Dressed/Rounded my fret ends - Michael Tuttle Style. Awesome

[RockStarNick]

Hey guys, today I decided to try my luck at rounding/dressing my fret ends on my Strat and Tele. (both of which have relatively new Warmoth necks on them).

I'm getting pretty good at leveling and crowning, so I got a Stew Mac fret end file, stared a the pictures of Michael Tuttle's fretwork, and tried my best to emulate it.

I made sure to lay down some blue painters tape next to each fret, so that I didn't scratch the wood of the fingerboard.

And when I was all done, I polished the fret ends with a fingernail buffer emery block from Harmon Cosmetics. It's 4 sided, foam in the middle. Worked GREAT! Got a tiny bit of that rolled fretboard-edge going on now too, which makes the neck even more comfy.

I gotta say, besides all the good stuff I got from StewMac, this emery block kicks ass. Such a useful tool

The neck feels SO much better now. Feels nice and smooth, worn in, and just very comfortable. You don't *notice* the fret ends as much, and I have a feeling that I'll notice the seasonal fret sprouting a lot less too.

I know it's a terrible pic, but it's all I have right now.

 

[glpg80]

i was just talking to a bunch of friends of mine last night about the benefits of a rolled fretboard edge.

keep it up man - looks great

 

[Sixtonoize]

That actually looks like a pretty cool idea.
Got any tips, or is it just a "go by feel, try not to fuck it up" sort of thing?

 

[jmgman69]

Nice stuff Nick

 

[RockStarNick]

That actually looks like a pretty cool idea.
Got any tips, or is it just a "go by feel, try not to fuck it up" sort of thing?

1. Blue painter's tape on the fretboard, or it's almost guaranteed you'll scratch it some.

2. Get the right tool for the job. The stew mac fret dressing file.

3. Practice on a sh*tty neck first (I did this to a Squier bass before I did my own guitars)

4. Start slow until you get the feel down

5. Try not to fuck it up

 

[nighttrain69]

ive had a guitar with a fully dressed neck ,even had the bevelededges done on the high e side ,after the 12th...it is by far the best thing imho you can do to make the neck feel amazing....i highly suggest it

 

[Code001]

Keep in mind, he's not talking about rounding fingerboard edges. He's talking about rounding fret ends similar to that seen on J-Custom models.

 

[glpg80]

Keep in mind, he's not talking about rounding fingerboard edges. He's talking about rounding fret ends similar to that seen on J-Custom models.

yes - i was commenting on his rolled-fingerboard edge comment. makes the neck feel more road-worn-in.

 

[Code001]

Gotcha. I really don't understand why more manufacturers don't ball fret ends.

 

[glpg80]

Gotcha. I really don't understand why more manufacturers don't ball fret ends.

im depressed at ESP's latest fret quality....ive got fret tangs hanging out of the neck

 

[Code001]

Luck of the draw. Here's a guitar made in the same factory as yours, but check the fret ends:

http://www.guitarsatbmusic.com.au/forum ... =3&t=12973

 

[OldSkoolNJ]

Gotcha. I really don't understand why more manufacturers don't ball fret ends.

im depressed at ESP's latest fret quality....ive got fret tangs hanging out of the neck

Mine are notched on each end do they even do that anymore to??

 

[glpg80]

Gotcha. I really don't understand why more manufacturers don't ball fret ends.

im depressed at ESP's latest fret quality....ive got fret tangs hanging out of the neck

Mine are notched on each end do they even do that anymore to??

notched on the end? what do you mean?

on mine you can see the fucking fret tang ends of each fret. in not even sure how to fix it to be honest, little bastards are sharp and will catch you if the neck is subject to cold weather.

i was showing the guitar to a few local music friends of mine last night and he pointed it out. if it isnt one thing, its another.

we both looked at the finish and figured that the paint-job clearcoat is not the problem, he believes they are doing very very thin coats of paint now - im thinking it might be the horizontal microscopic grooves of the wood when you shine a light off of the paint into your eyes as to what i see.

im telling you Tom - even the neck pocket gap is depressing on my guitar at the back of it. id say there is easily a 1/16" gap from the back of the neck to the back pocket.

 

[Code001]

notched on the end? what do you mean?

on mine you can see the fucking fret tang ends of each fret. in not even sure how to fix it to be honest, little bastards are sharp and will catch you if the neck is subject to cold weather.

i was showing the guitar to a few local music friends of mine last night and he pointed it out. if it isnt one thing, its another.

we both looked at the finish and figured that the paint-job clearcoat is not the problem, he believes they are doing very very thin coats of paint now - im thinking it might be the horizontal microscopic grooves of the wood when you shine a light off of the paint into your eyes as to what i see.

im telling you Tom - even the neck pocket gap is depressing on my guitar at the back of it. id say there is easily a 1/16" gap from the back of the neck to the back pocket.

The important part is how it sounds. The frets can be fixed. If the tone bad, it's much harder to fix. Don't forget that some of the most coveted 70s strats had huge gaps in their neck pockets.

 

[OldSkoolNJ]

Gotcha. I really don't understand why more manufacturers don't ball fret ends.

im depressed at ESP's latest fret quality....ive got fret tangs hanging out of the neck

Mine are notched on each end do they even do that anymore to??

notched on the end? what do you mean?

on mine you can see the fucking fret tang ends of each fret. in not even sure how to fix it to be honest, little bastards are sharp and will catch you if the neck is subject to cold weather.

i was showing the guitar to a few local music friends of mine last night and he pointed it out. if it isnt one thing, its another.

we both looked at the finish and figured that the paint-job clearcoat is not the problem, he believes they are doing very very thin coats of paint now - im thinking it might be the horizontal microscopic grooves of the wood when you shine a light off of the paint into your eyes as to what i see.

im telling you Tom - even the neck pocket gap is depressing on my guitar at the back of it. id say there is easily a 1/16" gap from the back of the neck to the back pocket.

Yeh they used to notch the tangs so they do not show on each side of the fret board.. The later ones I bought they did not do it, except for the one that had binding on the neck..

Bummer..

Yeh told you about the one ESP I had where you could see the lines through the paint after the tremolo route where they joined the 2 body pieces together..

I can see some of the grain through the black paint on the MII I kept.. doesnt bother me..