View Shopping Cart  /  Checkout

Back to Main Catalog

To review our online ordering procedures (they're pretty simple) click here.

For information on ordering offline by mail, fax, phone or email, click here.

Fret Wire

This is what is commonly called hard nickel-silver wire (the actual composition is primarily of copper and nickel, with small amounts of other metals). This is the standard material most often used in fretted instruments. (Softer wires are sometimes used, but they tend to wear faster.)

Fret wire is installed by driving the lower part of the wire (the tang) into slots cut in the fingerboard. It’s important that these slots be just the right width to hold the wire securely. With that in mind, the fret-slotting saw we carry for the purpose (described below) is a good investment.

We sell fret wire by the foot. To give you a sense of how much you’ll need: a typical guitar requires 4-6 feet of wire, depending on who you ask.

We have fret wire in large, medium and small sizes.

Fret wire, large (Crown width .114". Crown height: .051").
This fret wire would typically be used in anything bigger than a guitar (and it is sometimes used in large guitars as well). It comes in coils.
Price: $1.80/ft
Add to Cart

Fret wire, medium (crown width: .080", crown height: .043").
This would typically be used in instruments comparable to or slightly smaller than a guitar or banjo. This wire comes in coils.
Price: $1.40/ft
Add to Cart

Fret wire, small (crown width .053", crown height: .037").
Suitable for small instruments such as mandolin or ukulele. This wire comes in straight 2-foot lengths.
Price: $1.40/ft
Add to Cart

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fret Slotting Saw

To install frets, you tap the lower part of the fret wire (called the tang) into a slot cut in the fingerboard. It’s important that the saw you use cuts a slot, or kerf, just the right width to hold the fret wire securely, not allowing it to pop out again. Our fret wire – and this is fairly standard – calls for a slot of .023". That’s considerably thinner than, say, a typical hack saw blade. Some coping saw blades are pretty close, but they’re not designed to make the kind of dependably straight kerf that a good back saw does. The fret saws we carry are designed for just this purpose, with top-quality, long-lasting, precision-made blades, and they dependably do an excellent job. The blades on these saws are oriented to cut on the pull stroke, which makes for more sure cutting motion. The price is comparable to or less than you’d typically pay for a high-quality back saw at the hardware store (but the kerf from the hardware store saw would in all likelihood be the wrong width).

Price: $34
Add to Cart