saga neck?

hi all, newb here,
just got a saga tele kit to try my first build/assembly...
everything going smooth as silk as far as the assembly goes...
going to upgrade the tuners...
i do have a question about the neck tho,
it seems to feel kinda dry, and my first thought is tung oil...
also, i wonder do the frets need attention? they're quite round on top and
i'm under the impression they should be flat on top...is this what's causing
the weird feel? do i have to file them?
i've got it set up pretty good so far, action, intonation, etc...but it just feels weird...
kinda new to teles anyway, having played mostly gibsons and basses all these
years...
thanks for any input and advice you all can give....
mikey

Welcome ! Do they have a sealer coat on the neck? It should feel dry as the wood is supposed to be dry. The frets most likely should be leveled with a grind and polish. I think there is a tutorial somewhere on tdpri that you can check out. Use the search command above and type in fretwork or similar words.

+1 What he said. Just pay someone to dress the frets. It makes a big difference.

i believe there's a sealer on the back of the neck and the headstock,
but the fingerboard seems to be dry. should have been clearer in my first post.
i will search for the threads on fret dressing...in the meantime trying to get some photos
and pick a color.

And another vote for what Guitarbuilder said.

I've done one of these kits and had to level the frets and do the nut then cleaned and applied lemon oil to the fingerboard.

Alot of attention to the details in setting it up and you can end up with a nice playing piece. Also, bin the standard wiring and pots!

yeah, looks like i'm gonna do the frets for sure, after reading around i'm confident i can tackle it, and i'm sure the playability will improve...shopping around for some pups, and certainly gonna change the pots and cap....that oughta give some time to decide on a color....hmmmm

I did a saga as well. Can't remember if the neck had sealer when I got mine, several years back. I think I sanded it off first. Then I finished it with tru oil. Leaves the neck really nice.

Also, check here for a lot of good info and idea particular to the saga kits...

http://www.guitarattack.com/saga/sagasagas.htm

On the frets, they should be round. They only get flat after playing. But, my saga had a number of high spots. Getting a level/crown will get rid of all the high/low spots.

Enjoy!!!

yes, i've come to the conclusion that every guitar or bass i've ever owned and/or
played, has had some degree of fret wear...picking up a straight edge to notch, then true up the neck, and check for highs/lows along the tops of the frets and do any necessary work.
as far as finish goes, i'm leaning strongly towards acrylic lacquer, as i've used that in another trade for over 20 years, and the colors are pretty much unlimited...
thinking of going for some kind of beachy type blue green....
will hit that link next...

The Saga kits come with a sanding sealer on the wood, but I think the fretboard is unsealed. I could be wrong. I used Painter's Touch (made by Rust Oleum) matte clear on the back of the neck and left the fretboard unfinished, and it feels great. I put metallic blue Rust Oleum on the body and it promptly chipped off.

i'm liking the look of duplicolor mirage....pretty wild...