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Post by angelofdeath on Feb 8, 2007 21:53:14 GMT -5
What is the best way to remove fret wire from the frets......I'm trying to a fretless bass....
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Post by sumgai on Feb 9, 2007 3:41:04 GMT -5
angel, Time to do a little bit of research, no? Google for: guitar remove frets and see what that gets you.  HTH sumgai |
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Post by ccso8462 on Feb 9, 2007 17:39:00 GMT -5
Stewmac sells a fret puller that looks like a set of nippers/pliers. Sharp jaws to get under the edge of the fret and pull up. You'd have to make it a straight pull so the edge of the puller didn't dig into the fingerboard.
My son would like a fretless bass, so let us know how the project goes. It would be cheaper than getting him a new one, and I'm in a stingy mode right now. Good luck
Carl
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Post by UnklMickey on Feb 9, 2007 19:10:25 GMT -5
nah, youse guys are makin' this way too hard.
just take off the pickguard and all the hardware, and grind down the frets by dragging the guitar face-down behind your car for a few miles.
the fret-slots won't need to be filled, PLUS ya get your axe "reliced" in the process too.
easy-peasy.
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Post by sumgai on Feb 10, 2007 17:01:27 GMT -5
Instant classic! The Official unk-Approved Guitar Relic'ing Method!
I'm tempted to sticky this! ;D
sumgai
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Post by lunaalta on Feb 10, 2007 17:50:08 GMT -5
LOL...........
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Post by gfxbss on Feb 16, 2007 20:24:14 GMT -5
alright, ive actually done this on a couple of basses. i have some of the fret pullers that were mentioned before. one thing to note when pulling the frets w/ the pullers. just squeeze the pullers! do not actually pull the fret! once you remove those, i took a table saw and widened the fret slots a bit. then picked up some ebony and put it in the slots. at this point, you should know if you want to see the fret lines or not. if you dont mind seeing them, you can just finish it the way you like. I personally did not want to see the lines, so i took drilled out all of the pearl inlays. then i put ebony in those also. stained the entire board as dark as i could. here is the thread of me asking what i should do, maybe it will yield better results. guitarnuts2.proboards45.com/index.cgi?board=repair&action=display&thread=1161054113good luck, let us know how it works out!! Tyler |
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lethargytartare
Apprentice Shielder
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Post by lethargytartare on Mar 1, 2007 14:45:22 GMT -5
I got to take a fretwork class recently (wonderful experience!!) and that luthier had a different take on it. He gets the cheapest nippers he can find (ones that cost like 4-5 bucks), and then grinds the face down to get a flat surface so the cutting edges can be flat on the fretboard. Takes all of 1 minute and you don't have to take much material off. Nippers get damaged over time, so he treats them like a consumable.
The one I used in class (we refretted one guitar) had no visible damage after this fretjob.
gfxbss is right, too -- be sure not to PULL the frets. Get the nippers under one edge of a fret just to pop the fret up a wee bit. Then move the nippers over a bit, squeeze again to pop it up some more, and move down some more until it pops completely free.
Something else to note:
if the board is old, when you pop the frets, you might lose small chunks of wood along the fret slots. You would want to sand the fretboard smooth again -- I've never done a fretless conversion, but I'm guessing you have to do that anyway after putting in the slot fillers. so make sure you have access to some radiused sanding blocks...
Happy Defretting!
ltt
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lethargytartare
Apprentice Shielder
I promise, I'm not new here...
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Post by lethargytartare on Mar 1, 2007 14:52:29 GMT -5
Even better would be to get a cheapie second neck, convert that. Then, if he doesn't end up liking fretless, or likes it a lot and decides to sell his old bass, you have the original, AND a fretless neck to go with it. And while a DIY conversion would be cheaper, it's a LOT more work -- so what's your time worth :-D (that's what my friends say when I spend 3 hours building a headphone amp when I could have bought a commercial one for 20 bucks...)...hmm...unless you factor in tools, materials, AND time -- assuming you had to buy nippers, sanding blocks, decent filler material, and a refinishing paint; compare to the cost of buying a $60 Rondo fretless neck (maple, bound, with black blocks)... Stewmac sells a fret puller that looks like a set of nippers/pliers. Sharp jaws to get under the edge of the fret and pull up. You'd have to make it a straight pull so the edge of the puller didn't dig into the fingerboard. My son would like a fretless bass, so let us know how the project goes. It would be cheaper than getting him a new one, and I'm in a stingy mode right now. Good luck Carl |
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