Fender Japan Tele fret advice

[controlfreak]

Hey guys,

I've got a 72RI Japanese Fender and I love almost everything about the guitar......except the god damn frets!!!
They're quite narrow and high. Basically the frets i love are wider and lower. Can anyone advise (roughly) how much a full refret would cost (in dollars or euros) and also would this contribute to being able to lower the action a little further? The action on it is quite high compared to another tele i have and it won't come down anymore without the narrow tall frets getting in the way!

apologies but i'm not sure how the frets are termed, medium-jumbo etc.!!

[LOSTVENTURE]

I would expect to pay $300(USD) here in Carolina. That would probably include a good set-up. The action could certainly be adjusted to suit your taste.
OR, a goog guitar teck might be able to file the frets down to your liking and reset the action accordingly. This woud cost a little more that half the cost of re-fretting, again this is based on what I have paid here in the states.
Don
ps. Find a luthier that you trust for any of this.

[lonewolf]

(The action on it is quite high compared to another tele i have and it won't come down anymore without the narrow tall frets getting in the way!)
I don't understand what you're saying here. How can the frets get in the way of lowering the action? The only thing I can figure, is that you are considering the action to be the distance from the bottoms of the strings, to the fingerboard. Action is normally considered to be the distance from the bottoms of the strings, to the top of the frets, in which case you should be able to get the same action on either guitar. There is a difference in "feel" between high thin frets, and low flat frets, and like most things in life there are pro's and con's for each style. The intonation is often more accurate on the thin frets, than on the wider ones. Also bending resistance is much less on the thin frets, as their is less metal to metal friction. I think a competent repairman can get the same action on either guitar, if they're both teles with the same neck radius. It's possible also that the new one has action that is too high at the nut, which is throwing all your action adjustments off.
Gene Warner
repairman

[Muku]

Yes I agree with you on the necks of the 69 and 72 RI thinlines. Such a great guitar except the round 7.25" radius and terrible frets. My dream is to get a more modern 9.5 or 12" radius neck with medium jumbos that are not over .040" tall. Intonation is lowered with tall frets I like vintage frets .037" tall. I also like 22 frets as well. Got to love the bodies and tone though! Maybe you can plek your tall frets , the cost is 220$ in LA? They can trim them to .037 to 0.42 or so. Dress them and get your action lower.

[BuddyLee]

I have a '68 RI Antigua and I like the old school small frets better than the frets on any other guit I own. Including my '52 Hot Rod. But the frets don't really seem to be tall, just skinny.

Different strokes I guess.

Maybe your action seems high because you need a nut-job.