FretMaestro Tutorials
Part One: Prepare

Part One: Prepare
All precision work begins and ends with precision measuring.

Part Two: Maestro Technique

The Files.
Holding and using FretMaestro.

Part Three: Finer Points

Save time, save fret material.
Ultra Precision Finesse

Part Four: Guitar Setup

Nut Slots, Saddle/String Action,
and happily skip neck relief.

Video: Maestro Technique
Video: Finer Points
Video: Setup

Sequence of Steps:

1. Remove or Loosen strings and tie back off fretboard.
2. Position Neck Support as close to body as possible.
3. Don't know fretboard radius from googling, use radius gauge.
4. Bolt On Necks - check for proper torque for screws.
5. Notched Straight Edge and truss rod wrench, set neck dead flat.
6. For rough work to ID a high fret use fret rocker.
For Precision use Digital Gauge and map out Fret Forensics.
Fret Forensics makes informed customer support possible.
7. Email your forensic worksheet: SixStringers.Inc@gmail.com
I will evaluate and advice. There is a lot of information in the
forensics when you really know how to interpret the numbers.
8. Questions? Call 323.428.2479

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Tools required to complete Part One:
We have no affiliation with 3rd party sellers, we only want to save you time finding the best quality deals.

Guitar Neck Support: 3rd party

This is the only one I recommend because it is the only one that self-adjust to balance and establish a rock solid support and also does not extend above the fretboard to obstruct work access.

Notched Straight Edge: 3rd party

You want a notched straight edge that stands up by itself on the fretboard. Expensive triangle and sculpted ones look pretty but they fall over meaning you must hold on... not good. And the cheap ones are not actually straight.
We recommend this Made in USA company, mid-range price, top notch quality.

Radius Gauge:

Usually you can Google your guitar model and year and find out the exact fretboard radius, scale length, and fret size. Query specifically what you want to know.
In rare cases you need a radius gauge.
The continuous radius gauge is far easier to get an accurate read Vs the notched gauges.

Fret Forensics:

"Measure twice cut once."
All precision work begins and ends with precision measuring.
Using a digital gauge, always zero the gauge alongside the nut. Measure each fret at treble, mid, and bass, 3 measurements, notate these as you go on the Forensic Worksheet.
What you will learn is that no matter that you just paid a shop for a fret level, but the action is too high, the play is stiff, the bends fret out, the sustain dies young, you adjust the string action and relief and now it is a buzzfest, no matter what you do.

That's because the shops still use crude 19th century eyeball guesswork tools and methods that are impossible to achieve precision with. They use higher action and neck relief to compensate for their wonky frets.

How To Forensics
Download Fret Forensics Worksheet

Digital Gauge: 3rd party

Using the included SixStringers fret height gauge will ID the shortest fret but it does not show the big picture.
Fret Forensics tells you everything you really should know before doing any fretwork. It also helps us help you in true detail with our unmatched customer support because we will know exactly what you are working with.
This is why we recommend the Digital Gauge and our free Forensics Worksheet download.
All of these gauges are made in China, spending for a name brand cost twices as much for the exact same thing.

NOTE: These brass block gauges have 4 feet forming a 16" radius. Not good for sharper radius fretboards. File down the center 2 feet to get past this limitation.

SixStringers Radius Blocks for Digital Gauge:

11 Radii to choose from, twice as long as brass block for improved stability and accuracy.

Truss Rod Wrench:

Most guitars come with the correct truss rod wrench, some do not.
WARNING: using the wrong wrench size will ruin the adjuster nut, and that's expensive trouble.
NEVER use a wrench that is not the correct fit, and never tighten the rod when under string tension because this could twist the rod anchor and that's it, you have a giant repair bill that may cost more than the guitar is worth.

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Glide Strip:
If you do several guitars this is where to get more Glide Strip on the cheap, and probably enough for a lifetime.
Do not buy another brand because this material is the correct 0.005" gauge to be compatible with FretMaestro.
SixStringers has no affiliation with any 3rd party seller. Our goal is to do the shopping for you to make sure you get the right products at the best price.

Fret Rocker:

A crude limited use 19th century tool.
It looks so simple that everyone thinks they know how to use it correctly without ever actually learning how to use it, and that leads to disaster.

The neck must be perfectly flat, otherwise the rocker rocks on neck bow, or it bridges neck bow, either way, the read is inaccurate.
The rocker spans across 3 and only 3 frets.
The idea is that it will rock on a middle fret if it is high.
However, if fret 1 and 2 are high and 3 is low one must be observant to recognize that it is rocking off frets 1-2 Vs the middle fret.
Then... just about everyone gets the next step disastrously wrong...
When a high fret is identified just about everyone moves the rocker over just one fret to check the next three, and in so doing they are now referencing the high fret they just found.
Can you see the problem here?
Are rockers straight? Yes, they are all machined on CNC precision regardless of what some bozos claim.

Inch Pound Torque Driver: Bolt on necks: 3rd party

Specifically for Bolt On Necks. Over time the neck bolts can loosen, or worse, some bozo messed with them.
The bolts/screws must be evenly tight, meaning you need a torque drive to achieve this.
The inch pound range required is 15-20 inch pounds. Start at 15 inch/lbs, test all screws for the driver to click, continue adjusting the torque setting until all screws click at the same inch/lbs.
Never torque in a circle, always go cross corner, then down, then cross corner again, and then down again, this is the correct torque pattern.
Make sure the neck is correctly torqued before doing any work related to the guitar neck, including frets, nuts, saddles, string action, relief. Seriously, we do not make or sell these torque drivers, we have no horse in that race, but we want you to know better and save yourself the very real heartache one always gets from half-baked procedures.