L_Mo Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 Hey guys. It's time for another maintenance question! As far as I can tell, my frets need work. The easy answer is to just take it to a tech, but I've decided that my LP is going to be my project guitar, so I'd like to start doing some things myself. Is there a resource somewhere on how to re-shape frets? What tools will I need, and where can I get them? I'm sure there are books on the subject - are there any online resources people use? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suicidehummer Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 Probably just a file, but I'd just get new fretwire... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWANG Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 fretboards have a radius.. so to file them evenly up and down side to side.. you need either a lot of experience or a radiused block. available at stew mac. basically, you make the neck as straight as you can.. then level the frets.. a simple way is to mark the fret tops with magic marker and take just enough off to remove the lines. IF your guitar has just a few places where they are high.. I find out by cranking up the treble, putting on the headphones.. playing each fret on each string.. lowering the action a bit and repeating.. until I get to a point where lots of them are making rattles.. then I check the measurement of string height against manus recommendation.. this tells me either it's happening way early, or about where it has too.. If your guitar tells you it has a few high spots.. you can even use a flat block.. and do them. But, really, I think a first job would go much better if you used radiused block. you then have to draw across the frets... side to side.. and when you crown them.. this takes a tool for the specific fret size you have.. don't take more off. if the fret tops are rounded. the string will break cleanly off the fret.. if flat, it will almost always rattle. if the frets are not levelled properly, you've either gone to far, replace frets.. or not far enough. Takes a bit of doing to get right, that's just the truth. polishing them up helps, too. and even using a dremel or other powered method can further reduce the fret and you're back to rattle. I wouldn't call it a do it your selfers job, really. Depends on the guitar? got any junky guitars? try there first. fret level crown and polish.. google that and you ought to find several tutorials. stew mac for parts. though I sell that stuff cheaper. *g* TWANG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kozmo Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 If you've never done this then you need to practice on a POS guitar fretboard first!! This is not an easy job, this is why tech's charge $250 and up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RotcanX Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 If you've never done this then you need to practice on a POS guitar fretboard first!! This is not an easy job' date=' this is why tech's charge $250 and up![/quote'] Whoa whoa whoa $250 and up is for a re-fret. A fret levelling job should go in the range of $60 - $75, $90 max or else your tech is a crook. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWANG Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 some guys charge 100 and 125.. depending on the guitar.. if they see a few extra bucks investment, they jack it up a tad.. get that nervous factor workin for 'em. I do it piece by piece.. if the thing barely needs any work.. I don't charge as much even though I do the same steps.. doesnt' seem fair otherwise. but 250 .... hooochie mama! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcwillow777 Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 I got a Gibby LP re-fretted for $300, and I had a setup done on a G-400, with the frets being dressed and bridge saddles being filed for $75. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alfsboy Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 I straightened the neck on my Dot using the truss rod and then levelled all the frets using a heavy dry oil stone .i then dressed each fret rounding it back of using needle filed .I taped the fingerboard first to avoid damage,just leaving the frets showing . ,also the pickups .I didnt even remove the strings, just loosened them a bit and taped them up to each side .This saved restringing just to check progress .It all worked well ,possibly surprisingly ,and my action is now very low and no fret buzz whatsoever .I am experienced in working brass for master patterns for model autos , guns, etc however. I also filed down the black nut and improved the slots with an Xacto saw. , It transformed the playing and its now far better than any guitar of that type I have tried in a showroom however expensive in fact they all seem very clunky .I do like a low action and my Fender Strat is very low and playable.I wanted my Dot to play just like it and when I bought it I knew I would probably have to do it . Cannot recommend it enough though it was a bit drastic at the time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garyelcrrt1281733995 Posted March 7, 2008 Share Posted March 7, 2008 Probably just a file' date=' but I'd just get new fretwire...[/quote'] I bought a guitar from a guy who did that, once. Cost me another $475 to fix things. See, no matter how careful you are, you cannot apply even pressure from fret to fret with a simple hand file. Means that each fret winds up a different heights AND the high point of each fret is at a different point, somewhere across the top of the fret itself - and probably changes for each string on each fret. No matter what you do adjusting the saddles, intonation will still be off simply because the distance from fret to fret has been changed from standard. I strongly recommend finding a tech who can plek the guitar. This is a computer controlled process that includes relief, nut and intonation adjustments and then each fret is individually leveled to the same height, crowned and polished. It is moderately expensive. In San Francisco, the process runs between $200-250. The machine itself is very expensive. Nonetheless, the difference before and after is the largest single change to "feel" I've ever found. Additionally, once you and the tech have established the parameters of the job, the machine settings can be saved for future use with other guitars, so you wind up with as close to identical feel as you can get from guitar to guitar. It is one of the things I have done to every guitar I plan as a "keeper". I don't have the link anymore, but do a Google search for "guitar plek" and you can check out a lot of literature. Please note that Heritage and PRS both use the process, as well as many other builders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted March 8, 2008 Share Posted March 8, 2008 Understanding the job is key to being able to do it properly. You can really botch the job up if you don't understand the process and how and why each step is being done. My LP plays like a dream after my home workshop fret dressing. I like the radiused sanding block method, but $117 is steep for a tool to do a one time job. I used the magic marker method and slowly worked the frets down with a 2x2 I created on the table saw. This gave me a perfectly flat sanding block. I worked the ink off the frets slowly with 400 grit and then polished each fret (after taping the fingerboard) with 1000 grit. I later polished with some fish paper and a dremel cotton buffing wheel. I removed the tape and worked the fingerboard lightly with the cotton buffer wheel on the dremel and got a nice shine on the wood. Be careful on the fingerboard. The dremel will melt any plastic part it touches. The result was a slick feel that makes bending effortless and an action that I can lower more than I like without buzz (if I so desire). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carverman Posted March 8, 2008 Share Posted March 8, 2008 Understanding the job is key to being able to do it properly. You can really botch the job up if you don't understand the process and how and why each step is being done. My LP plays like a dream after my home workshop fret dressing. I like the radiused sanding block method. I worked the ink off the frets slowly with 400 grit and then polished each fret (after taping the fingerboard) with 1000 grit. I later polished with some fish paper and a dremel cotton buffing wheel. The result was a slick feel that makes bending effortless and an action that I can lower more than I like without buzz (if I so desire). This is the process that I'm using on my project LP (Spotlight special). I'm thinking (right now) of getting the G*bson type eight inch long (12inch radius) sanding block, although Stew-Mac also offer a 18" aluminum radius sanding beam, as you say, at $117. The sanding beam certainly makes the job a lot easier, but at a high cost for a "one off" project, although it can be used on other guitars that I have. The trick of course is to get the neck perfectly straight first with the truss rod alignment before having a go at it. Depending on how much has to come off the frets, re-crowning may be necessary, and that is why I chose the jumbo pyramid shaped frets . Even after considerable material removal, the profile still allows for a recrowning (to reduce the "speed bump" effect) and a nice polishing with the dremel tool and little attachments they sell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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