Make sure your jig supports the board to the cutting line...no chipping if done that way.

Todd, why do you need a supporting jig to cut a taper on a fretboard? A zero clearance insert and a double stepped spacer off the fence is all you need, shirley?

Well Frankly, I agree with Mr. Howard's rational

Todd, I'm sure I should know, but could you explain the "always cut downhill" comment. I've built one guitar, but am not an experienced wood worker.
thanks, Mike

Sure, Mike. I'm referring to the direction of the cut in relation to the runout of the grain. In this case, it means cutting from the wide end of the taper toward the narrow end. That way, you're cutting in toward the center of the board as you go, so that if a tooth of the blade chips out a bit of wood -- essentially breaking off a short section of a group of wood fibers as it hits -- that chip will be on the waste side of the cut. At least, almost all of the time it will be. I haven't had any chipout on my FB edges since I started doing it this way.

This would be easier to explain if we were in the same room with a piece of wood in hand.

So I've been scratching my head and I still don't see why you wouldn't taper the fretboard off the fence ?

So I've been scratching my head and I still don't see why you wouldn't taper the fretboard off the fence ? Seems a lot less faffing than making up sleds and having to make accurate stops and fitting toggle clamps and so forth.

If you are using a double stepped spacer, and have a zero clearance insert, assuming your fretboard is truly rectangular (which it will be 'cos you've slotted it) then you simply make up a double stepped spacer by supergluing three lengths of scrap at half the taper width, run the first cut with the fence to the left hand side of the saw, and the second cut with the fence on the right (accurately set to give the correct width at the wide end of the board) .

You can't use featherboards in this situation, admittedly, but if you use a sensible "hold-down" with a proper friction grip, in conjunction with a push-stick, and a piece of duct tape to hold the spacer to the fretboard, I don't see what can go wrong ...

Using duct tape to hold the piece to the jig, in conjunction with a push stick, and you can't see what can go wrong????? You are apt to seriously injure yourself like that .And of course you will need two different spacers because after the first cut the dimensions off the fence change, or are you jigging to the scrap side? Another big safety no no! I just threw a board on my sled to demonstrate, no extra stops or anything just align wherever you want the cut and clamp then cut. Simple, effective and SAFE,. No offense but maybe this isn't your game.

No offense taken whatsoever, Brian ...but I don't think you are fully grasping what I mean by a double stepped spacer ...there is no registration off the scrap side involved...I have cut tapers this way (in thicker material admittedly) for 30 ...35 years, and I still have all my fingers...I see no reason why I can't cut my first fret board like this.

The new Bessey toggle clamps automatically adjust to material thickness (no more shims or fiddling with adjustment screws) and are a little cheaper than the knock-off Asian De-Sta-Cos at Woodcraft. Slowly converting all of my fixtures and jigs to the Besseys...brilliant design and execution.

Wayne Henderson cuts his dovetail sockets with a block taped in place...not something I would consider doing, because I still have dreams about the guy I saw feed his hand into a jointer.

If not very, very comfortable with the table saw and aware just how fine the line is between successful taper and disaster, I think a positively registered cut (sled running in rail slot) is a safer procedure than using permissively registered jigs like a fence-aligned or jig block.

[quote="Todd Stock" I just reverse the board...I know there is potential for a little more tearout, but I think a sharp blade makes up for a lot of that. Just one sled for me.