Soft Fender fretwire

[hamerfan]

Got a friends 2012 US Strat last week for a pickup change and noticed the bad shape of some frets. He said that his normal playing never caused such a bad shape on one of his other guitars including Fender MIM guitars.
Did Fender USA use that soft fretwire?

 

[LtKojak]

Re: Soft Fender fretwire

Got a friends 2012 US Strat last week for a pickup change and noticed the bad shape of some frets. He said that his normal playing never caused such a bad shape on one of his other guitars including Fender MIM guitars.
Did Fender USA use that soft fretwire?

They use pretty standard 18% Nickelsilver alloy for fretwire, like the StewMac and/or Dunlop uses. I think they might've received some less-than-ideal fretwire from their supplier. I've seen it happen on a Warmoth neck, too. And there's no way you can prevent it from happen.

HTH,

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: Soft Fender fretwire

How old and cruddy are the strings? Corroded strings will act like a file against frets.

 

[ken361]

Re: Soft Fender fretwire

They are pretty soft other people noticed it also

 

[GilmourD]

Re: Soft Fender fretwire

I doubt it's a spec issue. Somebody probably messed up the mixture at Fender's supplier (since Fender themselves don't make fret wire).

 

[Mincer]

Re: Soft Fender fretwire

I've always noticed softer frets on Fenders than any other brand. It is time for my '82 to get refretted, but I'll go with SS frets next time.

 

[GilmourD]

Re: Soft Fender fretwire

I've always noticed softer frets on Fenders than any other brand. It is time for my '82 to get refretted, but I'll go with SS frets next time.

Which is weird because, from what I understand, they use JESCAR and Dunlop fret wire. Shouldn't be any different than anybody else.

 

[Little Pigbacon]

Re: Soft Fender fretwire

I've always noticed softer frets on Fenders than any other brand. It is time for my '82 to get refretted, but I'll go with SS frets next time.

Well, I'm going with tungsten carbide next time, so just a little bit harder than you, so...

View attachment 82348

 

[ken361]

Re: Soft Fender fretwire

I haven't read that anywhere, had a USA/MIM months ago it showed wear in a month on the second fret prb because I fret hard and my EVH the same. Say 2 hours a day on the Strat I had some wear on most of the frets down the neck it bums me out anyways I went back to humbucker guitars again. I play the EVH once a day and maintaining good it has jumbo frets on it. My cheap Epiphone has some pretty strong fret material that I picked up in December. When I polish these they stay shiny a lot longer then the fenders prob because there harder! Fenders you can see the copper like color to them. Classic Vibe series was worst!

 

[Mincer]

Re: Soft Fender fretwire

Which is weird because, from what I understand, they use JESCAR and Dunlop fret wire. Shouldn't be any different than anybody else.

Even back in the early 80s? Many guitars from that time period had indentations in the frets after a year or 2.

 

[hamerfan]

Re: Soft Fender fretwire

Looking around in the internet i found a german luthier, who offers two qualities of fret wire. One standard quality and one quality "for repair and classical guitar" which seems to be a softer alloy, though he doesn't state the specs.