String catches on fret

[Noricak]

Hi. Ive got a 1981 Ibanez Iceman... still plays and sounds great. Problem is that sometimes the high E string catches on the end of a couple of the frets.... like there is a small gap at the end of the fret for the string to get caught on. I really dont want to get into the expense of re-fretting or anything. Is there some kind of epoxy or something I could fill the tiny gap so string wont catch? Any ideas?

Thanks

 

[ggunn]

Hi. Ive got a 1981 Ibanez Iceman... still plays and sounds great. Problem is that sometimes the high E string catches on the end of a couple of the frets.... like there is a small gap at the end of the fret for the string to get caught on. I really dont want to get into the expense of re-fretting or anything. Is there some kind of epoxy or something I could fill the tiny gap so string wont catch? Any ideas?

Thanks

It seems to me that anything like that that you apply (JB Weld comes to mind) would pose a problem for you down the road whenever you do decide to have fret work done. I'd take it to a shop and get some advice from a pro; there may be a cheap temporary measure he can do, like maybe removing the problem frets and moving them over a bit. If the frets are too short, there would be less of a problem if the gap were on the other side of the neck.

 

[Light]

Hi. I've got a 1981 Ibanez Iceman... still plays and sounds great. Problem is that sometimes the high E string catches on the end of a couple of the frets.... like there is a small gap at the end of the fret for the string to get caught on. I really don't want to get into the expense of re-fretting or anything. Is there some kind of epoxy or something I could fill the tiny gap so string wont catch? Any ideas?

Thanks

NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO! NEVER use epoxy anywhere NEAR frets!


AGH!!!!!!



DEATH!



MURDER!!!!


DISTRUCTION!!!!!!!!!!



OK, I'll calm down now.


What we would usually do, assuming the frets are otherwise in good shape, is to glue down the fret ends with cyanoacrylate glue (Superglue, but we use a MUCH better quality product). It MAY, however, be necessary to do a fret DRESS afterwards, which should only run $125-150, so nowhere near as bad as a refret on a bound fingerboard ($350-400 in my shop, depending on many factors).

And though my delivery was sarcastic, my message was sincere. NO epoxy for repair work, EVER. There are a FEW building tasks where I use it, but for repair, never.


One other thing. If you keep playing it, it will eventually need a refret. It is expensive, but it is still necessary maintenance on your guitar, kind of like changing the tires on your car. If you are going to play guitar seriously, you are going to have to do it eventually. Now, I am not saying that it doesn't make sense to prolong it as long as possible, but it will still need to be done. The good news is, when it has been done, it will last for quite a while. If you want to never do it again, then you can either stop playing, or when you DO get it done, get stainless steel frets. They are more expensive, but they will last just about forever. But refrets are simply a cost of owning a guitar.



Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi

 

[ocnor]

Hi. Ive got a 1981 Ibanez Iceman... still plays and sounds great. Problem is that sometimes the high E string catches on the end of a couple of the frets.... like there is a small gap at the end of the fret for the string to get caught on. I really dont want to get into the expense of re-fretting or anything. Is there some kind of epoxy or something I could fill the tiny gap so string wont catch? Any ideas?

Thanks

Maybe try some clear fingernail polish.

 

[Elmo89m]

go to stewmac.com and refret the couple of frets yourself.

 

[Light]

go to stewmac.com and refret the couple of frets yourself.

First of all, DIY fret work is simply a recipe for disaster. It is almost never good, and leads to all kinds of buzzes. Fret work requires a very high level of skill, and it takes years to get really good at it. Add to this the fact that working on bound fingerboards requires some rather pricey tools in addition to the normal (and rather pricey) fret work tools, and you are going to spend more trying to DIY. And you will probably fuck it up.

Second of all, partial refrets are rarely a good idea. The problem is, you end up having to grind down the new frets to the same level as the old frets. Now, for a bluegrass rythem guy who never plays above the fifth fret, that might not be a problem. Replace the first five, and the rest of them are all but like new anyway, so who care. But for anybody who plays all over the neck, you rarly get any kind of advantage from a partial refret.

More to the point, why replace them when that is not the problem? Loose fret ends are not a problem with the fret, but a problem with the fret slot. If you replace them, you are just going to have to glue down the fret ends anyway, which you could have done just as well with the old frets.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi

 

[heroics321]

yeah, i wouldn't go any further than what light stated. put a little bit of bee's wax on the fingerboard around where the problem fret is (less of a chance for glue problems), get some hot stuff instant glue (i like using some of the accelerator too), and glue the fret. hold it down with a small wood block so you don't glue yourself. after all is said and done, take some fine grade steel-wool to the fingerboard to freshen it up and rid yourself of the wax, glue, and make sure to oil it well.

 

[Dani Pace]

Sounds like you may have a fret or two which have become "unseated," or may have not been seated properly to start with. A good repair person may be able to press it (them) back down, I don't advise trying this yourself. Like most repairs having both the "know how" and the right tools are needed. A C clamp and a steel bar are NOT the tools for a job like this.

