I worked on the fretboard for the last couple of days, deepening and widening the cuts for the frets, first using the very thin saw I started the slot with , then a slightly wider blade Japanese saw, and finally with my "proper" fretboard saw. There is no depth gauge on the saw, so I just draw a line on the blade with a black Sharpie about 3/32" from the teeth.
I then make sure the depth of the cut is sufficient using a section of fret wire on which I sanded off the barbs of the kerf. The frets are cut slightly too long and then hammered in with the mallet on the anvil. I didn't use any glue, I believe the ebony is hard enough to hold them. I hammer the edges especially hard, and then bend them in some more and blunt them with a small brass hammer.
Fingers crossed!
After sanding the ends of the frets and rounding them with a fret file, it is actually beginning to look pretty good, with the large brass dots matching the fret color:
I will do some more filing and sanding, till it is as smooth and "perfect" as I can achieve with my limited skills and tools. I still need to check the frets are level, try to get them level with the mallet, and possibly sand them level if absolutely necessary.
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