Octave and Tenor: neck and neck!

Apologies for the pun! As you can see, both of Adrian’s instruments now have their necks and fretboards fitted and both have been fretted. The tenor’s neck has been roughly carved and will get its final shaping next week, whilst the octave’s is still square.

Whilst fretting, I’ve been using a fret rocker to test whether or not each fret is level with the previous one. I don’t know who invented the “fret rocker” but I bought mine from a chap in Portugal, who sells them on eBay. 

The differing lengths of the edges allows you to compare only three frets at a time (if the middle one is high then the fret rocker rocks) as you progress up the fretboard and the frets get closer and the straight edges need to be shorter. Checking each fret individually ensures that they are all seated properly.

 Apart from checking whether or not frets are level, it makes a great mini straight edge for all manner of checking.