Fret Level WOW!!!

Inspector #20

Inspector #20

Ambassador of Tone
Fallen Star
Country flag
WOW!!!!!

I restrung the Destroyer tonight after the fret level and I was SHOCKED at how different the guitar sounded!!! My wife, who never pays musical stuff much attention, commented and asked me what I did!!! NOTHING was changed but the fret level and crown and I didn't even re-set the intonation yet!!!! I mean, this operation completely transformed the guitar's tone to something bell-like and vibrant. Each and every note is clear all the way up the neck. I left the 2nd fret action at .010" (fretted at he 1st) and actually RAISED the 12th fret unfretted action from .050" bass side / /040" treble side to .060" on both sides and it's just PHENOMENAL!!!

I've paid for fret levels and crowns before, but I NEVER experienced anything like this....UNREAL!!!

Anyone else experience this????
 
Yep. Any time I get an inexpensive guitar, I play it for 5 minutes, then do a level. Congrats. A new world has been opened to you.
 
RVA said:
Yep. Any time I get an inexpensive guitar, I play it for 5 minutes, then do a level. Congrats. A new world has been opened to you.
Click to expand...

I'm literally just blown away. Yes, its easier to fret. Yes, pulloffs are easier too, but the biggest difference is in "note bloom" or "articulation" and tone overall.

I still can't believe the totality of the transformation.

And, I came away from this with a realization - this is NOT a super precise, hair splitting operation like I expected.

You check to make sure the neck is level with a notched straight edge, color the frets with a Sharpie, sand until frets all show full contact, crown the frets, mark them again, make another pass with sanding block or beam, mark again and crown one final time.

Once I did my last pass with the crowning file, I marked the frets one last time and make a final, feather-light pass with the sanding block and a piece of 1500#, just to make sure every fret is even. I performed the final polish by hand with a little ultra-fine abrasive foam block from the beauty supply.

Previously, all I had done was "spot leveling" of high frets with a fretboard protector and a flat file. This was actually much easier.

I played the Destroyer back-to-back with my 2016 Gibson SG and immediately all the problems with the factory Gibson fretwork became glaringly apparent.

The Gibson' s frets are uneven overall, but several frets are uneven across their own length!!! I never noticed this before.

I'm wondering if the persistent Wolftones I get on my 1987 Stratocaster is due to the badly worn frets???
 
Getting the neck adjusted flat for a fret level is a two-step operation for me. I do the first part with the notched straight edge as you say. Then I take a light pass with sandpaper on the levelling beam, and I take a look at where the little piles of fret dust are. Quite often, despite the truss rod adjustment, they will be bigger at the ends than the middle. A slight further tweak of the truss rod until sanding is even all the way down get things super-ready.
 
DonP said:
Getting the neck adjusted flat for a fret level is a two-step operation for me. I do the first part with the notched straight edge as you say. Then I take a light pass with sandpaper on the levelling beam, and I take a look at where the little piles of fret dust are. Quite often, despite the truss rod adjustment, they will be bigger at the ends than the middle. A slight further tweak of the truss rod until sanding is even all the way down get things super-ready.
Click to expand...

Don!!! Good Morning!!!

I saw immediate coverage on frets #1-#11 on the first pass. From #12 on, I was hitting the edges first band not the middle. I was confused because the fretboard radius was reading 12" all the way and all the frets were seated@!@
 
I think what just blows me away is my first level, with a 12" radius wood block (hardly the best tool for the job compared to a beam) produced a better neck/fret surface than any of my brand new Gibson's had....and once you experience this, you find the fretwork flaws in every guitar you pickup!!!
 
Robert Herndon said:
I think what just blows me away is my first level, with a 12" radius wood block (hardly the best tool for the job compared to a beam) produced a better neck/fret surface than any of my brand new Gibson's had....and once you experience this, you find the fretwork flaws in every guitar you pickup!!!
Click to expand...

