pleking

[fingerstile]

not owning a tool does not make one incapable of doing the job equally well.

I think Tadol's claim above helps to point out some of the subtleties in the PLEK vs. skilled luthier conversation that features in many of the comments here (my own included). As far as I can see, it comes down to how you understand "equally well". Here's what I mean:

If "equally well" is intended to be unpacked into something like "a skilled person without the tool can do a good enough job that no one can tell the difference from the job done with the tool", then I think we have enough testimony supporting this from AGF'ers who garner a lot of respect here to think that this sense of "equally well" is probably true with respect to luthiers and PLEK machines, and Tadol is right to say that one doesn't need to the tool to do the job equally well in this sense.

But if "equally well" is interpreted to mean something like "a person without the tool can make the exact same thing as someone using the tool", then the story is different. In this sense, Tadol's claim isn't correct, applied to tools in general (that after all is why we have tools to begin with- in some cases they're just time saving devices, sure, but in many cases we have tools to help us do things that just cannot be done without them).

So what difference does it make? Well, if intonation is directly proportional to fret geometry, so that intonation improves as geometry improves, since its true that a PLEK machine can get closer to theoretically perfect geometry than the most skilled luthier can, then a properly programmed and operated PLEK will produce a guitar with better intonation than the most skilled luthier can.

You just might not be able to tell the difference, that's all!

[Purfle Haze]

Originally Posted by tadol

So as I said earlier - you want to get a really good set-up, not tell the craftsman what tool they should use -

I missed that part. The guitar craftsman I go to told me that he doesn't do fretwork by hand anymore. I took his word for it.

[JSDenvir]

TJ Thompson is, very simply, one of the best acoustic guitar repair guys in the world. If he’s operating a Plek machine, you’re going to get a great job. If he’s doing it by hand, I’ll bet you’re gonna get a job that is just as good.

And I can understand his moving to a Plek if he’s trying to minimize wear and tear on his hands. I don’t blame him at all.

But the common factor in a great fret job is the operator.

It doesn’t matter if s/he is operating a Plek or a triangular fret file.

Steve

[bldrguy]

Originally Posted by AZLiberty

Thought number 1 is what is wrong with it now? Send it to SCGC and they will run it through the PLEK and set it up with the same generic setup that they ship new guitars with. The frets will be fine but the setup could be higher or lower than you prefer.

I'm of the mind that a PLEK setup is sort of like Home Depot Cabinets. Serviceable enough, but nowhere near as good as paying a professional to build them right.

Actually they input your playing style into the machine and can do the custom plek for low action, which is what I wanted.