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Fret buzz low E AND high E 7th - 10th frets
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Author:  SteveSmith [ Wed Aug 23, 2023 8:07 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Fret buzz low E AND high E 7th - 10th frets
The guitars I play daily are all on wall hangers. They only go into cases when I go out to play about twice a week.


Steve
Author:  Hesh [ Thu Aug 24, 2023 4:49 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Fret buzz low E AND high E 7th - 10th frets
Like Steve I hang mine up too and have over 25 of them on the walls of my condo.

David thanks for the first name, nice to meet you.

I really wish I could see your guitars because none of this is difficult. But that aside the remedy is to take it to a skilled Luthier and they will be able to spot the issue in real time right in front of you and explain what they see.

Suspecting here a mismatch in RH where the work was performed and your situation. It's possible the work is the issue but we don't know that. The loose fret is not a good sign as to the work you received that should have been resolved.
Author:  audiobabble [ Sun Nov 12, 2023 3:07 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Fret buzz low E AND high E 7th - 10th frets
Hey all...

Thought I'd comment back here after a bit of a break.

So... the luthier in question has offered to sort out the fret buzz, but to be honest I can't see myself going back to him.

The more I look at job he's done (and the other guitar he did a re-fret on for me), the more I see what a lousy job he's done!

Not that the guy doesn't know what he's doing -- he's just cutting corners.

I think I have the measure of the man:

One day he was probably rushed off his feet and did a rush job on a guitar.... biting his nails, hoping the client didn't come back to him. And they didn't.. so he thought, this is alright... I can cut corners, still charge top dollar and IF anyone comes back to me, THEN and only then will I sort it out.

They say 'the devil's in the details'... well, looking closely at the frets:

- I see excess glue on the fingerboard at the edge of the frets. OK... not a big deal to me as I don't care about looks, but still.
- On the Gibson, there was a perceivable 'roughness' to the frets when doing bends, especially higher up, so I took look with a magnifying glass...
I see very uniform filing or sanding marks perpendicular to the fret. This would explain the roughness. So it seems fret polishing was deemed an unnecessary step.
- the fret ends have been filed at a 45 degree angle at the ends... but not finished properly -- from what I've seen, the correct thing to do is to also round the ends off slightly by curving round each side of the fret end with the fret file.... so they end up smooth and don't feel 'snaggy' as you move up and down the fretboard. (this is how the original frets were finished).
- As well as the very obvious buzz around the 7th-9th frets on the bass and treble side, I NOW have additional buzz on the 2nd and 3rd strings around the 4th and 5th frets.
using a fret rocker, i have determined that the 6th fret is now proud in comparison to the frets next to it.
there's no obvious movement or looseness to the fret, yet somehow -- over time -- it's become proud??!

As mentioned before, the 21st fret is loose on the treble side, with obvious movement when I press down on it.

I'm forming the opinion that the frets were not glued in properly and am now considering what the best the best course of action might be.

Biggest question is -- will the frets need to come off and be re-glued, or is there a good way to 'add' glue to the frets as they are?
Author:  joshnothing [ Sun Nov 12, 2023 4:33 pm ]
Post subject:  Fret buzz low E AND high E 7th - 10th frets
Brother, no one can troubleshoot the specifics of your fret job without examining the instrument.

There are literally dozens of factors that can cause undesirable buzz. Some could be related to work you’ve had done, some could be related to subsequent factors the original luthier has no control over.

So: Take your axes to a luthier, either the original guy who’s offering to try again, or someone else, get them fixed, and enjoy playing them.

There’s few things I can think of that are more futile than posting a wall of text on an internet forum speculating (without evidence) about the historical sequence of events that has lead someone to ALLEGEDLY cutting corners in their business. It’s good that you have not explicitly identified who you are talking about because in many jurisdictions talk like this is libellous.

I hope that your guitars can be made to work to your satisfaction and wish you the best of luck.
Author:  Hesh [ Sun Nov 12, 2023 6:04 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Fret buzz low E AND high E 7th - 10th frets
Hi David nice to meet you.

I use wall hangers in my home and currently have a couple dozen gracing my walls. I also keep my home 45 - 50% RH year round as measured with annually calibrated lab quality mechanical hygrometer(s). Digital hygrometers are inherently inaccurate, drift in time and have an issue with a sweet spot where they may be accurate and they can be 15% off in other areas.

So wall hangers are not a bad idea and I end up playing more not having to deal with cases and such.

Sounds to me since there is a loose fret right out of the shop where it was dressed that the fret dresser missed something important. Checking and glueing any suspect frets is key and has to be done prior to leveling and such.

If we had this guitar in our shop and we don't want it ;) no offense we are always booked way out on fret work we would glue them all and start over. The fret plane is very sensitive to errors and the only way to know that the fret plane is really level is to read the bluing (ink) we work to eliminate when pursuing a level set. We would be interested in matching the RH of your situation too so as to not have the set-up change as it sound like it has too.

Lots of shops can do good fret work but in my experience the shops who do not treat the fret plane as a whole and spot level cannot provide the results that those who do treat the plane as a while can. If you have to have this redone might be prudent to ask a provider about their process before committing. Not dissing the Luthier you used but handing a fret job to a client with a loose fret does not inspire confidence.
Author:  SteveSmith [ Sun Nov 12, 2023 6:25 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Fret buzz low E AND high E 7th - 10th frets
Hi David. Based on your comments your ‘luthier’ simply doesn’t know what he’s doing. Sorry you got stuck with such poor workmanship.


Steve
Author:  audiobabble [ Mon Nov 13, 2023 4:32 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Fret buzz low E AND high E 7th - 10th frets
Thanks for the replies guys.

I specifically will not name names, despite my disappointment, that would be totally unfair. The guy has a living to make like anyone else.

What I will say is he's built up a solid reputation over many years, hence the reason I went to him.

The work he's done does not match that reputation, so something somewhere is amiss.

Anyway, enough said!


I don't have any fancy equipment for measuring RH in my home, however my cheapo humidity meter stays between 40 and 60% most of the time if that's anything to go by, and most often reads 50%.

I've been feeling strongly for some time that after 30+ years of playing guitars, I really should get into some basic DIY when it comes to levelling frets and doing setup.

So most likely I'll be glueing that loose fret back down (and having a really close check for any other movement and/or dull sounds coming from the other frets), then doing a fret level and re-crown myself. I've watched enough videos, read enough articles, it's about time I got down to it!

If it ends up worse I'll go in search of another luthier.
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