Your opinion please on this fret issue?

[mcontour]

Hi Folks,

I recently acquired a 1 year old Fender Custom Shop bass. It has jumbo frets and rolled fret board edges.

The thing is...Fender rolled the fret board edges in the spaces between the frets, but they didn't "roll" the fret ends to match the rest of the fret board edges. When I slide my hand up and down the neck, the fret ends fell like a bunch of speed bumps.....not pleasant. See the photo below.

If you were looking to purchase a used, recent custom shop bass and the owner beveled the fret ends to match the edge of the fretboard and then re-rounded them properly (trained tech), would you see this as a devaluation of the instrument?

 

[Moving Pictures]

My $0.02, I would consider it a maintenance issue and don’t see it devalue the bass. People are more likely to devalue it in its current condition.

 

[Sharko]

Squier would never let this happen

 

[DrBnz]

Training, common sense, finesse, patience, are all essential items in a mechanics tool box. Some people just have tools.

 

[Lance Bunyon]

It's gotta be fixed. If the right tech does it it will not devalue the instrument.
Is the bass still under warranty? Those things are expensive!

 

[mcontour]

Thanks all for the opinions. I appreciate it.

-Michael

 

[Iridescentone]

Looks to me like a half-assed DIY edge rolling job that was done afterwards with sand paper or a rasp (or both), not factory. Easy-peasy to do a decent mild edge rolling job with a coin or other blunt object. I've used a 12mm socket on a couple necks. Works pretty well, but you can only knock the wood edge down so far until the fret edges have to be addressed.

In that pic we can see the demarcation line in the wood on each side of the frets. Obviously was done afterwards, kinda heavy-handedly by the looks of it. The question is who did it, and did they also sand the finish off the back of the neck while they were at it?

 

[Iridescentone]

Hi Folks,

I recently acquired a 1 year old Fender Custom Shop bass. It has jumbo frets and rolled fret board edges.

The thing is...Fender rolled the fret board edges in the spaces between the frets, but they didn't "roll" the fret ends to match the rest of the fret board edges. When I slide my hand up and down the neck, the fret ends fell like a bunch of speed bumps.....not pleasant. See the photo below.

If you were looking to purchase a used, recent custom shop bass and the owner beveled the fret ends to match the edge of the fretboard and then re-rounded them properly (trained tech), would you see this as a devaluation of the instrument?

Good question. I don't dabble in Fender CS guitars, but have friends that do quite a bit. From what I gather, it may depend on the original CS spec sheet (if it has one) and exactly how it came from the factory. It's hard to imagine anyone would custom spec a neck in that condition from the CS. As strictly a player's guitar that's been hacked on, logic would seem to dictate a devaluation. In the realm of multi-thousand dollar guitars, that could be quite a bit. Good luck.

 

[fretno]

Fret sprout. Happens early and often.

 

[gln1955]

That's horrible. Surely it did not come out of the CS in that condition. I would have that fixed with no hesitation.

 

[mcontour]

Thanks for all the input. I went ahead and took care of it. All slick and slippery now!!

 

[Geogio]

It's gotta be fixed. If the right tech does it it will not devalue the instrument.
Is the bass still under warranty? Those things are expensive!

I would think that the warranty would be negated at this point. Unless the tech is certified by Fender. Even then the burden of proof is on you.

 

[Deleted member 341607]

Repair with no qualms.

 

[jimmydean]

If the bass is under warranty , I would call Fender and explain the problem and have them fix it . Your other option is to have the work done at a quality repair shop ..........good luck .

 

[PhillipHolbrook]

Hi Folks,

I recently acquired a 1 year old Fender Custom Shop bass. It has jumbo frets and rolled fret board edges.

The thing is...Fender rolled the fret board edges in the spaces between the frets, but they didn't "roll" the fret ends to match the rest of the fret board edges. When I slide my hand up and down the neck, the fret ends fell like a bunch of speed bumps.....not pleasant. See the photo below.

If you were looking to purchase a used, recent custom shop bass and the owner beveled the fret ends to match the edge of the fretboard and then re-rounded them properly (trained tech), would you see this as a devaluation of the instrument?

View attachment 5326259

It wouldn't bother me IF the job was done properly, to a professional level. Otherwise the fretends as they are would be the deal breaker for me.

 

[Indiana Mike]

Fret sprout. Happens early and often.

that’s not fret sprout , the wood follows. if so it would be neck sprout

 

[Slevage]

Fix it to your liking.
Only a player can dictate the nuances of their instrument.

If that were my axe, I wouldn’t have to fix it because my hand never touches those edges.

 

[GroovinOnFunk]

Fret sprout. Happens early and often.

It's not fret sprout when the wood around it is also sticking out. As previously posted, this was likely not done in the factory and the fretboard edges were rolled by someone after the fact without knowing what they were doing.

 

[T. Brookins]

I don’t see much of a problem— looks like the speed bumps were knocked down. Play the snot out of that thing!

 

[Fender_Bender]

I couldn’t see something leaving the factory like that. It’s waaaay more “rolling” than you’d ever possibly need. Somebody along the way got their grubby little hands on a file and paint brush.