New Question: Tips on lowering frets

[Steve A.]

I have 3 of the $250-300 LTD EC-256 guitars which have extra jumbo frets. I'd like one of them to have Gibson style frets (like 6130's) but the necks are bound which pretty much rules out a refret by me. So what about sanding them down to .036" and then recrowning them? I think I would need a 16" fret sander and would have to make careful measurements with my micrometer to make sure I was keeping them even.

So what about fret ramping? One of the tools I bought suggested that frets be ramped- you'd mark them with a sharpie and then sand them down so that the frets closer to the bridge would have more metal showing through.

Any suggestions for techniques or for tools that I might need?

Steve Ahola

P.S. After playing my SE245 with the Gibson style frets I decided that shorter frets do have their place in the wonderful world of guitars. Jumbo frets are great for bending strings but you do lose some of the contact with the fretboard. Most of the techniques used in the good old days before Slinky strings seem to work better with lower frets. I'll post a link to a YouTube video with a shredder playing on guitars with different fret heights whenever I find it again...

[JoeM]

Steve, many years ago I had my jazz guitar refretted. Very well known repairman, but he didn't ask what size frets I wanted, and he used a super jumbo fret. Never felt right, and finally a local store recommended a guy to dress and recrown He took off nearly half the orignal height and now it plays like I want. I generally prefer a high fret, but on my jazz guitar, (a Gibson L5), I'm using 13-52 string set, and they feel better to me with lower frets.

[Chuck H]

The sharpie is your friend. Just stripe the tops of the frets and file just until all the sharpie is gone. Inspect to see that all the frets show a somewhat even flat on the tops. Repeat. Use a micrometer to check your work along the way. Being certain to achieve somewhat consistent height along the board. This will seem obvious but I'll mention it anyway... You're going to spend a lot more time removing material as the frets get closer together. I mention it because it's going to seem profound for a fret height reduction. Did I mention using a mic to measure frequently? Be careful to NOT remove too much material from the middle vs. the ends, etc. Since you'll be removing a lot of metal you'll have time to check your strokes between measurements. It won't be as tough as you think. Recrowning low (and now VERY flat frets) presents a greater challenge. I don't use recrowning files, preferring flat files, and I wonder if recrowning files would be up to the task without creating anomalies or scarring the finger board.

IMHE the recrowning work alone would merit hiring the job out to a pro. It should be relatively affordable and much lower risk.

[Steve A.]

IMHE the recrowning work alone would merit hiring the job out to a pro. It should be relatively affordable and much lower risk.

I will keep that in mind but its not like the guitar is a family heirloom.

I just got a pair of these in from China. They are shorter than they appear in the picture. They should work okay but I wonder how long the diamond grit will last. I guess you would clean it with alcohol...? In case anybody is wondering the flat edge has the grit, the rounded edge doesn't. (This is only one of the tools I have added to my fret crowning arsenal- I got the fret dressing stick from Stew-Mac along with their crowning file. Plus other files.)

Bevel Diamond Fret File Fret Crowning File 400 Grit All in One Fret File | eBay



Steve

P.S. Did I tell you about the "fret job" I did back in 1967? I thought that the frets on my $25 Whitefront arched top acoustic were too high so I filed them down a bit. "Hmmm... kinda buzzing now- I better file them down some more." I didn't know about crowning the frets but just keep making them flatter and flatter until I had the world's first fretless guitar. No sustain whatsoever but it was okay for bottleneck...

P.P.S. Would it make sense to "pyramid" the frets a bit before lowering them? That way there would be less metal to remove when crowning them.

[Chuck H]

P.P.S. Would it make sense to "pyramid" the frets a bit before lowering them? That way there would be less metal to remove when crowning them.

I wouldn't. The frets are VERY symmetrical now. Making it easier to visually gauge the width of the flatted area more accurately as you go. Also, considering it, it's still probably easier to remove material from the top than it is to remove it from the crown. I did have to think about that though because it's a good idea in some respects.

EDIT: I remember when I was 14 my step dad's cousin played a "fretless wonder". He was an outstanding player and his guitar had the lowest action I'd ever experienced. Later that week I lowered the frets on my Yamaha SBG200 thinking that must be the key. I set up the guitar proper. Even adjusted the nut (I had (and still do have) a great guitar book called Complete Guitar Repair by Hideo Kamimoto). I hated that guitar for ever after! The action was a tad lower but all the friction on my fingers while bending was SO annoying. I hadn't taken much time to evaluate the Les Paul other than to be impressed by the low action. Live and learn.

Incidentally... Hideo ran a repair shop in Japan town, San Jose and ended up being my repair guy for years. He retired and they just don't make 'em like him anymore IMHO.

[Steve A.]

I wouldn't. The frets are VERY symmetrical now. Making it easier to visually gauge the width of the flatted area more accurately as you go.

Good point- it would defeat the whole purpose of the Sharpies.