Fender Strat: Refret with Stainless Steel Fretwire

Related Topics: | Refret | Set Up | New Nut |


1. This Stratocaster's Neck is suffering from "fretboard tongue lift" and a rubbery neck. Basically, the guitar's neck was made from slab sawn maple. Although maple is a great wood for musical instruments, especially necks, it only provides maximum resistance to excessive bowing and twisting if the timbers are quarter sawn.	2. Low Frets detract from the feel of a guitar, they also require more energy from the fretting hand during play than a fresh set of frets do.


3. A Neck Jig is very handy for doing fretwork on bolt on necks. By removing the neck from the body I have easier access to the frets and I don't have to take the time to protect the body of the instrument. I made this simple jig specifically for strats. The base of the jig is rounded for ease of use with our extra long, shop made, neck cradle.	4. Removing the Frets is done with a pair of flush cutting end nippers and a soldering iron. Heating the fret up before removal is key to avoiding chipping of this rosewood fretboard and loosening the glue used to secure the frets by the repair person who had previously refretted this instru- ment.


5. Resurfacing the Fretboard will straighten out any bowing or twist- ing. If a neck is bowed badly enough I will sometimes have to spot plane the fretboard with a block plane before sanding the fretboard.	6. Beveling the Fret Slots will prevent the fretboard from chip- ping during fret installation. This will also prevent chipping should this guitar ever undergo another refret.


7. Cleaning out the Fret Slots with a dovetail saw. I set the plexi- glass stop a few thousandths of an inch deeper than the tang of the fret wire. This ensures that the frets have enough room to properly seat.	8. Stainless Steel Fretwire is much harder than contemporary nickel silver fretwire. Although it is more expensive and a bit more time consuming to instal, the extra hard- ness of the wire translates into a much longer life.


9. Installing the New Frets is effectively achieved with a hammer. Resting the neck on a sandbag is helpful during fret installation but is unnecessary when hammering in the last few over the neck jig. Usually a mallet with a rubber face is my tool of choice for this step of a refret, how- ever, stainless steel fretwire is hard enough that it won't become damaged from the extra heft of a steel hammer. Either way (mallet or hammer) I let gravity and the weight of the tool do the work. No swinging force is necessary.	10. Gluing in the Frets with cyano- acrylate (aka: superglue) ensures that the frets will stay properly seated should the neck ever dry out from exposure to extreme fluctuations in humidity. I will wipe away the excess glue with a paper towel lightly damp- ened with acetone.


11. Beveling the Fret Ends with a Mill File. A few quick passes with 600 grit sandpaper wrapped around a short, flat sanding bar follows. The sandpaper gets rid of the file marks and allows me to fine tune the fret ends on the last few strokes.	12. A Modified Mill File is a great tool to have around for safe fretwork. The faces of this file are all cutting surface. The sides of the file are smooth and rounded.


13. Filling the Gap at the Bottom of the Fret Slot. I'm applying a small drop of medium viscosity cyano acrylate. This thicker super glue is easier to control (I don't want glue running down the back of the lacquered neck) and will fill this small gap with a single appli- cation.	14. Leveling the Frets with 600 grit sandpaper only takes a minute since I've done so much preparation in straightening and resurfacing the fingerboard.


15. Rounding the Fret Ends with our Stew Mac diamond fret crowning File. Next, I'll delicately sand the frets with some 600 grit sandpaper wrapped around my finger.	16. Polishing the Frets and Fretboard. I started this pro- cess with #0000 steel wool. Now I'm using micro mesh pads. These little sanding pads start at 2400 grit and go all the way up to 12000 grit.


17. Cleaning and Sealing the Fretboard. I cleaned the fretboard with naptha, now I'm sealing the rosewood with mineral oil.	18. New Frets make a world of difference to the fretting hand. The added height of new frets require less energy to play on and drastically im- prove the feel of a neck.