# Fret repair -Best solution??



## WannabeGood (Oct 24, 2007)

So here's the scoop.......Last week I picked up (used from Kijiji) a Squire Fat Strat (Affinity Series M.I.C.), Kustom KLA20 practice amp (torn grille cloth), a padded and lined Levi gig bag and Ibanez tuner for...........$80.00. Pretty good deal I'm thinking. Amp is now repaired with probably a buck and a half worth of speaker cloth (generic, all black) but what I need assistance with is the guitar. Aside from those on this forum that might suggest the nearest trash bin  let me try to be more specific. It wasn't till I started noodling with the guitar after bringing it home that I discovered that the 11th fret wire has a light scratch at right about and parallel to the B string. Chording is alright but the E-6th string, when doing a bend, catches on the scratch. Annoying more than anything......can live with.......but I would like to attempt a repair. So now I ask.........short of filing the entire fret board........is there an easy repair?
This is what I was thinking.......... Mask the fret board on both sides of the fret wire, drop on a dolop of solder, carefully file, buff with my CTC rotary tool (read as Dremel) and Viola........ready to gig. Not that I do....but I could if I wanted to......not really. Workable? Suggestions and/or a neck donation gratfully accepted.

Regards,


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## fraser (Feb 24, 2007)

actually i once tried a solder drop fill on a fret- didnt work, and i do a bit of welding and lots of soldering-
is the scratch deep enough that the string actually catches in the scratch and stays there?
if so, its a bummer, but you may have to replace that fret-
then you level it to the height of the existing frets.
its pretty easy if thats any consolation.
if the string actually doesnt snag in the scratch, and stay there while you try to bend, and instead just catches there and then moves on, which is really what i sense it is from your post, you can use sandpaper to smooth the fret out a bit- start with 600 grit, then 1000 grit etc-
dont try to remove much material, just make the scratch as minimal as possible- then youve got to recrown- just work the sandpaper in your fingers with the intention of creating as round a top to the fret as you can- its hard to describe lol.
mask off the fretboard too with decent masking tape, or youll have lots of ugly scratches-
if the fret is truly ruined maybe try this-
rough it up a bit with 400 grit sandpaper- 
go to canadian tire and get some jb weld- its a 2 part cold weld
try to fill the scratch, then sand it smooth. i never tried it- 
just wanted to see if itd work:smile:

btw- bad fret or not, you got a good deal


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## WannabeGood (Oct 24, 2007)

fraser........What was it about the solder drop that didn't work? Solder wouldn't stick? Maybe jb weld could be the answer. 
The mark on the fret is more of a scratch than a groove in that the string doesn't get stuck and hung up.
Didn't need the gear but the deal was to good to pass up........besides I needed some single coils in the collection. Thanks for the suggestion.

Regards,


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## fraser (Feb 24, 2007)

ya, the solder didnt stick lol- was just an experiment



> The mark on the fret is more of a scratch than a groove in that the string doesn't get stuck and hung up


ok- then id go with trying to smooth the scratch out with sandpaper- much simpler to deal with. should be easy to get that fret to play cleanly this way.
if you can, just try to concentrate on the scratch itself- minimize it as best you can without making the fret all misshapen, so take your time- you want to create a smooth surface for the string to glide on- think of it like an ice skate hitting a groove on ice.
and try to take the least as possible material off the very top, or peak of the fret- and then ensure it has a nice rounded top-
for this type of thing i use wet sandpaper, the black stuff- it slides easier, and is safer to use in regards to finish damage. i soak it in warm water with a drop of dishwashing liquid.
maybe best to use 800 grit or 1000- may take some time, but you dont want to remove too much fretwire. its ok if the scratch is visible, so long as it doesnt affect fretting the string at that point-

sorry if im a bit weak with this response, dogtired but somehow cant sleep. lol.

never pass up a good deal- youll regret it someday if you do- and single coils rock.


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## Fajah (Jun 28, 2006)

WannabeGood said:


> It wasn't till I started noodling with the guitar after bringing it home that I discovered that the 11th fret wire has a light scratch at right about and parallel to the B string. Chording is alright but the E-6th string, when doing a bend, catches on the scratch.


I had a some scratches on two frets (12th,13th) right below the E and B strings on the SX STL-50 I just modded. I experienced the exact same thing as you....fine when chording, brutal when bending. Here's what I did:

1) I taped off ALL the frets since I figured that while I'm removing the scratches, I'll polish up the others. 

2) I used 320 grit sandpaper first and lightly went over all the frets. I went heavier on the fret with the scratches (to remove them) as well as the 14th (in my case) on down. Since your scratch is on the 11th fret, make sure that the same effort you put into the 11th to remove the scratch is same as the 12th through to the 15th or so. You want to make sure that the subsequent frets are roughly level the the 11th to avoid fret buzz. I just used feel.

3) I then went over all the frets with 600 grade sandpaper.

4) I finished with a generic metal polish.

Just a couple of notes; The sandpaper was dry throughout the process. I cut pieces of sandpaper in rectangular strips to fit around my index finger so that I could preserve the crown of the fret when sanding. I used painters masking tape so that there would be no residual glue staying on the fretboard.

The result....scratches gone, frets nice and shiney...... and silky smooth.


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## WannabeGood (Oct 24, 2007)

Many thanks gents for your input. Now all I have to do is get reacquainted with my workbench........if I can find it.

Regards,


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## kat_ (Jan 11, 2007)

Fajah said:


> I used painters masking tape so that there would be no residual glue staying on the fretboard.


Good point. Regular masking can lift the finish right off the edges of the neck. The green stuff won't do that.


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