Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Tech => Topic started by: MartinS on October 21, 2008, 04:38:19 PM
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Hi. I've got a 1979 Gibson 335 (with BK Mules).
I've noticed that there are some notable dents in the frets, particularly towards the nut. I'm not sure how serious this is, whether it's a problem that needs fixing, or what. I do quite a lot of vibrato, so maybe that's contributed to it. Should it be dealt with through a fret redress, perhaps? Given the bound neck, I'd imagine a re-fret would be expensive and potentially damaging.
Any ideas / advice?
Thanks.
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A fret dress will fix any immediaite issues.
In the longer term it will need a re-fret as the frets wear out, but a good luthier can do that no problem. Even keeping the binding 'nibs' if they do it properly (time consuming).
I'd take it to a good tech and get the frets dressed/levelled/crowned :)
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Even keeping the binding 'nibs' if they do it properly (time consuming).
just because gibson does it that way doesnt make it 'proper' :P
a fret dress should sort you out unless they are really deep.. all need re-fretting eventually - just make sure you get someone who comes well recomended. its a bit trickier because of the size of the guitar, the binding (especially if you keep the nibs), and the set neck... so it should be expensive - dont trust too cheap quotes
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Hey where the hell did my post go that I made before. Either way, yeah, what they just said.
Where about's are you, maybe someone can rocemmend someone good in the local area. Always worth going a good recommendation.
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Jon from Feline did a masterly job of fret dressing my strat - I would recommend him to anyone in the SE of England (or further afield)
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Agree - very common sight on the lower frets - especially on the G/B strings- worthwhile spending ££ with someone who knows what they are doing - you don't want to ruin a nice guitar by giving it to a gorilla with a sharp file!!
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Thanks. I'm in Birmingham. I'll try to get some photos to post to illustrate.
What kind of cost are we talking for a re-fret?
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I can recommend Jonathan at Feline in Croydon as well, they've just refretted my telecaster - wonderful job.
His prices are here http://www.felineguitars.com/repairs/repairs.htm (http://www.felineguitars.com/repairs/repairs.htm).
Doesn't look cheap when you add it up - seems quite scary if you've not even thought about it before - but I would stress what Wez said about cheap quotes, it's quite a piece of surgery to get it just nice. Ten years ago I let a friend do his first refret on a guitar of mine for cost - it plays, but fret ends are a little inconsistent, he damaged the board a bit here and there. I knew what he was doing and I'm happy with the choice I made at the time... but it's your baby and you're going to have to live with it afterwards.
Are you getting buzzing on the worn frets? If it's not severe, and they've never been dressed before, then you might have a few dresses in it yet. My tele was easily dressable, but as I've had it new only 7 months, it was obvious I was wearing into the soft frets quite quickly, so I reasoned that I could easily spend the price of a refret (with quality, harder wearing wire) on fret dresses over a year or two!!
If you find a decent luthier like Jonathan, he'll be upfront over what's involved, hidden costs etc (eg you'll probably need a new nut on a refret) he'll look yours over, advise you on your options, etc. Hopefully you can get to see and feel some examples of their work as well.
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OK, I guess this is about the worst. (I found it difficult to get decent shots.) I'm not sure it looks like much. Various frets are worn in various players along the length of the neck. What do you lot think?
(http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk188/ponychairblack/DSC01715.jpg)
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Anyway, here's a picture of the whole thing...
(http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/kk188/ponychairblack/axe.jpg)
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Looks like it needs a careful fret dress.
Next time after that you'll want to consider a refret
This guy seems good - not too far from Brum if you drive
http://www.leicestershire-luthier.co.uk/
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Hmmm. Natural goodness.
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This guy seems good - not too far from Brum if you drive
http://www.leicestershire-luthier.co.uk/
And close enough to me to come round and buy me a pint :D
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Looks like it needs a careful fret dress.
Next time after that you'll want to consider a refret
This guy seems good - not too far from Brum if you drive
http://www.leicestershire-luthier.co.uk/
Thanks - probably less than an hour from me. I've sent an email.
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I did my own recently on my strat using a nail file, some fine sandpaper, masking tape and some metal pollish.
It took a while but I must say, I did a great job. The frets are now better than when they were now, they are a smooth as mirrors and not a 'Jumbo' as before. The guitar is set up great and it intonates well.
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Braver man than me tom! :lol:
In principle I know it's not beyond me, but I'd be terrified of messing it up - I'll screw around with truss-rods, electrics, all hardware, I'll even lower nuts by filing down the underside, I've taken the finish off of necks/bodies... I'll do almost anything to a guitar except mess with the frets. Still there's a few years in me yet, I might start one day :lol:
Lovely looking guitar there Martin :D
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Actually my old Strat is in a similar state which is hardly surprising given that it has had 30 years of regular usage though more so in the last 10 years or so.
