Repair for my high end bass, Seeking the wisdom of the TB community

[gt96g]

I picked up a used fodera recently, and the bass is great. However when the initial excitement of the purchase wore off I noticed some mild fret noise around the 11th or 12th fret and it also seemed to have some effect on the higher frets as well though not nearly as much as the 11 12 area. But it was nothing too major so i decide to set up the bass hoping that would alleviate the issue(and I have set up many many basses so I do know what I'm doing) but no matter what i do there always seems to be some amount of fret noise in that area (hammerons especially). Now the bass is almost 10 yrs old and the previous owner said he hadn't had the bass set up often. So my guess is that i may have a high fret on the bass somewhere. My first question is does that seem like a reasonable assessment to you guys.

My second question is how to go about solving the problem if that indeed is the problem. The way I see it I have two options. My first option would be to go up to Brooklyn and talk to the guys at fodera directly as I live in philly and the trip is not that unreasonable, However I am very busy and don't really have a lot of time to make the trip. Or I could get it taken care of locally. I know a great luthier in the area who has worked on my instruments before and he always does a great job and I have total faith in his work, plus if it is a simple fret leveling I have no doubt in his ability, only problem is he works out of a GC and I would be hesitant to leave the bass there for any extended period of time.

What do you guys all think. All opinions appreciated here.

[Tigger Bangdang]

Phone Call to Fodera. It may just be a high fret though.

[ehque]

It shouldn't be a problem to get a fret job locally. Are you afraid it gets stolen or?

[gt96g]

Originally Posted by ehque

It shouldn't be a problem to get a fret job locally. Are you afraid it gets stolen or?

I'm not really worried about theft at the gc, just concerned about one of the sales associates moving the thing in the case and not using the most care while doing it.

[SryNoFenderHere]

If you live in Philly, there's a good luthier by the name of Nick Bucci in DE.. usually you have to drop it off to a store (Accent Music on Concord Pike usually), and he's not the fastest out there, but he does damn good work, and he's reasonable...

[gt96g]

Originally Posted by SryNoFenderHere

If you live in Philly, there's a good luthier by the name of Nick Bucci in DE.. usually you have to drop it off to a store (Accent Music on Concord Pike usually), and he's not the fastest out there, but he does damn good work, and he's reasonable...

I appreciate the information, but if i don't take it up to fodera I probably will go with my guy as I do totally trust him. And he is slightly closer than DE.

[joe vegas]

my 2 euros-
you're close enough to brooklyn that you can let the guys take a diagnostic look at everything, locate & correct the high fret, and give it a good overall tweak for a clean bill of health. For high-end instruments, it seems like it would make sense to go the builder IF at all feasible. Also, it's a 90 minute relaxing train ride each way, then a quick subway to a stop approx. 5 blocks from the shop, pretty easy. Just food for thought.

[john grey]

For my two Centavos:
PLEASE don't have work done on a fine instrument at GC. It's worth the drive to NYC.

[Slowgypsy]

Just my $.02...

At least talking with the folks at Fodera would be a good place to start. Giving the instrument to a luthier you've had good experiences with is another way to go. And still another is to chat with the folks at Bass Specialties. They're just outside of Philly. I believe they're a dealer for Fodera. Bass Specialties :: Homepage

GC is not a place I'd ever bring a Fodera to.

[MarTONEbass]

Originally Posted by Slowgypsy

Just my $.02...

GC is not a place I'd ever bring a Fodera to.

GC is not a place I'd ever bring a Fodera. to.

Fixed.

Never end a sentence with a preposition.

Nazi English teacher is leaving now....

If it has been played extensively, it might require a fret level of the entire board.

Make an appointment with your trusted guy, GC be damned, and have him check it out while you wait. Ask him to bring it home with him if it requires an overnight stay.

This is likely not something you'll need to contact Fodera about unless your guy tells you something is radically wrong with it.

[stingraysvt]

Make an appointment with your buddy and see if he'd be willing to let you sit in on the work. Maybe wishful dreaming, but I got the luxury of seeing my guy work on tons of stuff because he likes to share everything he knows... with me at least.

I worked for him during college so it's a really great relationship, he even came to my wedding. Anyways we're talking Fodera money, I'd keep my eyes on that thing like a hawk

[rhett]

Originally Posted by MarTONEbass

Ask him to bring it home with him if it requires an overnight stay.

The intent is understood, yet if anything unfortunate were to happen to the bass outside the shop premises, the likelihood of any recourse would be practically nil. Unless you have it fully insured for such or you'd be satisfied with "I'm really sorry, I can make monthly payments...." Pals or not, that would surely suck.

[gt96g]

Just got back from the shop, He told me that a lot of the noise I was getting was not fret noise but resonance rattling at the nut. He said that a brass nut can some times exacerbate that kind of sympathetic rattling. He put a little extra relief in the neck and when I got home I dropped the string height a little to get the action back where I wanted it and Boom, all is well again.

The whole discussion and fix took less than five minutes, and I didn't have to leave the bass there or drive up to Brooklyn for this simple issue.

Thanks to everyone who chimed in, your thoughts were very helpful.

[darkstorm]

Dont let GC do a fretjob on your fodora unless you know for sure that its a very good luthier who does do work on high end basses for oither shops etc. Itd be far better to ship the bass to a real repair shop rather then letting GC mess with ti and possibly make things worse or cause other problems to it.

[jumbodbassman]

Call Jason and talk to him. The guys at fodera are the best or even send him a email.. Just go to the Fodera tb and look for JUST THUMPIN

[Just Thumpin']

Glad you have the problem licked. If you ever need input on stuff like this, feel free to check in with us at:

service@fodera.com

You're part of the Fodera Family now...take advantage of it!

Regards,

J

Originally Posted by jumbodbassman

Call Jason and talk to him. The guys at fodera are the best or even send him a email.. Just go to the Fodera tb and look for JUST THUMPIN

[majortoby]

Not to thread-jack, but.....am I the ONLY TB'er whose local GC is primarily staffed with knowledgeable, skilled, and professional staff??? I've seen their setup guy in action, and they even had me examine his work......I'd let that guy repair any instrument I have. Is this really all that odd??

[bassbenj]

Originally Posted by majortoby

Not to thread-jack, but.....am I the ONLY TB'er whose local GC is primarily staffed with knowledgeable, skilled, and professional staff??? I've seen their setup guy in action, and they even had me examine his work......I'd let that guy repair any instrument I have. Is this really all that odd??

Yes it is! Hey, the repair guy at my GC is a nice enough and seemly knowledgeable dude, but I'd never take a Fodera or other similar high end bass there. I can only imagine what that constant parade of abused cheapo basses he has to deal with day in and day out his doing to his brain! A "real" luthier is the only answer at the Fodera level and (almost) always they won't have a job a GC.

[frianbisher]

Ouch guys.....You'd be surprised what I work on at GC, including Alembic's Lakland, Sadowski, some vintage stuff too...All satisfied customers as far as I'm aware. I'm a "certified luthier", although I don't like being referred to as such.