jimmyl51 Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 What on earth is going on with Gibson these days?........ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85n9ZbdPBJM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sleeko Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 What on earth is going on with Gibson these days?........ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85n9ZbdPBJM Umm yeah . . . I'll keep my nubs thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveFord Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 I wonder, are they still leaving the fret ends sharp? The best thing about the nibs is it covered up the sharp edges that they've been blessing us with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capmaster Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 I wonder, are they still leaving the fret ends sharp? The best thing about the nibs is it covered up the sharp edges that they've been blessing us with. Hm... none of my Gibson guitars and basses without bindings have sharp fret ends. By the way, none of my instruments of other brands, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveFord Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 My 335 Satin and Les Paul Special both had sharp fret ends. My Les Paul Studio doesn't so it appears to be the luck of the draw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernie69 Posted February 14, 2014 Share Posted February 14, 2014 Hi guys I hope this will not be generalized to all ESsss !! I am not a professional musician and in the choice of a new guitar, the question of comfort and playability comes first. I am the happy owner of a ES339 and I felt immediatly at home when I tried it, it was the same with my Jazz Epiphone too and , as my next axe will certainly be a 335, I have started to test some in shops, and I must admit that the frets issue already prevents me to decide if I pursue or not I find the standard 335 frets too high and with sharps ends, which is not the case with my 339 or even with the YAM SA2200. Will it be a problem for me in the future or do we adapt easily to the 335 frets ( by the way E Clapton or R Ford pay 335s !!!) Do you know if all 335 have the same frets or if some have Small and flat smooth frets ?? Thank you for your help !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
budglo Posted February 14, 2014 Share Posted February 14, 2014 I have never had a problem with sharp frets with any of my guitars without binding. That would be a boatload of strats , 5 acoustics, a Gibson LP Studio that I had , etc. I do much prefer nibs if they are done right, but I have seen some real hack jobs and I mean from the factory. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveFord Posted February 14, 2014 Share Posted February 14, 2014 Bernie, I can only speak for my 335 but I had to do a fair amount of work to the frets on it but it was worth it. It now plays really well and the guitar just feels like home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernie69 Posted February 14, 2014 Share Posted February 14, 2014 Thank you for your answers the thing is, the 335s I tried in shops do have what you call "nibs" ( I understand it s the white binding overlapping the frets ?) but on the ES339 the ends have a smooth angle as they seem to be square on the 335. Is there anybody here owning ( or having owned) both 339 and 335 ? to confirm this difference and tell me if it is difficult to adapt from 339 towards 335 ? But if the 335 I buy ( it is not done yet)do not please me,Im afraid it will be impossible to work the frets without damaging the white preformed plastic binding ( which I really like on the 339) By the way I forgot>>>> greetings from France !!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaicho8888 Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 No nibs, just like a Chibson? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
badbluesplayer Posted March 5, 2014 Share Posted March 5, 2014 Thank you for your answers the thing is, the 335s I tried in shops do have what you call "nibs" ( I understand it s the white binding overlapping the frets ?) but on the ES339 the ends have a smooth angle as they seem to be square on the 335. Is there anybody here owning ( or having owned) both 339 and 335 ? to confirm this difference and tell me if it is difficult to adapt from 339 towards 335 ? But if the 335 I buy ( it is not done yet)do not please me,Im afraid it will be impossible to work the frets without damaging the white preformed plastic binding ( which I really like on the 339) By the way I forgot>>>> greetings from France !!!! I've had both and my 335 seems like it has a little higher frets and a little sharper ends. Not a big deal. You'll get used to it no problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernie69 Posted March 7, 2014 Share Posted March 7, 2014 Thank you for your advice; I sooooo want a 335: apart from the neck ; the difference in size is not a problem to me, curiously I feel more at ease with the 335 ( than the 339) when I try it in shops. I play seated and the 339 keeps slipping from my knees when I play,and ,as the 335 body is bigger, the fretboard and the place where the pick hits the strings are closer to the eyes on the 335 .Otherwise, the 339 is a jewel, and if I want a really "sexy" 335 to replace it, I'll have to look at the Figured one at least!!! I have another question not related to Gibson but to the songs: do you know a site where I coud find "Hattiesburg hustle " from wrren Haynes? chords ? I play some blues with friends ( a family band >>>the younger musician is thirteen years old ) and we are looking for new songs and this one is a very good one with endless impro possibilities. Thank you again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjmwrx Posted March 8, 2014 Share Posted March 8, 2014 As soon as I bought my ES339 I had it re-fretted fret over binding. It was well worth the 175.00 since I got the guitar on clearance for just a hair over 1600.00. Had Dunlop 6130 frets installed. Third Coast Guitars did the work, and they do an AMAZING job. One of the things I hate about Bound Gibson's is the Fret Nub. MOST of the other high end manufacturers do fret over binding (PRS etc.) IHMO leaving fret nibs is just a way for Gibson to reduce costs. It takes more work/time to under cut each fret than slap frets on and slap the binding over it with some quick filing later. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernie69 Posted March 8, 2014 Share Posted March 8, 2014 Amazing! these frets seem perfect! how did they do this without damaging the rest of the binding ? How would you describe these frets shape ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjmwrx Posted March 8, 2014 Share Posted March 8, 2014 Not really sure. I would imagine they pull the old frets out, sand the binding flat with the board. Undercut the new frets and install. Then file them to profile. I would say old school Gibson, however not as wide. Quite low as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drog Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 I've had both and my 335 seems like it has a little higher frets and a little sharper ends. Not a big deal. You'll get used to it no problem. I would describe them as square ends and frets.Where the 339 is ground down and edges more softened, the 335 & 330 have a more square fret ( which feels sharp). I guess its more of a traditional style fret. I love how Ibanez dresses their prestige frets, nice and round on the ends. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pin Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 As soon as I bought my ES339 I had it re-fretted fret over binding. It was well worth the 175.00 since I got the guitar on clearance for just a hair over 1600.00. Had Dunlop 6130 frets installed. Third Coast Guitars did the work, and they do an AMAZING job. One of the things I hate about Bound Gibson's is the Fret Nub. MOST of the other high end manufacturers do fret over binding (PRS etc.) IHMO leaving fret nibs is just a way for Gibson to reduce costs. It takes more work/time to under cut each fret than slap frets on and slap the binding over it with some quick filing later. YUK! Nah, but whatever floats your boat mate. It seems the ruination of a good neck to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjmwrx Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 YUK! Nah, but whatever floats your boat mate. It seems the ruination of a good neck to me. That is YOUR opinion. And you know what they say about opinions. I wouldn't knock it so hard until you've tried it yourself. The original LPs back in the 50s were done fret over binding. Gibson only changed the process to streamline manufacturing. SO, if you are inclined to hold on to your cheaper manufacturing process, by all means. Enjoy your nibs! I will enjoy the full width of my fretboard. Not to mention a LOT of the Custom Shop instruments are done fret over binding as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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