Is it possible to convert to fretless bass by just sanding down the frets?

That's how I did mine.

Is it advisable?
No


Does it work?
It did for me.

Would I do it again?
If I was in the same position..probably.
My first choice would be to just get a second neck.

 

You do whatever you think will work. I'll be over here watching.

 

Sanding them down sounds like a real PITA. If you were careful you could pull them out with end nippers and fill the grooves with a lighter colored wood.

 

Much easier to pull them out and fill the gaps.

 

Really? Sand the metal down to the wood? With a belt sander?

Crazy IMO.

Pull the frets and fill a lighter colour.

 

Lol. No. Your sanding down hard metal unless is super cheap soft chinese fret bass. Getting that super even with the fretboard wood would take tons of skill most dont have to do pro job of. Is much better to get a fretless neck or have fretted bass defretted & fret grooves filled properly and evened out with fretboard wood by a pro luthier. Buying fretless bass just makes more sense in the long run cost wise for pro job of. imo

 

No you'd be fine. It's a relatively common procedure. Fretboard isn't very structurally significant.

 

I would think that would be a huge PITA. Pull the frets and fill with wood filler.

 

I thought about sanding down the frets on one of my basses. After about 10 minutes with an orbital sander, I asked myself what I was smoking (now I remember...)but then I had a brilliant/ stupid idea- mask the board then pour epoxy directly over the frets. Very random idea, but I wish i thought of it before pulling the frets, I would be interested to see if anybody has tried that...

 

I guess if it was a low cost bass turned into a project bass but I would just buy another bass if it were me . You could also put together a fretless bass from parts etc. Good luck with it and remember to take pics showing work in progress.....

 

lol

 

I want to see before and after pictures also. This sounds like an accident waiting to happen.

 

It's been done, and I suspect that it's easier than some here are making it out to be. However, one drag about lines is that the side dots are now not at the note position. So, instead of having one mental note to make, now you have to make two:

1. ID correct fret dot; and
2. Find line (if you can crane your neck over the fingerboard to see).

Of course, if you are playing in close position without much shifting, this is not such a big deal. But I shift large intervallic leaps regularly, and it becomes too much thinking, not enough creating.

For me, side dots at 5, 7, 9, 12, 15 and 17 on the note is a much more useable solution.

 

Grinding metal frets down to the FB, IMO, is a hack job waiting to happen.
If you have to, need to, want to defret, do some research on defretting. There's a few tutorials here on TB.
Or... buy an entry level fretless, there cheap enough from the folks at Rondo.

 

I've played a bass like this, high end one too. The big problem is when you want frets back. The re-fret is more expensive and has a much greater chance of chipping the fretboard as you pull out the ground down frets to replace with new ones. If its a cheap bass you don't want anymore go for it.