Pitted fretboard repair
 

Does anyone have any experience in using filler on a pitted fretboard?

At this stage I am not too worried about the cosmetic look.

I am thinking perhaps along the lines of a product we have in Australia called "Knead It" ... a two part polymer putty that you knead in your fingers and it sets like rock.

To the best of my knowledge it is a rosewood fretboard.

I have all the frets removed and I was preparing for sanding, but the pitting is quite deep and I am afraid that the amount of sanding required will leave me with problems in ever getting the action right again.

The guitar is a sunburst Japanese Morris dreadnought .... early 80's. It has had a hard life and has developed a couple of hairline splits in the top (which I believe is sitka spruce) so a new fretboard at this stage of it's life is probably over the top. Still, it is a guitar close to my heart (I am the original owner) and I would like it to be playable for whatever life it has left in it.

Geoff

Hello ,Geoff_Aus
 

I'm not familiar with that product, but with any repair like this you can start with a very small area so you minimize any problems if you make a mistake.

I would think that if you have a damp rag at the ready you can wipe off the excess polymer before it has time to fully set. This can minimize the amount of sanding you will have to do.

Good luck!

I don't know that product specifically but I don't think it's likely to work very well. Unless it is really thin and can get down into the pores of the wood, I can't imagine that it would stay put. It would also probably look/ feel bad.
If the guitar really holds sentimental value for you, why not replace the fretboard?

Finger divots are fairly easy to repair on a fret board. For replacement filler, make some fine grained sawdust from another piece of rosewood/ebony with a file or grinder.

In the divot, use a knife to score into the divot and lift some wood fibers making a sort of cross-hatch pattern.

Fill the divot with the sawdust you previously made packing it in tightly until you have enough to exceed the height of the fretboard.
Add some thin CY glue and it will soak into the sawdust and within a couple of minutes, it will get hard leaving a mound.
Scrape the mound down level with the remaining fingerboard with a scrapper or razor blade and finish with some fine sandpaper or steel wool.

Severe cases may need the fret pulled out to get a clean job done and the fret slot resawed.

FWIW, I think there is a pictorial on the Frets website of how to fill in divots.

Hope this helps
Terry

totally agreewith grenvilleter, but ive used sawdust and juts white glue on bridges etc. should work similiarly though

I filled some pretty big fingernail gouges on my old D18 with superglue and dust. The flash makes them more notecable than they normally are.
http://h1.ripway.com/woody%20b/pictu...rd%20fills.JPG

I use a method similar to this one.
http://www.frets.com/FRETSPages/Luth...boardivot.html

My thanks to everyone who responded to my question ... especially WoodyB for taking the trouble to post a photo and a link. If my fretboard repair looks as good at that one I will be very happy!

Thanks once again

Geoff

Geoff,

Let us know what you did and how your repair worked out. Even a picture if you're so inclined. That way we can learn from your experience. Good luck with it.

(Build and repair threads are really popular here). :)