In this episode we grind down a Tokai Tele with some major fret wear. / mikes-guitar-workshop-... #luthier #guitarrepairs #tremolo #guitars #guitarfrets #guitar
@@dr_3vo yes, I did. Thank you very much. Frets were deeply worn out, so I balanced them, crowned them, end-dressed them and buffed them... Bends are a sweet thing to do now!
You can prevent rapid wear by keeping frets shiny and free of rough areas. Various materials to polish frets include 0000 steel wool, jeweler’s rouge and Fret Eraser wipes..
I have a 1983 Telecaster "BreezySound" I bought new from L&M in Vancouver ..$249 w/case.. Been a real workhorse over the years and still going strong..!
This guy played a millimeter into his frets in two years, he’s going to be into the fretboard in another two years if you takeoff a millimeter. I had a guitar tech take this shortcut, in a year later I need to replace the frets. Most frets are only 2.0-2.4mm on the average guitar to start. That doesn’t leave much room to sand off. When you see deep dents it’s time to replace them if you have the time or money.
I disagree, a common fret width is 2.0 - 2.4mm, but the average fret crown height is about 1.2mm. The highest I know of is Jescar super jumbo 58118 with a crown height of 1.47mm. I think Ibanez is about 1.3mm. I have never heard of a crown height of 2.0 - 2.4mm, it would be impossible to fret a chord in tune with frets that height, it would be like playing a heavily scalloped fret board.
Great video. I had to do that to my 96 Clapton Blackie. Had only one issue, tape lifted the lacquer off a few of the dots, I found that a light drop of super glue fixes that. A couple applications level it out.
Nice video. But I would have just replace the 3 damaged frets and then level all the frets to the height of the lowest un-damaged fret. He just level all the frets to the lowest point of the damaged fret...effectively shorten the life span of all the undamaged frets. So now this guitar will probably need a complete re-fret job sooner rather than later.
I've been playing the shit out of my MIA Strat since 2004, frets on the lower register are pretty worn down but its still playing fine. Frets above the 12th do feel chunky, though.
I got an old cheap Yamaha acoustic triple-oh with several frets like that and for some reason they don't affect the playability one bit and it happens to be the only guitar I own that I haven't dressed the frets on. But damn it's a sweetheart.
I got this kind of fret wear on my Ovation custom, it’s not quite that deep but it’s going to need work soon as I play two hours a day for the past five years.
very nice work saving the frets had same issue last week on a guitar ,I was able to save them but told the guy next time ill have to pull those 3 frets advised him to bring it back in 6 months for a fret dressing and recrowning ,recently bought fret erasers really like them they are made by rosco and cost 20 US dollars but not for everyone ,ill see how they hold up and let you know in a few moths but so far im liking them for polishing
@@TempoDrift1480 A lot of people find background music distracting. I didn't even notice it until it was pointed out. As far as people commenting on people's videos, that's sort of the entire point of RU-vid. That's like asking why someone left a bad review on a product they don't like. Not every "negative" comment falls under the philosophy of, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say it at all." 🤷♂️
Hi Mike. I’m Tim from Tim Russell Guitar. I always am looking for other luthiers/ techs to possibly look for ideas and otherwise ways to accomplish repairs other than the way I do them. Thanks for doing what y’all do..
Final result looks good to me, not sure why all the criticism. There is plenty of fret height left and they are all nice and smooth now, what's not to like?
Hello Mike! Very nice video and beautifully executed fret job! I like your quiet manner and the music too! I've been watching your video because I'm in a similar situation. Bought a second hand guitar and the frets are a bit worn. I'm trying to decide what to do, a full refret, a partial refret or just leveling and crowning the frets. The frets are worn up to the seventh position, but even above that, the fret tops show signs of wear. Even the 12th fret has a flattened top on the bass side. The 10th, 11th and from the 13th up to the 20th are good. The frets are "medium" Jescar 51100, original crown height is 1.30 mm. The tallest frets on the fretboard tongue are 1.25 mm, but the first three frets are only 1.05-1.1 mm, measured on top the fret, outside the divots. I have no idea how deep those divots are, not very deep. It's a classical guitar and it's kinda interesting that there are shallow, wide divots under the nylon trebles just like under the wound basses. What would you do? I think these frets can accomodate a leveling and re-crowning, but I feel sorry for the 8 or 10 almost intact upper frets. I don't want to lose height if not absolutely necessary. At the same time even a partial refret would be a bigger job, considering that if I change the first three frets, I should change the others up to the 7th, 8th or 9th position, too. I think I'll just go for a simple leveling and re-crowning, and if I don't like the feel, or wear the frets down, I'll re-fret the whole fretboard with narrower frets, because the present ones are not my favourite type anyway. Do you think it's a good idea?
HI. If the frets are to low, which it will seem according to your measurements. The top is 1.1 and that excludes the divet you write. So once you level those, they might be at 0.8 and when you play, your finger tips will most likely be pressing against the actual fretboard. I believe in your case, a minimal refret is in order up to the good ones. Regards
Thanks for the video! Is replacing 3 frets that much harder than actually relevelling and recrowning the entire fretboard? Was it because of the maple finish?
