That slot cutting footage is the luthier's equivalent of the shower scene from 'Psycho' … a brutish coarse-toothed implement being wielded upon a cowering fret board … nightmare material. After my palpitations subsided, I thought 'Phew thank God it was only a bass'... but, before all the bassist brethren rush to ignite their flamethrowers, let me claim that my time fumbling up and down the bass neck qualifies me to joke about it.
More seriously though, by modern standards, my own fret slotting technique is primitive. I have only ever used a hand held saw (with depth stop), home-made aluminium fret scale rulers, a marking blade, and a true-squared wooden block for a guide (all applied with a healthy dose of trepidation).
Speaking of fretboards got me doing some measurements on different templates. One from Stewmac and one from Waldron. It occurs to me now (a bit too late) why some of my builds don’t sound the same! Argh! Think I’ll make my own from here on!