Fretless guitars/bass question...

[RunGuy17]

I was wondering, if there are no frets on a guitar or bass, wouldn't the wood where the string contacts it eventually destroy the neck? I've never seen one in person, so I don't know exactly how that works.

[BradKM]

Short answer, yes.

Most manufacturers use harder fingerboards (ebony) and thicker, tougher finishes to combat this, but with time and are hard playing, wear does occur.

[FirstBassman]

Not to hijack the thread but just as a trivial aside ...

Grace Slick's former brother-in-law (Darby) is a fretless guitar designer and player:

[casterway]

Originally Posted by FirstBassman

Not to hijack the thread but just as a trivial aside ...

Grace Slick's former brother-in-law (Darby) is a fretless guitar designer and player:

I read about him years ago. He was using stainless steel for the fingerboard.

[Unseen]

Originally Posted by FirstBassman

Not to hijack the thread but just as a trivial aside ...

Grace Slick's former brother-in-law (Darby) is a fretless guitar designer and player:

YIKES! That was loud. I wish YouTube would equalize videos a bit.

[CatfishStudios]

Here is a convertible, flip a switch and the frets pop out..flip it back they are flush..

[Big John]

Check out a guy called Ned Evett here, his guitars have glass fingerboards, and he can play them !

[tomi]

Originally Posted by BradKM

Short answer, yes.

Most manufacturers use harder fingerboards (ebony) and thicker, tougher finishes to combat this, but with time and are hard playing, wear does occur.

Raises the question of a Stradivarius, for example. Do they get a new fingerboard every century or so?

I've seen some fretless bass players who do their vibrato as you would on a fretted instrument, pushing/pulling the strings across the neck. Theoretically, this would cause the most wear. Vibrato that moves with the axis of the neck, as with most of the "viol" instruments, seems to make more sense and would minimize wear, I'd think.

I wonder how much wear actually occurs from the string simply being pressed against the neck and then released. Interesting question...

[axmaker]

Originally Posted by RunGuy17

I was wondering, if there are no frets on a guitar or bass, wouldn't the wood where the string contacts it eventually destroy the neck? I've never seen one in person, so I don't know exactly how that works.

......i don't know about the guitar, but the bass usually uses flatwounds (nylon if a bow is used) which is easier on the fingerboard.

[RunGuy17]

Tomi,

I believe there's only like one Stradavarius that has its original neck.

[mattaslacker]

My fretless bass has missing laquer and has some grooves but the neck isn't destroyed, it plays fine. It's only noticeable when you play it, not from afar. It is only in certain areas too. I think it does come from vibrato and using round wound strings. I'm thinking of sanding and relaquering it sometime in the future if It does becomes noticable and I get some extra free time.

[tomi]

Originally Posted by RunGuy17

I believe there's only like one Stradavarius that has its original neck.

So they replace the whole neck when fingerboards become too worn? Or are there other reasons?

[Tele295]

Originally Posted by RunGuy17

Tomi,

I believe there's only like one Stradavarius that has its original neck.

That has more to do with scale length and radius than fingerboard wear. Strads were originally baroque instruments, strung with gut. The radii were flatter to accomodate chord-type playing. When the violin family graduated to more virtuostic playing with steel strings in the 19th Century, is became common to replace the neck on Strads and other early violins

[FraKo]

Originally Posted by Tele295

That has more to do with scale length and radius than fingerboard wear. Strads were originally baroque instruments, strung with gut. The radii were flatter to accomodate chord-type playing. When the violin family graduated to more virtuostic playing with steel strings in the 19th Century, is became common to replace the neck on Strads and other early violins

Right. Plus, the neck was dismounted and re-glued with a more accentuated angle respect to the body, to resist to higher tension strings (remember hat the pitch raised from A=400 to 440 in some 150 years), and the new fingerboards were way loger than the original ones to allow the violinist play in 2nd/3rd position: the baroque players used to stay on 1st position only.

So, when you see a Stradivarius (or, pardon, Stradivari in correct Italian) remember that you look to a higly modded instrument thru the decades. Like our tele's eheheh...

[Tele295]

Originally Posted by FraKo

the baroque players used to stay on 1st position only.

All that Vivaldi stuff can be played in first position? Too cool.

[RunGuy17]

I don't know anything about violins...they use steel strings on some of them?

[FraKo]

Originally Posted by Tele295

All that Vivaldi stuff can be played in first position? Too cool.

AFA I know, yes. They seldom overcame the high E (octave on the higher string), and the violin at those times was NOT kept firmly betweeen the jaw and the neck. It was simply put on the clavicula, so that the left thumb couldn't move to let the violin stay in the player's hand. The exploration of the higher register started in the 19th century, with Paganini, Joachim etc.: that's why the original baroque violins (and their recent repro's) have short fingerboards.

[Westerly Sunn]

Originally Posted by CatfishStudios

Here is a convertible, flip a switch and the frets pop out..flip it back they are flush..

That dude's got a switchbass!