Vintage-style frets: Refret or recrown?

[Joel Terry]

I need some insight from the genius techs here. I guess I should have posted this on the Tele Tech page, but I wanted maximum reach and frequency (to borrow terminology from the advertising world. )

I love vintage fretwire on an authentic vintage or vintage reissue Fender guitar neck, and wouldn't really consider any other kind of fret. Having said that, I just bought a nice, old, "broken in" MIJ '52-reissue maple Tele neck (with a cool, unusual 1959-type profile--a super-thin "C" shape) with a few worn frets on the nut/tuner end of the neck. Describing the amount of fretwear on this particular neck--or on most any guitar neck--is largely subjective; however, I would say that the first nine or ten frets closest to the nut are somewhat worn--definitely still enough to work with for a recrown/level job, though.

However, I'm the kind of guy who craves the feel of fresh, new fretwire, particularly the small, vintage-style frets. I don't care much for recrowns for vintage-style frets.

So, you know where I'm headed with this: Am I crazy and wasteful for wanting a complete refret, especially if there is certainly enough on the current frets to work with?

Any and all opinions/insights welcome.

Thanks a million,
Joel

 

[Rick S]

Joel, I understand what you are saying, but I think I would first level the frets, and see what you think at that point. I'm usually surprised at how little needs to be removed when leveling.

The height you end up with will depend on how much was removed when initially leveled, and depending on who you have replace the frets, you may not end up with much more height.

If you're not pleased after the fret dress, I think you would probably be dollars ahead by selling it with the fresh dress, and ordering a new one built to your specs.

Unlike you, I like this type of fret knocked down a bit. My main players are a couple of '62 reissue strats and the one that is on it's second level actually has the best feel to me.
Rick S

 

[jazzguitar]

Unless the frets are really down, they can be leveled and recrowned (this includes all frets regardless which ones are worn).

Remember that a maple neck refret includes a neck refinish, and that makes it about $100 more expensive than a rosewood neck refret.

 

[FraKo]

I would first level the frets, and see what you think at that point. I'm usually surprised at how little needs to be removed when leveling.

Joel,

I agree with Ricki: first recrown, and see what happens. There'll be time to totally refret once the recrowned frets are worn again.

 

[Teleologist]

Since you're in Nashville, maybe you should go visit Joe Glaser. I don't know what his backlog is, but he can refret maple boards without re-finishing. He also has that new automated fret-leveling machine.

I've heard that the frets on some MIJ's are fairly soft and tend to wear quickly, so maybe a refret with something better would last a lot longer than a crown/leveling.....

 

[telemann51]

I prefer to refret. I like the feel of taller frets. People complain about how it's harder to slide but it's all technique that can be learned easily. I have never been happy with a fret job on old frets.

 

[Bob H.]

Plek it.

If you have acces to the Plek, and are willing to spend the dough, it leaves you with a beautiful feel and sound.
But it sounds like you love new frets, and all this advice might much matter.
I wouldn't re-fret until I had to.

 

[swingin guitarman]

Getting My '52 Refretted.

I am having the local shop refret my '52 as we speak. I kept the original fretboard radius, but had Dunlop 6105 frets installed. They are the same width as the original vintage frets, but they are considerably taller.

The problem with the vintage style frets is you don't get many fret dresses before they are finished. The 6105 frets don't give you the "speed bump" feel of the 6100 or 6150 jumbo frets, but the added height does give you considerably more usable fret.

The cost to refret a maple fingerboard neck is usually $200~$250. I'll let you know how the guitar plays when I get it back later in the week.

 

[swingin guitarman]

Refretted '52 Reissue

I got my '52 RI back from the shop today. It plays like a dream. Surprise! They did not have to refinish the fretboard. Apparently, the finish on the newer teles (mine's a 2000 model) is not as heavy a finish as some of the older guitars. They were able to remove the frets and replace them without a hitch. The fingerboard didn't didn't require any leveling. Lucky me!

The 6105 frets, new nut, and proper fret dress made a world of difference in the playability. I was originally comtemplating a fingerboard radius change, but I'm glad I didn't. The neck maintains the same feel as before. The additional height of the 6105 frets is noticeable, but the guitar frets-out less in the upper registers. My past experience with the Dunlop frets is they wear much slower than the original Fender fret wire. I don't know if it's a case of a different metal alloy or hardness, but the original frets on this '52 wore out much faster than the Dunlop replacements on my other guitars. For those who own guitars with the original vintage size frets, I can definitely recommend the 6105 replacements.

Overall, I'm extremely pleased with the work. (Done by the Guitar Factory in College Park, FL). The total cost was just over $200.

 

[ashtray]

Re: Refretted '52 Reissue

Overall, I'm extremely pleased with the work. (Done by the Guitar Factory in College Park, FL). The total cost was just over $200.

:thumbsup:

Guitar Factory does some good work.

 

[beez]

King Bee

Joel,

Go see Gary Gilbert at King Bee guitars. He has a little shop off of hwy 96 heading towards Triune from Franklin. He does excellent fret work, and is a nice guy as well. Ask him what he thinks.....he is a straight shooter.

George

 

[Dave W]

Try a recrown first if you still have enough height to work with. You may be pleasantly surprised. All depends on the skill of the repairman, but that applies to refrets too.

swingin.little.guitarman., I'm glad you're happy with your refret, but I just flat don't like taller frets, including the 6105s.