.
I recently completed a full scallop on a RG2ex2. I contemplated using a ball nosed bit in a dremel or router. This page was helpful in deciding whether or not to use power tools:
I ended up using a round 1/4" file, a larger half round file, and many grits of sandpaper+steel wool. I would hesitate to use a power tool. Getting an even scallop isn't that hard if you go slowly, and use very coarse sandpaper to smooth the file marks away and do the final shaping. It took me about 5 hours to do. And I did it in short, intense 1 or 1.5 hour segments.
I enjoy the scalloped board, it doesn't take much time to get used to. Only negative I've found is that I occasionally slip the high e string off the board when I do careless bluesy double-stops (like little wing's G-F-C-D progression).
I scalloped my strat using a dremel for the large area bulk removal. Then used sandpaper wrapped around dowels for the higher notes.
Use coarse sandpaper to shape, etc. But use fine paper after shaping is complete to bring it to a glossy finish.
Another note is to keep any rosewood sawdust. Some rosewood will have pockets when you go deeper into the wood. Use the sawdust with superglue to fill them, and then sand the area until the area looks perfect.
Great links! I'm a machinist by trade and have access to milling machines. I'll clamp the neck in a vise and use a ball nose cutting tool. Should be quick and easy and leave a nice smooth finish. I'm in the process of customizing a '90 RG770fm. So far, changed to top hat knobs, red/black Dimarzios, and all gold hardware including a gold Lo-pro Edge. Scalloping the 21-24 frets will be the finishing touch. I post some pics when I get it done. Thanks for the help.
OK good luck. A machinist should be able to do this, I would be tempted to machine an accurate jig/guide so that a router could follow the radius, or us a CNC to have an arched tool path. Have fun. For those last 4 frets, though, a round file takes very little time to get a pretty good result. It's the larger frets from, say, 12 and lower that start to get to be a pain with hand tools.
I could use a CNC mill but I looked at a bunch of close up JEM scallops and they are just milled straight across the board. You can actually see where more wood was taken out in the middle of the board where it is higher due to the 430mm radius.
Just use a round file. They suck for the larger frets but for just 21-24, it'll be perfect. Just make sure you tape over the fret wire. It'll take you 20 minutes, TOPS.
There's no way in Hell I would scallop (and possibly screw up) a neck that I could sell for $200+
Find an old crappy neck to work on first.........It'll be worth getting the experience before digging into a neck you'll be hard pressed to find again......at least at a decent price.
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