Binding a fretboard???

[moikey]

Hi Guys, I'm back for more questions after a few months out.

I have a fretboard and some nice ivoroid binding to go around it. The fretboard is the perfect size, perfectly cut. Will I need to cut the 1.5mm around the outside, or will the binding be blended with the neck?

I would have assumed that it would be cut to the pre-binding size (1.5mm less on all sides), but I have been researching and seen some articles on fitting binding on an existing fretboard, which wasn't cut down. I'm a little confused. Whats the best way to approach this? Terrified that I'm going to remove too much material at this stage.

 

[DistinguishedPapyrus]

You'll need to cut a channel into the side of the fretboard, if this fretboard you have is already glued to the neck, but if its still seperate from the neck just simply trim back the sides. I would recommend using a router, flush trim template bit and a straight edge piece of scrap or MDF. Always works for me. Usually you'd also want to cut it so the binding sits just proud of the surrounding wood, then scrape it flush.