Whatever else they may be Gibsons are mass-produced, not hand finished. What you are doing here is what Gibson could have done on a guitar they charged another grand for. But they know their market and the quantity of product they can sell at any given price point, so they make what they make. So yep, a few minutes of hand-fettling can yield a great change. But it is one that only a good guitarist will notice. It will go over the heads of most Gibson owners, unfortunately.
 
DonP said:
Whatever else they may be Gibsons are mass-produced, not hand finished. What you are doing here is what Gibson could have done on a guitar they charged another grand for. But they know their market and the quantity of product they can sell at any given price point, so they make what they make. So yep, a few minutes of hand-fettling can yield a great change. But it is one that only a good guitarist will notice. It will go over the heads of most Gibson owners, unfortunately.
Click to expand...

I just took a good look (the first really) at the frets on my 2016 Gibson SG.

Holy Biscuits!

Flat in the middle on most, high crown on the ends...some with three distinct profiles...surface uneveness, likely from the hammer blows used to seat them, inconsistent fret edge shape and angle... and the closer I look, the more the poor excuse for Gibson workmanship becomes glaringly obvious.

If I wasn't selling it I would level it too....
 
Don,

What is the huge tonal difference that even my non-musician wife noticed???

Nothing else was changed during the fret level. I have yet to even recheck the intonation, but something changed big time!!!
 
DonP said:
Whatever else they may be Gibsons are mass-produced, not hand finished. What you are doing here is what Gibson could have done on a guitar they charged another grand for.
Click to expand...

You're right; a hand crafted guitar from a real craftsman is a joy - Gibson certainly have many of those, but not on their production line. I really wished I'd bought the beautiful hand crafted tele in Thailand, only $1000. We live and learn, and I've had some good guitar learning experiences recently.

A good tradesman seems to be few and far between, but gold dust.

I just find it weird, Don. We both research and do projects, and I may not be the best but I'm an honest and rigorous worker, I don't cut corners, I have pride in my job, plan it out, incrementally improve it. We see that on here from RVA and many others, but what has happened to the world??? Is this greed culture just making everyone lazy or is my idea of a craftsman just an ideal fantasy?
 
Robert Herndon said:
Don,

What is the huge tonal difference that even my non-musician wife noticed???

Nothing else was changed during the fret level. I have yet to even recheck the intonation, but something changed big time!!!
Click to expand...

I can't offer anything here besides a chunk of psychology. You like the guitar more, so you play it better. That's all I've got...:victoire:
 
DonP said:
I can't offer anything here besides a chunk of psychology. You like the guitar more, so you play it better. That's all I've got...:victoire:
Click to expand...

Note bloom??? Yes, it plays better, but my wife and kids all commented that it sounds better...different....improved intonation????
 
My SG is a cool looking guitar (to SG fans anyways) and it plays reasonably well, and with a fret level, might be a great guitar, I just cannot seem to like it....and yet, cannot sell it either...

That 7.93k Alinco II PAF clone in the bridge would have to go....
 
Psychology is probably right, but it's real because your motor systems constantly communicate with your value systems and emotional systems - they are all totally integrated and inseparable, so yeah, psychology, but it positively affects your playing because it's not a separate area it's part of your homeostatic being.
 
Mr Grumpy said:
Psychology is probably right, but it's real because your motor systems constantly communicate with your value systems and emotional systems - they are all totally integrated and inseparable, so yeah, psychology, but it positively affects your playing because it's not a separate area it's part of your homeostatic being.
Click to expand...

I'm not homeostatic. I'm married to a female... :-)
 
Mr Grumpy said:
Psychology is probably right, but it's real because your motor systems constantly communicate with your value systems and emotional systems - they are all totally integrated and inseparable, so yeah, psychology, but it positively affects your playing because it's not a separate area it's part of your homeostatic being.
Click to expand...

But for my wife to comment...she always says she can't tell a difference....maybe because its easier to play well on it now???
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top