This sort of wear does NOT come from fretting. Only the open string has enough amplitude to cut into the fret wire this way. That string was very likely set up a little too low or played very hard over very long stretches of time. Steel strings will also increase wear.
I’m a newbie when it comes to fret repair, but my first Strat (Squire) has tall (oem) jumbo’s which I hate, they’re too high and require to much pressure. I definitely like the Tele Fender’s with the flat style of frets, how much would it cost to lower and flatten these frets so it has playability like a modern Tele? If I’m using incorrect language to describe the repair that I’d like, please excuse me. Like I said it’s my first Strat.
Tall frets should be easier to play, but fret height doesn’t effect how hard you have to press the strings. I think you may be talking about the action (distance from strings to the frets) this is a much easier fix and adjusts by turning the small Allen key screws in the saddles. Chances are the nut sluts might be a little high as well. That might be something you leave to a pro but it should only cost a few bucks. If you really want to grind the frets down you’re probably talking about 100.00$ or so.
Mike - now that the frets are down to 1mm instead of 1.2, would you file the nut slots down 0.2mm as well for consistency? Or is this a non-issue. Thanks
Very accurate work! Man.. I have an answer for you. My strat has a compound radius 9.5 to 12. Honestly i dont like it. Is it possible to convert to a flat radius? What do you think about it? Thank you so much... I subscribed to your channel.
@@rossmitson The problem is that i love my guitar.... and i love the neck. Is a custom shop... i dont want to change parts honestly. I think i will accept this compound cause the tone is warm as i need!
What is that tool you used to measure the frets? It looks like a caliper slide of some sort. Is there a certain kind that is better to use for guitar necks? I have a vintage Helios made in West Germany but it seems stuck and I know so little about these. Is it absolutely necessary or will other standard neck measuring tools work as well? P.S. was that a common shop metal file you used first before the long wood file w 600 grit on it? Did you adjust the neck truss to make the fret board completely flat? You used the entire long level to measure flatness of the frets,
how do you know if all the frets are perfectly leveled, when the guitar neck is not actually straight due the strings not exercising tension, do you measure every fret’s height independently?
You adjust the truss rod if needed to make sure the neck is flat after removing the strings. You use a special tool to check, its like a metal straight edge ruler the length of the neck with cut outs to go over the frets, and allow it to sit flat on the fretboard.
@@bluesky6985 I know but, you mean you have to straight the neck without strings before doing this, how precise is that procedure, how much is the margin for errors?
@@marzbitenhaussen The flattening of the fretboard by turning the truss rod (for loosening turn counterclock wise) before leveling the frets is absolutely necessary, and can be very precisely done at about less than 0,1mm error. Even an error of 0,2mm isn‘t a problem if dissipated on the whole length. After restringing and tuning to pitch, the neck has to be set again straight with the truss rod (tightening, turning clockwise)or with a very very small relief, because otherwise string tension pulls the headstock too much forwards.
I have had quite a few cheap acoustic guitars in my life and never had fret wear. I bought myself another cheap Yamaha F310 a year ago and within 6 months I have wear like the frets in this video. I do play with a capo a lot, but still, I'm disappointed. I do set-ups myself, but will not take a chance with this and I figure it'll probably cost me the same as what I paid for the guitar to fix.
At 5:06 you heavily file the first ~7 frets only. Doesn't that create an uneven fret height across the entirety of the board? Wouldn't you want to file fret material from the first and last fret? Regardless of using the longer filing beam in the subsequent step, that looks like you only went to the ~12th fret. I'm confused how this disparity in the fret heights would not create an extremely uneven fret height across the neck.
I blended the subsequent files in the next step with the longer beam. Due to the fact that the neck will have some relief, it's all in the setup afterwards and that miniscule difference won't be felt or heard.
You have filed 4 upper freat only or I may missed, could not seen for rest of freat, how you managed the buzzing on lowwe freat by down our freat 1 mm, I think all 22 freat has to be down by 1 mm.
@@Mikes-tuts-rev happened to my les Paul custom within the first year and a half. You are absolutely correct with the hard playing. 4 to 6 hours a day with constant hammer-on scale exercises . Needless to say, fingers were very strong ..
How much time did it take you to do that job? I think I could've done it faster without all the masking tape. Thanks. I like your fret crowning tool a lot, I bought some expensive ones from StewMac and they really don't have enough angle on the sides.
So he lower all the frets to the height of the bad one. This is the worst job I’ve seen in years and you people congratulate him. He made them all bad to save the bad one.😆😆
Well....the frets do have to be level. One could argue that he should have just replaced the frets, but you cannot file one down to remove divots without working on the other frets.
@@YesuAiNimen he could just replaced one man. Or try the damn thing. If it plays good than it is good. It does not have to look perfect to play well. Nobody tries the instruments no more. We look to much at this instruments and play too little.👍
Fenders use real crappy frets , every fender i have played on has crappy frets that ware down real fast they are too soft , My Gibson has way stronger frets and don't seem to show any ware yet , so no Fenders are crap .
