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  • Fret leveling vs neck quality.

    Hi.

    To what extent can a good fret leveling job get you crazy low action?

    I've done fret leveling jobs on two guitars with relative succes, but was not able to get the crazy low action I have on my Korean Michael kelly Patriot Shadow, which simply has a $3000 guitar neck.
    One of the guitars I worked on was also a Michael kelly Patriot (albeit an Indonesian one).

    I'm thinking that the leveling is done when the neck is straight, but I figure restrung, a good neck will make a perfect bow, allowing for very low action, while a lesser neck's bow may not be smooth (a bit bumpy let's say) and 'cause fret buzz anyway?
    Or is it just a matter of inadequate skills?

  • #2
    Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

    Well if the neck is straight
    And the frets are level
    And the nut is cut correctly
    And the neck angle.is good
    And the bridge saddles are just right

    And if with all this
    The neck isn't twisted

    I think you should be able to get it super low

    Its easier to get super low action
    With taller frets
    Or at least that's what my understanding is
    EHD
    Just here surfing Guitar Pron
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    • #3
      Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

      Fret height has nothing to do with low action.

      As for OP, you're probably doing it wrong.
      aka Chris Pile, formerly of Six String Fever

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

        Originally posted by ICTGoober View Post
        Fret height has nothing to do with low action.

        As for OP, you're probably doing it wrong.
        Helpful much

        Thanks Goob
        EHD
        Just here surfing Guitar Pron
        RG2EX1 w/ SD hot-rodded pickups / RG4EXFM1 w/ Carvin S22j/b + FVN middle
        SR500 / Martin 000CE-1/Epiphone Hummingbird
        Epiphone Florentine with OEM Probuckers
        Ehdwuld branded Blue semi hollow custom with JB/Jazz
        Reptile Green Gibson Custom Studio / Aqua Dean Shire semi hollow with piezo
        Carvin Belair / Laney GC80A Acoustic Amp (a gift from Guitar Player Mag)
        GNX3000 (yea I'm a modeler)

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

          It has to do with set up and level frets either from a good fret job or a well produced neck maybe run through a fret machine. That's it. "Quality" doesn't really have much to do with it. Almost all production guitars just have the frets installed without a level.
          Last edited by Clint 55; 02-02-2020, 05:24 PM.
          The things that you wanted
          I bought them for you

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          • #6
            Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

            Truss rod can correct for most any bow in the neck

            Not a twist

            Bow
            EHD
            Just here surfing Guitar Pron
            RG2EX1 w/ SD hot-rodded pickups / RG4EXFM1 w/ Carvin S22j/b + FVN middle
            SR500 / Martin 000CE-1/Epiphone Hummingbird
            Epiphone Florentine with OEM Probuckers
            Ehdwuld branded Blue semi hollow custom with JB/Jazz
            Reptile Green Gibson Custom Studio / Aqua Dean Shire semi hollow with piezo
            Carvin Belair / Laney GC80A Acoustic Amp (a gift from Guitar Player Mag)
            GNX3000 (yea I'm a modeler)

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

              Originally posted by ehdwuld View Post
              Truss rod can correct for most any bow in the neck

              Not a twist

              Bow
              Unless you have a neck with double truss rods.
              Originally Posted by IanBallard
              Rule of thumb... the more pot you have, the better your tone.

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

                Originally posted by GuitarDoc View Post
                Unless you have a neck with double truss rods.
                and that is rare. Very rare. I only know of a few Rickenbackers who do it that way?

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                • #9
                  Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

                  I once had a customer with a brand new American Standard Strat. The action was low, but he wanted it lower.

                  Leveling the frets helped a lot but he wanted it lower. So I removed the frets and leveled the board and installed new frets.

                  It was so low he asked me to raise it!

                  But fret leveling helps.


                  Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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                  • #10
                    Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

                    Originally posted by orpheo View Post
                    and that is rare. Very rare. I only know of a few Rickenbackers who do it that way?
                    Yeah, me too.
                    Originally Posted by IanBallard
                    Rule of thumb... the more pot you have, the better your tone.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

                      Originally posted by WDeeGee View Post
                      a good neck will make a perfect bow, allowing for very low action, while a lesser neck's bow may not be smooth (a bit bumpy let's say) and 'cause fret buzz anyway?
                      Or is it just a matter of inadequate skills?
                      One will make a pefect bow by itself, another one must be helped. Bumpy fretboards can be sanded to some extent. Bumpy fretwork can be redone. From that point on, it's all a matter of how accurately you can assess the situation and how much skill you have in executing the correction, assuming your judgment was correct in the first place...

                      IOW, sanding a badly seated fret sounds like pointless work.

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                      • #12
                        Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

                        Super low action is over-rated.

                        Raise the action until each note rings clear and the strings have a little "bounce" to them.

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                        • #13
                          Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

                          Originally posted by LLL View Post
                          Super low action is over-rated.
                          Only if you pound your strings like a 13 year old beginner trying to play metal.
                          Originally Posted by IanBallard
                          Rule of thumb... the more pot you have, the better your tone.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

                            Originally posted by GuitarDoc View Post
                            Only if you pound your strings like a 13 year old beginner trying to play metal.
                            Higher action (but not too high) makes the strings livelier, facilitates better bending and vibrato, and cleaner notes.

                            Besides that, you can pick as "delicately" as you want regardless of how high/low the action is.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: Fret leveling vs neck quality.

                              "Higher" only helps if the existing action is so low that the strings are buzzing on the frets. If they're not buzzing, then raising the height of the strings makes no difference.

                              Bending and vibrato are facilitated by the height of the frets. That's also why some players like scalloped fretboards (simulates very high frets)
                              .
                              Originally Posted by IanBallard
                              Rule of thumb... the more pot you have, the better your tone.

                              Comment

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