evo "gold" wire advice

[robert ellsworth]

hello again, one more question before i start my refret. I've ordered evo fret wire ,as the subject states. and read a few things here and there, and am just curious how much of a pain it's going to be to install. it's coming with a 10" radius, and my neck is 16". i have heard a few times that it is really springy and can lift out of the fret really easy, and as it's radiused quite a bit more than my board just thought i would give some specifics and see what you all thought. i'm going to be gluing a few for sure because of some inlay and don't really mind gluing them ( fret wire lasts me a while usually ) but i saw somewhere that someone was having such a hard time he ended up gluing and clamping. my fret slots are still nice and tight, can tell this will be the first refret. thank you ahead of time for any help.

[Arnt Rian]

I use EVO as standard now unless the customer objects, I think its a terrific fret wire. I find it just as easy to install and dress as German silver wire, if anything it is easier to work with and polished up better. I have not experienced excessive springback or anything like that. I usually press them in, but if you get a lot of springback it is usually because they have been hammered in, and too heavily. I add a tiny amount of fish glue for lubrication and to help it set better, no CA glue etc. that just makes future refrets more work.

[Alan Carruth]

I've been hammering in frets since Noah was bo'suns' apprentice, with no problems, and the EVO stuff is no exception. You actually want to start out with a bit more radius than the fretboard has. Tap the ends of the fret in, and then work your way in toward the center from each end, using only as much force as you need. hitting the fret too hard in the middle is what causes it to bend upward at the ends, so don't!

[Joel Nowland]

Robert

I love the EVO as well and use it as standard. You will love it and have no problems.

Something that may help is that hammering the frets in (in my opinion) is not the way to go.

I use a radius block to hammer them in. I buy the Stew Mac 8" wood radius blocks just for fretting and cut them into two inch long blocks. I stick a quarter inch wide strip of craft foam on one end so it sits level and place the other end of the block over the fret, about 1/4" in form the end of the block, and pound the fret in with block which drives down and seats the entire fret. After all the frets are in I go back and check for level and do light hammering with a copper hammer.

This makes fretting much easier and works very well with the EVO.

Joel

[Mario Proulx]

"Hammering-in" frets is a very bad term to use. "Tapping-in" frets is the better description...

[Jeff Highland]

the Evo wire is both a lot springier than nickel and the tangs are not as prominent as most so I prefer to have the radius only a little tighter than the fretboard .

[Bob Menzel]

Alan: on a hypothetical fingerboard with a radius of 12", you're bending EVO frets to a radius of >12", or <12"?

At this point I've only used NS frets but am looking to use SS frets for the first time on my current build. Would the advice offered for EVO hold true for SS?

[Alan Carruth]

I bend to a tighter radius than the fretboard. I don't measure these things; for one thing, I use conic fretboards, so the radius is a little different for each fret. The object, though, is to have the tang in the slots at the ends while the tang in the middle of the fret is still clear. Then you tap tap your way in to the center from each end.

'Hammering' frets: brings back a memory. I had a class of six middle school kids in making mountain dulcimers. Originally I was told they'd be in for a week, but then I found out that it was a school week, with a travel day on each end, which meant we had three actual working days.Things were a bit more rushed than I'd hoped. There were five boys and one girl, all 13-14 years old, along with two teachers. The girl evidently felt the need to keep up with the boys. When it came time to put in the frets I showed her how to star the ends, and tap them in, using a wood block to avoid marking the walnut fretboard. Then I gave her the hammer, and she drove one right down level with the top of the 'board with a single blow. We were able to pull it out, swell the wood back with a hair dryer and some water, and glued the fret in place. They all finished their dulcimers, and some of them had the time to do custom soundhole shapes, so it went well, but it was a lot of work and commotion.

[Mario Proulx]

The EVO, and also the SS wire, should have arrived to you in a coil, and the radius of that coil will do fine. As long as the fret isn't -flatter- than the fretboard's radius, it'll go great.

[Joel Michaud]

I just installed my first fretboard of Evo gold. It went in much that same as regular wire and was no more difficult to trim as dress than regular. I also use fish glue when installing with good results.

Look forward to using Evo again!

[Mike Ryan]

I have gone to evo wire. I found the silver or nickel wire not springy enough I guess. I had trouble with a little kinking sometimes with the silver wire and am having LESS difficulty pressing in the evo than the nickel. I fret before gluing on the fb and am not having problems with overwarping of the board. The boards are done at LMI preradiused and preslotted.
They polish to a real nice satin if you want and the gold looks better in satin than the nickel IMO.

[Mario Proulx]

Mike, you've "hit" upon one of the reasons I consider Evo and SS frets to be --easier-- and less time-consuming to work with than regular nickel-silver wire.

[robert ellsworth]

sorry everyone thought i had already responded to this thread. yeah your right it's a lot easier to work than the nickel. filing cutting, just softer. almost don't want to believe it can last longer. i ended up doing combo press and hammer, "tap" and ca glue. wanted to get better glue but it's holding up nice for now. thanks for all the advice everyone. i'm learning.

[Michael Lewis]

My guess is that is that I have EVO wire from a different batch because it is definitely harder to cut and file than regular nickel wire. If your wire is as easy to use as the nickel wire I suspect it will wear much the same.

[robert ellsworth]

aww crap don't tell me that...it WAS jascar brand. well i hope it lasts.

[Mario Proulx]

It'll be fine. It -is- harder, and harder to cut and file, but not "oh my god!" harder, and because it maintains its radius really well when tapping or pressing, it actually makes the whole of the job go quicker and easier. It'll out-wear any 'ol nickel-silver fretwire by a looooong shot.

[robert ellsworth]

ok well maybe it was just in my head that it was easier to cut. haven't done a whole lot of fret work. i do love the evo.

[Mario Proulx]

A year and a half ago, I took-on a high school "co-op" student for a full semester, during which he not only helped me around the shop, but also built himself a flat top mandolin(just like the one I did in the original challenge, here). He had zero luthin' experience, though he played guitar, and had only a wee bit of high school woodworking to refer to as "experience". I started him on fresh, hot hide glue, and stainless steel frets. He was more than halfway done with his mandolin before I let him use titebond, and he thought I was playing a joke on him, as he struggled to get the clamps in place while then parts skated around all over the place! When done, he said he'd be glad to get back to using the "easy" glue.... Back to the frets, he never flinched, never complained, and his very first fret job, on a mandolin no less, came out very nice, with absolutely minimal leveling even being required. He'd never used regular nickel-silver fretwire, but I bet if/when he does, he'll think it was a bad joke, and he'll be happy to work with SS(or EVO) again...

My point? Sometimes(often???) we think something is tougher than it is simply because we were told it is, even if it isn't.

[Michael Lewis]

The nickel wire is basically brass with enough nickel to make it look silver. Sometimes it can be a bit harder or softer depending on the batch and how it was formed, but it is significantly softer and easier to work than the stainless and EVO material. Because it is harder to work I expect it to wear significantly longer than the nickel wire.