Offset Diamond Fret File

I taught myself how to do fret jobs. Learned old-school including crowning levelled frets with small files etc.... I thank many of my friends for their guitars BTW:) I always wondered about these files and after many fret jobs and researching so many different options I thought I'd be stupid not to try one. Ordered a 300 grit and will never use a file to shape frets again. Major time saver, no more slips or accidents on the fret board (c'mon, I didn't go to school for this!).... It is just a great tool. Good weight and as accurate as you need it to be. I can't imagine a practicing luthier or a DIY not having one of these on hand. Spend the money!

I initially thought that $100 each before shipping seemed too expensive for crowning files... But I have since retired all the others! The heft and balance of these, combined with the radiused ends, make crowning not only easier, but downright enjoyable. They allow for extremely precise crowning with the combination of the long flat edge and the radius, and they are long enough and heavy enough to feel "right" in my large hands. One flaw - they are not marked as to which side is wide or medium, and are not marked well as to the grit. 10 minutes with an engraving bit and this problem is solved, but it would be nicer to have them factory marked. Still - ABSOLUTELY WORTH THE MONEY.

Highly recommend this tool if you're doing fret work. It would be nice to have the 2 sides labeled for the money. Had an imperfection on the medium side that caused some gouging in the frets. StewMac had another sent to me immediately. Just used it the other day and did a nice job.

Used every day. No other crowning file I've used compares. Ditto the comments recommending better labeling. Big time saver.

The main advantage over other diamond grit files is the curved ends allowing you to crown frets that are over the body. It's expensive and uncomfortable to use because it has no handle. Quality is good but I still prefer regular files

I had absolutely no experience dressing frets, and was terrified at the prospect of crowing them. But, nothing ventured and nothing gained. Acquired a beater guitar to practice on and ordered this file based on the reviews. Seems very well built. I leveled the frets and then set about crowing them (using the 300 grit to play it safe.) I was amazed at how easy it was to do, as the file did all of the work. It didn't leave much behind in the way of tool marks or scratches, so polishing was easy after. Today I summoned the courage to tackle the frets on my beloved SG and it came out fantastic. My pro guitar player friend thought I'd had it professionally done, and couldn't believe it when I told him I did it myself. So long as you go easy and don't remove too much material - but this quality file got me over my fear of working on frets. Highly recommended!

I'm really glad I have both the 300g and the 150g. It would be great if the file was labeled which side was for wide fretwire, OR if the file had 300 on one side and 150 on the other. Awesome tool.

The Offset Diamond Fret File is the perfect complement to the 18" Aluminum Radius Sanding Beam for fast, precise fret dressings. It very quickly rounds the fret, keeping it centered automatically. However, you must keep filings cleaned out often (very easy to do) because too much dirt piled-up between the fret and the file will chatter a bit.

My only complaint is that after a while, it gets tiring to hold, as it could really use some kind of grip or handle. And markings could be better, like the ability to quickly tell which side is which.

By far the best tool for fret-filing. Perfect for both full-length and partial-length filing. Renders a very nice crowning too. Gets the job done without leaving any rough marks. Expensive indeed but you won't need any other tool for all relevant tasks.

I've worn out 4 of these over the years. They save lots of time. I did receive one that was defective a few years back but sm immediately replaced it.