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Your opinion please on this fret issue?
- Thread starter mcontour
- Start date
D
Are you absolutely sure Fender did that??? I honestly can't believe Fender CS would let a bass leave the factory like that. Even if the customer had requested something as stupid as that it should have been done with more care. I also believe you would have to pay absolutely outrageous prices for a "Masterbuilt" level instrument to get that level of customization from Fender CS. Is this a Masterbuilt instrument?
To me it looks like a hack job done by someone who didn't have a clue what they were doing. But I guess you can get Fender to do pretty much anything you want if you paid them CS Masterbuilt prices, so who knows, maybe they ARE responsible for this mess.
Anyway, I can't see how leveling/rounding the fret ends would affect the value of the instrument, except in a positive way.
However...
You need to make sure the string spacing allows enough clearance for the frets to be filed/beveled any further. If the outer strings are already very near the edges of the frets you may "fall off" the frets when playing if you bevel the frets any further. It's difficult to see from the angle of your pic but it looks like it should be fine.
To me it looks like a hack job done by someone who didn't have a clue what they were doing. But I guess you can get Fender to do pretty much anything you want if you paid them CS Masterbuilt prices, so who knows, maybe they ARE responsible for this mess.
Anyway, I can't see how leveling/rounding the fret ends would affect the value of the instrument, except in a positive way.
However...
You need to make sure the string spacing allows enough clearance for the frets to be filed/beveled any further. If the outer strings are already very near the edges of the frets you may "fall off" the frets when playing if you bevel the frets any further. It's difficult to see from the angle of your pic but it looks like it should be fine.
Look Terrible!!!
Both Sire and Ibanez Premium bass rolled fretboard edge look 100x better than yours.
I believe this masterpiece builder are completely newbie on roll fretboard edge skill. Shame ....
This is exactly it. I know so many of you just want to bash Fender, but there is not a chance in hell that it came out of Fender that way.
Fret sprout. Happens to a $100 bass or a $10,000 bass. You need a $5 file to fix it.
As others have mentioned, it isn’t fret sprout. It is a botched and incomplete fretboard rolling job. You can tell by the wood on the frets. One of the previous owners should have practiced on a beater bass before attempting it.
It is a simple maintenance issue to get it playable and the OP has sorted it out.
It is a simple maintenance issue to get it playable and the OP has sorted it out.
Turnaround
Commercial User
I advise against this approach. Crushing the wood is abuse in my books. And it does not address the OP's issue which is the frets themselves, not the fretboard.
Fret sprout is a separate issue from dressing the fret ends - they are not the same thing. Some manufacturers (Sire as an example) heavily roll their fretboards, and bevel/roll the frets as well. While that feels good, there is a drawback - you reduce the usable fret length doing that - if you go too far, you end up making it easy to pull or push a string off the end of the fret.
Fret sprout gives to sharp edges - nobody likes that. If you deburr the fret ends, but don’t heavily roll them, you have bumps you can feel, but they’re not sharp, and they don’t get in the way of playing. I prefer fret ends set up that way. You may or may not. It’s a matter of personal preference, and something you should discuss if you ever buy a custom bass. I would never heavily roll frets on a customer’s bass without discussing the pros and cons first.
No one is suggesting it's a solution to the OP's problem. Where do you get that from? The damage was already done to the wood. After which, the frets then became the issue. Cause and effect.
Sanding, rasping, compressing, whatever. It's all "shaping" the wood to the same end...rounding off sharp board edges. You may think mildly compressing wood is "abuse", but it's been a time-honored method for decades, that can eliminate the need for extensive (read; expensive) luthier work.
If I were buying, I would see it's present condition as a problem. If a good tech rolls them properly with the edge of the fretboard, nobody is gonna say "hey where's the big lumps?". My question would be, did they roll the fretboard in too far, and leave the lumps because it would bring the edge of the fret too close to the string? Maybe measure first vs known good setups.
Turnaround
Commercial User
I thought we were addressing the OP's problem. Or is this thread about something else?
Time honored by whom? No decent tech or luthier I know would recommend it.
Save your breath Turnaround. They see some kid going at his glarry with a socket on YouTube and "That's the way it's done ". Why would you want a rolled edge with the frets sticking out?
Just to double back....
I am the 3rd owner (at least) of the bass. I did go to the Fender custom shop site. Text there says that the warranty is only good for the original purchaser.
The condition in the photo definitely is not fret sprout. It was as a result of the fretboard edge rolling being done improperly.
The bass came new with the journeyman relic treatment, including the sanding on the back of the neck. My mistake was in assuming that Fender did the incomplete work on the fret ends and the "pedestals" under the fret ends. I did not consider that a previous owner did it.
I use the innermost grooves in the bridge saddles to achieve the smallest string spacing. Given that, there is plenty of space between the outer strings and the edge of the fretboard.
I used my trusty Stewmac fret edge beveling file, followed by the fret end dress file and then graduated abrasive grits to achieve nice fret ends..... Yes you can tell that they are still there, but now they don't extend past the edge of the fretboard.
The problem is solved....on to the music!!
Thanks everyone...
I am the 3rd owner (at least) of the bass. I did go to the Fender custom shop site. Text there says that the warranty is only good for the original purchaser.
The condition in the photo definitely is not fret sprout. It was as a result of the fretboard edge rolling being done improperly.
The bass came new with the journeyman relic treatment, including the sanding on the back of the neck. My mistake was in assuming that Fender did the incomplete work on the fret ends and the "pedestals" under the fret ends. I did not consider that a previous owner did it.
I use the innermost grooves in the bridge saddles to achieve the smallest string spacing. Given that, there is plenty of space between the outer strings and the edge of the fretboard.
I used my trusty Stewmac fret edge beveling file, followed by the fret end dress file and then graduated abrasive grits to achieve nice fret ends..... Yes you can tell that they are still there, but now they don't extend past the edge of the fretboard.
The problem is solved....on to the music!!
Thanks everyone...
Last edited:
Turnaround
Commercial User
Jaco did it once and was so ticked off he just yanked all the frets out. In the process he accidently broke one of the leads from his neck pickup and consequently suffered through the rest of his career witn no frets and only a bridge pickup.
