How often do you burnish your frets?
- Thread starter Luke Duke
- Start date
ex-250
Riffologist Extraordinaire
Re: How often do you burnish your frets?
as long as your talking about what i think you are, ive only ever done it once on one of my guitars. im not too comfortable with taking a thing of steel wool to my guitars, its kinda risky (especially cause the fibers can flake off of the wad of it, and you wouldnt notice till you go to wipe down your guitar or something and make a big scrape in the finish cause a peice of steel wool is on there)
as long as your talking about what i think you are, ive only ever done it once on one of my guitars. im not too comfortable with taking a thing of steel wool to my guitars, its kinda risky (especially cause the fibers can flake off of the wad of it, and you wouldnt notice till you go to wipe down your guitar or something and make a big scrape in the finish cause a peice of steel wool is on there)
Luke Duke
PRSlustologist
Re: How often do you burnish your frets?
For the Do what guys:
Burnishing is rubbing down your fretwire with steel wool. This removes corroded nickelsilver, as well as oils from our hands.
Actually EX it's not a big deal, at home I use post it notes and mask the wood with them. You also used high pressure air to blow off the tiny pieces, I also keep a piece of paper on the neck pup to keep the pieces from staying on it.
Luke
For the Do what guys:
Burnishing is rubbing down your fretwire with steel wool. This removes corroded nickelsilver, as well as oils from our hands.
Actually EX it's not a big deal, at home I use post it notes and mask the wood with them. You also used high pressure air to blow off the tiny pieces, I also keep a piece of paper on the neck pup to keep the pieces from staying on it.
Luke
Breaking the law
New member
Re: How often do you burnish your frets?
It's so rare to me, I choose "do what"? I'll have to do it soon though, I got nasty wear marks on frets of a few necks..
So, how do you do it then? Steel wool? Super fine grit sandpaper? Fancy metal polish stuff?
EDIT: Old Btl was a tad slow again..
It's so rare to me, I choose "do what"? I'll have to do it soon though, I got nasty wear marks on frets of a few necks..
So, how do you do it then? Steel wool? Super fine grit sandpaper? Fancy metal polish stuff?
EDIT: Old Btl was a tad slow again..
Luke Duke
PRSlustologist
Re: How often do you burnish your frets?
Burnishing is more akin to shinys, you aren't reshaping the fret wire like when you crown one. I use extra fine steel wool. My buddy used to have a furniture polish that cleaned the fingerboard, AND the frets, I don't know what it was, and he said they quit making it.
Anyways just use something to mask the fret board and you'll be all right, your guitar will play much different after a burnish, and oiling.
Luke
Burnishing is more akin to shinys, you aren't reshaping the fret wire like when you crown one. I use extra fine steel wool. My buddy used to have a furniture polish that cleaned the fingerboard, AND the frets, I don't know what it was, and he said they quit making it.
Anyways just use something to mask the fret board and you'll be all right, your guitar will play much different after a burnish, and oiling.
Luke
Breaking the law
New member
Re: How often do you burnish your frets?
Luke Duke, any idea if I can use 1200 grit sandpaper to polish them frets?
I think my V needs a fret dressing, though.. I think I need to level the frets a bit.. I'd love a radius sanding block..
Luke Duke, any idea if I can use 1200 grit sandpaper to polish them frets?
I think my V needs a fret dressing, though.. I think I need to level the frets a bit.. I'd love a radius sanding block..
S
seafoamer
Guest
Re: How often do you burnish your frets?
I'll give ya somethin to burnish.
I'll give ya somethin to burnish.
Re: How often do you burnish your frets?
When i was helping out at a music store over the xmas holidays they had me doing a lot of string changes and really light repair work... I'm not a pro repairman at all. Anyways i think they just needed a body to get them through a busy season.. To do a string change/set up they would have me do this after i took the strings off....
1-tighten all hardware
2-lub moving parts
3-spray wd40 cleaner into switches and pots on electrics
4-mask off the pickups with tape
5-rub down roasewood boards and frets with steel wool
6-add a mix of tung oil with a brown stain to the board and let soak in
7-clean guitar finnish on the body and neck and remove leftover oil off the board
8-resting the guitar
9-do any minor repairs that may stop the guitar from being setup right-(mostly nut)
10-set the string heigth, adjust pickup heigth, and intonate with a peterson strobe tuner
That would run about $40 canadian plus cost of strings.....
For my own guitars i would do this maybe every 5 years!!!! If that....
WhoFan
When i was helping out at a music store over the xmas holidays they had me doing a lot of string changes and really light repair work... I'm not a pro repairman at all. Anyways i think they just needed a body to get them through a busy season.. To do a string change/set up they would have me do this after i took the strings off....
1-tighten all hardware
2-lub moving parts
3-spray wd40 cleaner into switches and pots on electrics
4-mask off the pickups with tape
5-rub down roasewood boards and frets with steel wool
6-add a mix of tung oil with a brown stain to the board and let soak in
7-clean guitar finnish on the body and neck and remove leftover oil off the board
8-resting the guitar
9-do any minor repairs that may stop the guitar from being setup right-(mostly nut)
10-set the string heigth, adjust pickup heigth, and intonate with a peterson strobe tuner
That would run about $40 canadian plus cost of strings.....
For my own guitars i would do this maybe every 5 years!!!! If that....
WhoFan
Last edited:
Quencho092
New member
Re: How often do you burnish your frets?
what grade of wool do you use?
what grade of wool do you use?
StrangeSound
GlossesForNothin'
Re: How often do you burnish your frets?
I have never done that in the past but it sounds like a good idea..gonna try it!
I have never done that in the past but it sounds like a good idea..gonna try it!
sosomething
Seymour Duncan Customer Support
Re: How often do you burnish your frets?
Stainless steel frets, peeps. Trust me.
Stainless steel frets, peeps. Trust me.
kdawson
New member
Re: How often do you burnish your frets?
I voted "Do What?" becuse there was no "Never". But you got me thinking about it. Seems to me it would be a good thing to do regularily. I once sold a Charvel because the frets were getting to rough and "sticky". I didn't know much about guitar maintenance, but I had too many guitars then anyway...
(Did I just say "too many guitars"? is that possible?!)
I voted "Do What?" becuse there was no "Never". But you got me thinking about it. Seems to me it would be a good thing to do regularily. I once sold a Charvel because the frets were getting to rough and "sticky". I didn't know much about guitar maintenance, but I had too many guitars then anyway...
(Did I just say "too many guitars"? is that possible?!)
Luke Duke
PRSlustologist
Re: How often do you burnish your frets?
Blasphemy!
Guys concerned about fretwear, it's really a non issue, with a fine steel wool your doing just a bit more scraping than bends do.
When it comes to radiusing, etc. I'm no expert, shoot I'm not even a rookie! But I do know that it can make a HUGE difference on a guitar. It made my come alive after the first time, and keeps them that way. If you use strings with any kind of coating it really makes a difference.
A good point is those cleartone strings we got at UGD. They were good for a long while, then they decayed very quickly, and left stuff on the frets.
Luke
kdawson said:(Did I just say "too many guitars"? is that possible?!)
Blasphemy!
Guys concerned about fretwear, it's really a non issue, with a fine steel wool your doing just a bit more scraping than bends do.
When it comes to radiusing, etc. I'm no expert, shoot I'm not even a rookie! But I do know that it can make a HUGE difference on a guitar. It made my come alive after the first time, and keeps them that way. If you use strings with any kind of coating it really makes a difference.
A good point is those cleartone strings we got at UGD. They were good for a long while, then they decayed very quickly, and left stuff on the frets.
Luke