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Lovely looking guitar there Martin :D
Thanks. I love it. It's got understated mojo. I know a lot of 335s have been converted to stop-tail, but I really think the trapeze makes it look like more of an instrument with the extra string length. The Mules made a world of difference, too. The stock pickups were alnico v, and really hot. It was like riding a wild bronco sometimes trying to avoid excessive feedback. Now it's crisp and clear, sweet and surly when it needs to be.
I still wonder about those Mississippi Queens, though.
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Braver man than me tom! :lol:
In principle I know it's not beyond me, but I'd be terrified of messing it up - I'll screw around with truss-rods, electrics, all hardware, I'll even lower nuts by filing down the underside, I've taken the finish off of necks/bodies... I'll do almost anything to a guitar except mess with the frets. Still there's a few years in me yet, I might start one day :lol:
Lovely looking guitar there Martin :D
I've just read the original post, I did it on my 90's strat which although I like if it had gone wrong I'd have upgraded to an allparts chunky neck (never loved the thin C AM standard necks anyway). I'd be terrified of messing it up myself on a 1979 335!
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Do you think I'd notice much difference if I had the fret dress done?
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hell yeah!!
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Really? Like, that much?
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that wear affects how far you have to push to fret strings so first off you may get slight tuning inconsistencies because of it. especially when the wear is un-even along the neck. Also generally once frets are at that stage they start to feel rough and probably have some sever string marks and any bending is hindered
get the buggers level, get them shiny and smooth and get the guitar appropriately set up... then the guitar will feel a hell of a lot better.
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Yeah, definitely. I find that as long as there's no serious fret-buzz etc, you can play a guitar with frets like that, but you "learn" how to get round the uneven feels and so on. You've also got a slight insecure feeling of "my frets are wearing out, don't know whether this terminal..." at the back of your mind.
Get the frets done, and I find the conscious difference isn't huge, but suddenly the thing feels nicer, and the sub-conscious doubts are gone. eg. I've just switched to JUMBO on a tele - it should feel like a different guitar, but it doesn't, it just feels a whole lot more reliable now that there's decent crowned and polished frets on there.
It increases the proportion of "good days" in the "my playing is good/bad" scheme of things :D
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Cheers. The guitar buzzes like buggeree when it's played acoustically, but I seem to remember reading somewhere that 335s are like that. However, I was having another look at the guitar last night, and there are dents in just about every fret on the B and G strings, and some on the E and D strings. The tops of the frets are also slightly flat, and also look grazed, which I guess is the string marks WezV is referring to.
Anyway, I've booked it in!
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Looks like it needs a careful fret dress.
Next time after that you'll want to consider a refret
This guy seems good - not too far from Brum if you drive
http://www.leicestershire-luthier.co.uk/
Hi. Took my guitar to this guy just before Christmas and picked it up yesterday. Certainly very enthusiastic and knows his stuff. He talks in millimeters, and tenths thereof. Very precise. It had a fret dress, slip-stone nut, a new Gotoh bridge, as the original has sagged slightly, service and set-up. Not bad for £100.
The guitar feels fantastic. (And my wife commented several times on its shine. Ahem.) All the buzz has gone, the sustain's extended, and I'm not sure what's gone on with the bridge pickup but it sounds far better than it did before. I suspect he may have lowered the pickups a little.
The frets are schmoooove. The action's a little lower than it was, and although I don't like a too-low action, it works fine for me. Other than that there's just a general change in how it feels. Maybe it's just that bit more inspiring.
He was very complimentary about it, too. One of the better 335s he's come across - which surprised me as I thought 79 wasn't one of the best years. He said it feels as good as a 72 he's had, only sounds better, and also comparible to a 60-something. Far better than the new one he has in.
Certainly a recommendation from me to go to this guy if you're in the area. Obviously takes great pride in his work. I feel like my guitar's had a fornight in a health spar, where it's been massaged and soothed and spent time in the Jacuzzi!
Thanks for the tip!
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Nice one - glad it worked out well :D
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He said it feels as good as a 72 he's had, only sounds better, and also comparible to a 60-something. Far better than the new one he has in.
ah... the joys of BKPS :)
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Really glad it worked out nicely.
It's one of the joys of having a network of "friends" on a forum like this who can point you in the right direction.
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Sounds good! Anybody know any good luthiers near Belfast?