The skinny on guitar life and fret life

[ironlung40]

Hello all,

 

Here's the scoop, I'm an SG lover. I own 2. I have the 61 reissue and a special faded in worn brown. I'm loving these guitars! I have only owned them for about 1 year.

 

I've had a little concern though as of late, concerning the frets, particularly fret wear. How concerned should I be about this, and what kind of fret wear should I expect with these 2 guitars? I know it will depend on a lot of factors, like how much I play, string type, etc.

 

But, can anyone of you more veteran players share your experiences with fretwear, especially, if you're a gigging musician who really puts your guitar through heck with many shows/hours of play?

 

My ultimate concerns are:

 

1. I'm not rich, so fret replacement kinda scares me especially on the lower end faded model, as it seems a good professional refret may cost as much as half the value of the guitar when new.....would I be better off buying a new guitar come refret time on the faded?

 

2. with the 61 reissue, I worry about the binding. Can a proper refret be done without harming the binding?

 

3. I live 3 hours from the Nashville Gibson Headquarters, so if/when I do need a refret, would this be my safest option for ensuring that it gets refretted right and with as little harm as possible to the guitar.

 

4. Am I worrying too much over this, as a refret may not be such a big deal at all?

 

5. Is it atypical to expect to play one guitar for my lifetime provided that I have it refretted, or should I expect to have to buy a new one at some point......for instance if I only owned (1) guitar....like the 61 reissue.

 

thanks for any comments.....

[pohatu771]

From what I've read, taking it to Gibson is only a reasonable idea if you have a warranty claim or a major reconstruction of the instrument. For anything less, you're better off buying two new guitars. It would be cheaper.

[Robin Nahum]

Hi IL40

 

The need for refretting should still be some way off - and you might be rich by then.

 

Wiping your strings and neck immediately after you play will help prolong fret life by reducing the presence of abrasive agents - as will replacing your strings regularly.

 

A decent luthier can refret a bound neck as good as new. And yes, as far as I know a guitar can last close to a lifetime. Remember that electrics have only been around for seventy years.

 

"Hey farmer, have you lived here all your life?"

 

"It's too early to tell."

 

RN

[Murph]

They will start looking bad long before they start fretting out. My old '61 Melody Maker looks like the freakin' fretboard is scalloped. The frets are shot. It still plays with just a few rattles. I'd gig it if I had to.

 

The one I'm worried about is my J45 (acoustic). It has the smaller frets anyhow and I play that dude several hours a day. When I have to do it, it's getting stainless frets. Then I'm done.

 

[L5Larry]

Fret life is dependent on a few things, type of strings used, playing style, frequency of use, etc. Playing rock & roll music leads to accelerated fret wear due to roundwound strings, sliding barre chords and string bending.

 

I have played the frets off two guitars. When I had only one electric guitar, which was about 14 years old when I bought it, It wasn't long before it need a "fret Dressing". This made the frets smooth and level, but much shorter. After about another 5 years of playing it need new frets. All in all the original frets lasted a little over 20 years.

 

Another guitar I had lasted 25 years without the frets being touched (other than fret polishing, 000 steel wool). It was definitely in need of a fret job, but was fairly valuable Gibson in "original" condition. It was worth a premium on the resale market in original condition, so I decided to sell it rather than "alter" it.

 

So, in my experience, with way more than "average" amounts of rock & roll and blues playing time, the original frets should last 20-25 years.

 

On the other hand, I have a jazz guitar that is 63 years old with the original frets, fine playability, and years of fret life left. Using flatwound strings, playing jazz chords and mostly non-string bending type solos, go a long way to preserve frets.

[heymisterk]

Wow, what timing...I was just about to ask about this.

 

The frets on my acoustic look worn - especially in the "cowboy" position. My question is this: What are the symptoms while you are playing that you need a refret? I have never gone through this before, So I am not sure. I DO know that I have to press harder - despite low action - to get a good sound.

[deepblue]

Stainless Steel strings on Nickel fret wire will have you doing a premature fret job for sure.

 

Every Fender I have ever owned needed a fret job after about 4 years. I really twist the neck and push hard

with my fingers when I play. I always get Stainless Steel replacement fret wire and never have a problem after that.

[ironlung40]

Thanks for the replies, everyone.

 

Don't worry, I played my guitars today!

[Andre S]

hmm when that time comes....I will be learning a new skill...