# Making a Neck Feel Bigger with Jumbo Frets



## HolttChris (Aug 10, 2020)

I have a 1960 Gibson ES-345 with the thin neck profile (roughly .80 at the first fret) which isn’t exactly ideal for me with my big hands

It has been re-fretted at least once in the past with what seem to be typical Gibson size fret wire

I am considering having it re-fretted with Jumbo frets to make the neck profile feel bigger and more comfortable for me

If you have been down a similar path with a thin necked guitar please comment your experience


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## Alan Small (Dec 30, 2019)

wow, that guitar has been played...your luthier may replace the fingerboard with 1/10" thicker piece ....?


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## Jimmy_D (Jul 4, 2009)

Nice guitar and very sad day it doesn't work for you. Did you put a caliper on those frets to see how much could be added by going with taller frets, because even with jumbos at .055" I don't think you could pick up more than .020" on what you have now, and I doubt going up to .820" is going to help you that much. 

Sorry to say that short of committing a blasphemous act of luthiery on that vintage fretboard, which I can't do, I have no suggestions for you but I feel your pain.


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## HolttChris (Aug 10, 2020)

Jimmy_D said:


> Nice guitar and very sad day it doesn't work for you. Did you put a caliper on those frets to see how much could be added by going with taller frets, because even with jumbos at .055" I don't think you could pick up more than .020" on what you have now, and I doubt going up to .820" is going to help you that much.


Good point. I haven’t measured the frets yet to get into the exact numbers but I will have to do that when I get the time. So far this is just a late night thought as the guitar is in storage while I work on a big live in renovation project 

Im not expecting a significant difference but because this is a guitar I can see myself hanging onto long term, I’m thinking the little bit of extra height might be worth it to enjoy it to it’s fullest


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## cboutilier (Jan 12, 2016)

Have you played tall frets before? If not, you'll have to learn to be light on your fingers as to not press notes sharp. Slap on a set of 8-38s with normal frets to get a good simulation.


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## HolttChris (Aug 10, 2020)

cboutilier said:


> Have you played tall frets before? If not, you'll have to learn to be light on your fingers as to not press notes sharp. Slap on a set of 8-38s with normal frets to get a good simulation.


Yup! I had a 59 Junior with Jumbos and I really liked it


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## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

I've found through a lot of past experience that if the neck isn't big enough its time for a new guitar or a new neck. New neck much easier on a Fender though.


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## player99 (Sep 5, 2019)

I can appreciate wanting a bigger neck, but I wouldn't be replacing the neck or fingerboard on a 1960 ES-345. Each to his own. I don't know if big frets make the neck feel bigger. Perhaps @zztomato would have experience with it. I had a '60's SG that had the slimist neck at the headstock I couldn't play open A and struggled with open D chord. I sold it but I wished I would have kept it... I have a number of guitars and find each had it's strength and it's weakness. I don't fight them, I try to understand what they are best at when I play them.


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## alwaysflat (Feb 14, 2016)

: ) Note to self, cleaning the neck may make it feel smaller.


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## HolttChris (Aug 10, 2020)

Folks, I’m not looking to touch anything but the frets on this guitar. The neck is slim but it’s not a deal breaker by any means. I’m just looking to hear from people who have put big frets on a slim neck and how that affected the feel for them


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## HolttChris (Aug 10, 2020)




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## Jimmy_D (Jul 4, 2009)

FWIW if you raise the frets by 20 thou you'll be able to fret the note that much earlier and unless you have a heavy hand it will effectively feel thicker, I base that opinion on having done plenty of re-frets over 40 years, and having played those guitars before and after.


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## HolttChris (Aug 10, 2020)

Jimmy_D said:


> FWIW if you raise the frets by 20 thou you'll be able to fret the note that much earlier and unless you have a heavy hand it will effectively feel thicker, I base that opinion on having done plenty of re-frets over 40 years, and having played those guitars before and after.


Thanks for the feedback!


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## teleboli (Aug 19, 2009)

From my experience the frets will not have 'enough' of the desired effect you're after. 

I had to let a couple otherwise real sweet hearts go because of the too small neck, and I'm not even a big neck guy anymore.

IMO what you're looking for comes from the depth at the back of the neck that fills the palm, overall carve, shoulders etc.

Just my 2c.


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## zztomato (Nov 19, 2010)

I'm refretting a 1964 sg right now. The old frets were quite low. Like your guitar, this SG is a bit slim around the first couple of frets. I'm not going with jumbo wire but the new wire will make for .025 more clearance. I'll let you know my impressions after but I'd advise not to put .055 jumbo on it. That would change the fretting feel on the board too much. By the looks of those frets, they have almost full hight. I think I'd just get used to it.


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## Alan Small (Dec 30, 2019)

red green would add layers of duct tape til it feels just right


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## zztomato (Nov 19, 2010)

Ok, finished the refret on the 64 SG. Frets used were .103x.046. The old frets were at less than .025. This SG has an odd neck. It has a 1.67 nut width, depth at the first fret is .77 then fattens up quickly and is .97 at the 12th fret. The new frets do make a big difference in playability and general feel. Notes are much clearer. The biggest factor for me was the spacing on the nut. The original nut had the strings too close to the edge of the fretboard which made playing feel like you were stretching unnaturally far to reach notes. It feels way more natural now that I made a new nut. Don't know if that helps but it might.


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## numb41 (Jul 13, 2009)

@zztomato nice looking work!


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## stereofx (Mar 23, 2021)

I would look at a different profile over fret size ymmv


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