 

[Sirnothingness]

You don't want to get into refretting, but you have a nice guitar. I would at least take it to a tech and get some fret work taken care of. Or else live with it 'cause it ain't goin' away.

 

[Elmo89m]

First of all, DIY fret work is simply a recipe for disaster. It is almost never good, and leads to all kinds of buzzes. Fret work requires a very high level of skill, and it takes years to get really good at it. Add to this the fact that working on bound fingerboards requires some rather pricey tools in addition to the normal (and rather pricey) fret work tools, and you are going to spend more trying to DIY. And you will probably fuck it up.

Second of all, partial refrets are rarely a good idea. The problem is, you end up having to grind down the new frets to the same level as the old frets. Now, for a bluegrass rythem guy who never plays above the fifth fret, that might not be a problem. Replace the first five, and the rest of them are all but like new anyway, so who care. But for anybody who plays all over the neck, you rarly get any kind of advantage from a partial refret.

More to the point, why replace them when that is not the problem? Loose fret ends are not a problem with the fret, but a problem with the fret slot. If you replace them, you are just going to have to glue down the fret ends anyway, which you could have done just as well with the old frets.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi

yeah...sorry...

 

[packratlouie]

We're forgetting something very important here... guitar humidity

As the wood dries out, the neck will shrink, causing the wood to shrink inbetween the frets, and look bowed inbetween. Another result will be the frets actually sticking out a tiny bit. If you hold the guitar up with the fretboard and pickups facing you (at eye level), see if you notice the wood dipping down inbetween the frets. Another telltale sign would be to see if the wood surrounding any inlay in the fretboard has shrunk, causing a tiny space to appear between the wood, and the piece of inlay in the fretboard. There are many other signs as well.


Now it could just be the fret sticking out for no reason, but depending where you live, it's likely a humidity issue.

Keep your guitar around 45% humidity at 70 degrees, or somewhere in that area.

I had a similar experience with a couple of guitars which I revived for some friends. It's a lengthy task but quite easy since most humidity problems will correct themselves, with the exception of things like finish checking etc.

Maybe this helped.. maybe this wasn't even relative to your guitar's situation... but maybe you learnt a little about guitar humidity

 

[Light]

I had a similar experience with a couple of guitars which I revived for some friends. It's a lengthy task but quite easy since most humidity problems will correct themselves, with the exception of things like finish checking etc.

Weather checking has nothing to do with humidity, but with temperature. If the guitar gets too cold, and then warms up too quickly, the wood will expand faster than the finish, which leads to weather checking. Humidity is not a part of that equation. The way to prevent it is to never let your guitar get that cold. If your guitar IS that cold, you need to leave it in the case, unopened, until the guitar comes to room temperature. If you can throw a blanket or some other insulator to slow the temperature equalization down, that is a good thing, though probably not really necessary.

Fixing fret end which are sticking out is not that time consuming, but it does take some skill, as it is very easy to damage the finish, and almost no humidity problems fix themselves. The only ones which will fix themselves with time is a shrunken top on an acoustic guitar, and that will only reverse IF you start to properly humidify. If you don't, the top will crack, which will most certainly NEVER fixes itself. I have never seen a shrunken fingerboard reverse.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi

 

[packratlouie]

Weather checking has nothing to do with humidity, but with temperature. If the guitar gets too cold, and then warms up too quickly, the wood will expand faster than the finish, which leads to weather checking.

I beg to differ in the regard because its obvious that wood and finish have different abilities to absorb/expel humidity. Although tmperature does cause this (I've seen people open their guitar cases aftet being in a van, and literally watch them suffer as they watch their finish check), relative humidity below 40% can cause the same effect over a long-term period. The same effect will happen if the guitar is over about 65% relative humidity as well.

You're right. Temperature does cause this, but so does humidity.

 

[Light]

I beg to differ in the regard because its obvious that wood and finish have different abilities to absorb/expel humidity. Although tmperature does cause this (I've seen people open their guitar cases aftet being in a van, and literally watch them suffer as they watch their finish check), relative humidity below 40% can cause the same effect over a long-term period. The same effect will happen if the guitar is over about 65% relative humidity as well.

You're right. Temperature does cause this, but so does humidity.

Well, my shop does over 600 humidity related repairs a year (and that is just the humidity related repairs), and I have NEVER seen weather checking which was caused by humidity. It is always from letting it get too warm too fast.

The thing is, long before you are going to get any finish checking, the wood is going to crack – cracking the finish along with it – which relieves a good bit of the tension on the finish. It just is not the issue.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi

 

[mshilarious]

I learned something about lutherie tonight: don't think that just because a fretting hammer has one plastic face and one brass face that it doesn't hurt if you hurt yourself in the mouth with the plastic side

 

[Hoyton]

Yea i bought an epiphone zakk wylde sig guitar which did that too. I took it back. sry i cant help. Not uncommon tho.