This invention relates to frets for stringed instruments such as acoustic guitars etc. and a method for manufacturing the frets.
A plurality of frets each of which consists of a slender metal piece are provided in specific intervals in a direction in which strings are stretched on a fingerboard at a stringed instrument such as a guitar, etc., so that a halftone is changed every one fret by means of moving a position of a string supported by the fret.
The fret has a shape as shown in FIG. 9 of JP 2002-41029 A, and as shown in FIG. 10 of this application as prior art. This fret 1 is provided with a fret main body 2 whose cross-sectional view is a slender arc shape, and a leg portion 3 which is formed unitedly overall in the middle of an underside of the fret main body 2. Both ends of the fret main body 2 are cut perpendicularly to a length direction thereof and both ends of the leg portion 3 are cut perpendicularly to the length direction at positions inwardly from the ends of the fret main body. The frets are delivered from companies manufacturing frets as they are.
The fret 1 is, as shown in FIG. 11, installed into a fret insertion groove 18 formed on the fingerboard 17 unitedly attached on an upper surface of a neck 16 by pressing. In this case, both ends of the fret project from the fingerboard 17, so that the fret cannot be used because the ends would stick a finger. Therefore, the projecting portions of the ends are scraped by a buff until they attain a cross-sectional shape shown by dotted lines in FIG. 11.
Thus, a process such as scraping the end portions projecting from the fingerboard after the frets are installed on the fingerboard has remained. The scraping process was effective until an error for attaching the frets into the fingerboard (an error in a width direction) occurred, but it became useless recently since the frets are currently installed into the fret insertion grooves with precision.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds