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Reinstall the nut (without glue) and play the guitar . Check for
false notes or string buzzes caused by uneven frets . Buzzing
is corrected by leveling the frets .
Remove the strings and the nut, mask the soundboard
around the fretboard, and the fretboard between the frets .
Adjust the neck perfectly straight .
KIT TIP: Use your truss rod
Remember that you have a two-way adjustable
truss rod that can help you straighten the fretboard
in either direction for fret leveling! You will need to
readjust the truss rod if you changed the adjust-
ment during leveling .
Mark the centerpoint of the endpin on the guitar’s end trim
strip (see the blueprint), using a centerpunch or an awl . With
a 1/4" brad point bit, carefully drill a perpendicular hole
completely through the tailblock at this location . Enlarge
the hole with a tapered reamer until the endpin fits snugly .
Installing the endpin
Leveling the frets
Using a flat fine-tooth mill file, gently level the tops of the
frets with long full-length strokes down the fretboard . Re-
store and polish the rounded crown on the top of each fret
with a fret crowning file and/or 400 and 600-grit finishing
papers . Work along the length of each fret to remove any
scratches left by the leveling file .
Unmask everything . Lightly glue the nut in place with
Titebond, and restring the guitar . The strings will hold the
nut in place to dry .
KIT TIP: Ink the frets
Ink the top of each fret with a felt-tip marker pen;
the frets will be level when all the marks begin to
disappear .
Now that your guitar is complete, we hope you enjoy playing
it for many years . Protect it with a quality case, keep it away
from extremes in temperature and humidity, and install only
medium or lighter gauge strings .
And start building another guitar! You can’t stop now can
you?
Stewart-MacDonald staff
CONGRATULATIONS!
37
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