See the full list of fret presses at AMAZON here >>
QUESTION: Should I buy a 1 Ton/One Ton or Half/1/2 Ton Press For Fret Pressing?
ANSWERS I FOUND ON THE INTERNET…
A1: 1/2 ton is perfectly fine and you won’t have to worry about denting softer rosewoods and maple as much as 1 ton.
A2: 1 ton. I bought 1/2 ton because the were out of 1 tons when I was there. It’s fine and I’ve fretted a half dozen necks or so with it, but there are times when the extra reach of 1 ton would be nice.
A3: I bought the 1/2 ton Harbor Freight press which works great.
A4: I went from using a 1-ton to using the 1/2-ton StewMac one.
A5: I prefer throat of 1-ton by large margin – if I could transplant parts of 1/2 ton onto 1-ton frame, I’d prefer that.
With that said, it’s always possible to perch the press onto something solid to elevate it.
A6: I bought 1/2 ton Harbor press which works great. I also was concerned about drilling hole in arbor. Used a cheap drill press vise, also from HF which held very well and drilling was easy.
A7: A small press like a 1/2 ton is adequate for pressing frets in. I’ve got a big old arbor press that I made over into a fret press and I have to use a deliberate light touch with it.
A8: The 1/2 ton size can work as a fret press, but it’s a little light. The force on the handle is about the same as a small drill press. The 1 ton size is most commonly used for fret presses. That’s what the Stew-Mac press is.
A9: The arbor press works much better. However, there is some finesse involved. You must use it lightly. Even a small amount of extra leverage will crush the fret into the fretboard.
I hope these answers from luthiers and guitar re-freters is helpful. See the full list of fret presses at AMAZON here >>
See all luthier tools I recommend for guitar re-fretting here >>
