Semi-Hemispherical fret work

[Clay Schaeffer]

Since you really only get any benefit from one side of the fret board having semi- hemispherical fret ends, why not just do one side? This would make the other side much easier to fit (the frets could be cut long) and the ends could be finished with the typical bevel. Of course this would be called demisemihemispherical fretwork. <g>

[Randy Roberts]

Nice, Clay.
I think a case could be made that it would be most useful for those with smaller hands that would be more comfortable with narrower necks, but still need as much length on the fret as possible. As the majority of women players fit the need, you might consider Clay's idea for the guitars you make for women. But then, of course, they would have to be ...femidemisemihemispherical frettery.

[Ryan Mazzocco]

oh my, what have I started! It's almost as satisfying as setting a structure fire and then just stepping back to watch it burn. (I would guess... who would actually be that reckless?)

[Ant Setchell]

The lead singer and bassist of Mototrhead has long been an advocate of this technique.

He favours the Lemmydemisemihemispherical fretend.

[Greg Robinson]

Haha, that's great Ant!
Good to see you here, welcome to the new forum!

[Chuck Morrison]

Yes, and Gibson is of course the other one.

Chuck, do you mean C.F. Martin? You can mention brand names here.

[Nathan Noel]

Hot Dog fret ends... I like that name.

[John Fabel]

If I recall correctly, one of the reasons Harry (fleischman) came up w this system was as a way to deal w the pesky little overhang you can sometimes get when fret boards shrink, esp bound boards, by in effect pre shrinking the frets, and while yer at it, it gives you the chance to give them a nice interesting profile.
One can do tis, and still utilize more traditional approaches to profiling fret ends. I did it. Once. Customers do notice nice fretwork, setup and the rest, regardless of how you get there. Always though it was a cool idea, tho.
JF

[Harry Fleishman]

I started doing the fret ends this way for a couple of reasons, some good, some maybe not as good. The shrinkage is certainly one of them. The main reason is to regain a little real estate on the end of the fret. The other is the feel. I really don't like to feel the fret end. AFter I had done a few sets I could do them faster than other methods, partly because the ends were done and I only file the frets that are high. If a fret is too high I take it out and replace it. That saves material and time; it's another thing I learned, in a long list of learnings, from Dan Erlewine. As much as I love that "ooooh, cool," if and when someone notices, I just think it is a good method. That said, I don't always do it because sometimes I just get too excited and start pressing in frets. John's right; however you do it, customers notice good fret work.
At the GAL I was surprised and pleased to see a few luthiers doing the semi-hysterical Fred hens; in each case they did them better than me.

[Mark Swanson]

It's great to see you stopping by, Harry!

[Louie Atienza]

I kind of do a hybrid version that's neither truly semi-hemispherical nor beveled. I do start off with a bevel, but with a rather shallow angle, maybe 12-15 degrees. I then use a fine file to "blend" it into the tops of the frets with a slight radius. Finally I use a quarter round file that Grizzly sells with a large flat on the bottom and two quarter-round sides to take the corners off. With a little patience I can do this without marring the edge of the fretboard most of the time; I have to touch up here and there so it might not be the best way for those who polish their boards beforehand.

The trick is to turn the file such that it cuts the fret all the way down without cutting wood, and to rotate the file as I cut, away from the center, so it doesn't snag on the fret.

[Danny Little]

I cut them to length on the sister board as mentioned above, then place into a slotted block with the end 1/4" exposed. I file straight down with a diamond (StewMac) radiused fret file to establish the hemisphere shape, put a couple of round over strokes on it, then use a buffing wheel. Flip end for end and do it again until finished. I then press them in to the fretboard. A couple of extra hours at least. Electric players and steel string bluegrass players really like the extra room for bending strings without falling off the board. I guess you get another 1/8" of useable fret real estate? It is a good option to offer.

[John Fabel]

"semi-hysterical Fred hens" -- "quote of the day" award for sure, and earning a 2 hour luthier lunch.
Just think, if guitarist would only glue little frets to each of their fingers, we wouldn't have to pound them into the fretboards. On the other hand, I do seem to recall that as a kid/"grownup", there were/are few things quite as satisfying as hammering.
Harry - thanks for sharing hatching your approach to fred hens -- I think its's raised the quality of fret work all around, regardless of how people get there
Louie -- I think our approaches are pretty similar - like yourself, I find I can get more "fret-estate" by using a steeper bevel angle.
Ok, back to work

[Bill Raymond]

Mario Maccaferri was doing these kind of frets back in the '30s.

[Clay Schaeffer]

Emisferica semi estremita dei tasti ?? <g>

[John Fabel]

Si, si - Esattamente!