StewMac Miter Blade for Binding Video
V-0360
Guitar repairman and builder Dan Erlewine came up with this clever blade for use in your drill press or our Fret Arbor Press. It's extremely sharp and cuts wood or plastic bindings in one clean stroke.
Video Transcription
[on-screen text reads: Stewart-MacDonald - StewMac Miter Blade for Binding]
Dan Erlewine: Here's the StewMac Miter Blade. I'm using it to get a perfect joint on this laminated binding. And with it I can get really clean miter joints [on-screen text reads: Dan Erlewine, Guitar Repairman, Author] like on this Flying V guitar I'm working on.
Sharp square binding joints are one of the first things I look at when I see a guitar, and it's a sign of good craftsmanship.
Before coming up with this idea, I used to use a handheld chisel. If I got out of plumb or square the littlest bit, I didn't get a good joint. Often I'd keep chopping away to improve the joint and then end up taking too much off and throwing the piece out and starting over. Then one day I was mitering some white tortoise, white binding, and I came up with this idea. And you can see it in an old trade secrets video [on-screen text reads: Trade Secrets! Tech tips from stewmac.com]. I mounted a small blade into a wooden holder and super glued it in place. Then put a brass dowel in the end of it so I could chuck that in the drill press. After that trade secrets, a lot of people wanted one, so we did it up right, making it out of brass. And it's a real pro tool and I'm happy they liked my idea so much.
I like to polish the blade to a mirror shine so I can see the miter reflected before I cut it. Here, I'm trimming a piece of Brazilian rosewood into a small, accurate plug to inlay a chip in the fretboard of this vintage Telecaster [on-screen text reads: Trade Secrets! Tech tips from stewmac.com].
Straight clean vertical cuts are a must have for all types of woodworking, guitar building and guitar repair. And the StewMac Miter Blade is good for a lot of jobs, not just mitering binding.
