cheap side dots

I was looking all over last week for something locally I could get really cheap for side dots with no luck.

This is one of the things that crossed my mind that could be used pretty easily. I thought about all those pieces I threw a way as a kid...nice save there.

The first place I looked was my daughter's pick up sticks game...no black ones in there...surely she wouldn't have missed just one right? I had to order about 23" of 2mm for just over $3 shipped, it's not like it broke the bank but it wasn't free

 

I looked at a broken umbrella in my garage last night, and thought to myself, those metal rods would make great side dots....... I think I need to get out more!

 

I just use a 3/32" forstner drill bit and fill it with minwax wood putty.
http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=17356 - I've used the ebony, walnut and white and they look great. Once you sand it completely flat it looks great. Can't get any cheaper than that if you want a bunch of side markers.

 

Hobby stores sell white and black 1/16" plastic rods for CHEAP.

 

Brass rod used to work in the 70's. Bone works too.

 

Sure, the first time it's just one. Then you're sneaking back in for another until it's a full blown habit and little miss doen't have a game anymore.

Seriously, she probably would miss it. If I remember correctly, the single black stick is used in game play as a helper. Where's the emoticon for "sticking out like a sore thumb"

Peace,
Mark

 

I'm all for saving money but 6" of plastic side dot material (black or white, 1/16" or 3/32") is $1.15 at StewMac, which means it can probably also be found at a local hobby shop for a dollar.

Sheesh!

 

Good point, but I guess this depends on where you live. And, it's not always about saving money. I think maybe the bigger picture here is that some folks, myself included, get a kick out finding value in things that would otherwise be thrown out. It's interesting to see things for more than their original intended use...opens up the mind to new possibilities.

My 2 cents...

Peace,
Mark

 

I have searched all over for good material for this. In the end...I buy the stewmac stuff. One piece will do like a Cazillion-gillion guitars. Well, about 4 or 5 anyway...

I buy about 4 or 5 pieces at a time and they last for many many necks.

 

I think grizzly sells the rod for pretty cheap too.

 

And that's cool too!

Best,

Kevin.

 

Not a dumb idea at all , I am always looking for stuff like this .

 

I have used ebony dust and super glue for black dots.

 

I used a guitar pick for the plastic material and a leather circle punch from the local hardware store to make my side markers. It was a great solution for the tortoise shell inlays I wanted. I wish I could say I thought of it!

 

I just tried something I found on another forum last night...I tried it on some scrap and it seemed to work good. Drill the holes as you normally would, fill them with a little baking soda and drop on some CA. It will apparently give it a pearl type of affect, plus keep your board smelling fresh!!!

 

Did pretty much the same thing as gooberman on a fingerboard when I lost one of the dots, but used chalk instead of baking soda. Seems to have worked fine so far...

 

I wanted stainless steel, so I grabbed a bunch of crochet hooks my wife was throwing out. The Dremel cut off some slices, then I installed them with CA. For the record, 1.3 crochet hooks comfortably handles a 22-fret neck.

 

Makes me wish I would have kept the extra red plastic from that '57 Chevy model I did in the late 70's/early 80's (I don't mean making the model spanned two decades, I just can't remember exactly when it was !)