Fret files?

[D.Don]

I got a cheap aria 1980's medium scale today with partly quite worn frets.

It's not worth the money or work with a refret (and I have never done it before, and have no tools or space to be to learn how to do it atm, if I had, it's an excellent object to practice on though ..).

What files do I need in order to file and shape them back to an "ok" state again?

Been looking at stewmac but everything seems so expensive, anyone who has some budget tips for fret files here?

Thanks!

D.Don

 

[Alembic83]

There's a kit on eBay for about $25 that is for leveling on the cheap. I've never used it, but it might be something for you to look into for a bass like that. Just search for 'fret level kit' on eBay.

 

[don_ju]

Make sure you protect your fretboard if/when you file - its almost impossible to file the frets without f-ing up the fretboard unless you surround the fret with something hard (not tape). I recommend cutting up one of your wife's credit cards and taping the pieces on either side of the fret. Of course, ol Jaco did his fret job with a pair of pliers...

 

[Rattman]

D. Don . . . talk to this guy in Laguna Beach, Ca. He is my luthier supply contact. I can get just about anything I need from him for LESS (most of the time) than what I might pay at Stew-Mac. Give him a message via that website URL . . . I love his tools, as they are made well... plus I've been getting very nice results...
. . . . . http://stores.ebay.com/Guitar-Tools-Frets-n-Supplies-Guru

 

[ewimsatt]

I recommend cutting up one of your wife's credit cards and taping the pieces on either side of the fret.

For refretting, I purchased a cheap pair of end nippers and ground the end flush on a grinder. I use a soldering iron to heat the fret until it's warm, the use the nippers to work my way from one end to the other. Then I make sure the neck is adjusted flat and is supported from beneath and sand it with the correct radius block with 150, 180, 220, and 320. Then make sure the slots are the correct depth with a fretting saw. After that, I hammer in the new frets and let some CA wick under the edge. If they seem loose, I will do 3 frets at a time and clamp the radius block to them. After that, I clip the edges and file them flush, then paint the tops of the frets black with a magic marker and file them until all the frets show bare metal on top instead of black. The file I use for the last 2 processes is a flat bastard file that has had the ends cut off and the edges sanded smooth and is epoxied to a wood grip I sanded flat on my belt sander. Once that is done, I clean up the fret edges with the specialty file from stewmac, but i used a needle file i sanded one edge smooth for years. I then black the fret tops again and use the concave fret file to put the crown on, but I also used a large triangle file to accomplish the same task for many years with the corners sanded smooth. Then I work through 320, 400, 600, 800, grit papers and finish with four aught steel wool. If I had to come up with a bare bones fretting kit that cost as little as possible and I had access to a grinder and belt sander, I would buy:

• Small end nips (and grind the end flush)
• Large end nips (grind the end flush)
• Large bastard file (epoxy to a flat piece of wood and shaped to a grip. Sand the sides off the file and grind the edges down)
• Black magic marker (to pain the tops with)
• Hammer (raw hide or dead blow are fine)
• Large triangle file (sand or grind the corners smooth. You can also use this to shape the fret edges)
• 150, 180, 220, 320, 400, 600, 800 grit papers and 0000 steel wool
• CA superglue
• Blue tape for the fingerboard

You can go into specialty tools like the fret edge file and the concave crowning file that I use, but you can complete the job in a professional manner with the tools listed above.

Hope that helps.

 

[T-Bird]

Hi.

I bought this:

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Not the best there is (as the price can tell), but gets the job done .

I usually level them first with a wide and long machine file, those can be purchased from every machine warehouse.

Regards
Sam

 

[D.Don]

Thanks guys for all good tips here!

Sometimes luck strikes, a few months ago I bought a radius beam (10") for radiusing a neck I had de-fretted, and DANG, that radius was 100% fitting here as well. So I dug up a sheet of unused abrasive for metal, 220 grit, and leveled the frets using the beam, since the beam is almost 30cm tall, this worked like a charm!!

Now I only need a crowning file and the job is done.

D.Don

 

[D.Don]

A little update..

The next little task is to sand the fretboard between the frets since some previous owner seems to have decided to make the fretboard a bit punk or something and scratched it with something like a key or sharp object. It's not deep, but it has to be sanded in order to make everything look good. Stupid!

Sanding is of course no problem, but sanding along the grain on the fretboard with the frets in place, is sure a lil task of it's own.

When it's done, I think I'll do a danish oil finish to protect the fretboard and make everything nice and shining.



D.Don

 

[ewimsatt]

Scrape it flat with a razor blade.

 

[D.Don]

Scrape it flat with a razor blade.

Great one!!

I need to purchase some new blades, only had one left and it was far from new, but this is gonna work just fine, first scrape, and then a cpl of grits of abrasives to polish a lil.

Thanks!

D.Don