Fret Protrusion on a New Guitar

the.ronin · #1 03-19-2013, 11:59 AM

I'm really liking this Jose Luis Reyes flamenco guitar but it has some protruding frets along the fingerboard where you can see it's pushing out the lacquer. It is a student guitar so I'd expect to see some workmanship issues like this but wanted to get some second thoughts on whether this is something to avoid on a new guitar before I pull the trigger.

Here is a close up of the issue:

I do see this happening on my Aparicio AA52 as well and it doesn't bug me too much. I keep my guitars in a humidity controlled room.

Aubade Acoustics · #2 03-19-2013, 12:31 PM

Since the fretboard top is not finished it will have a tendency to loose moisture causing it to shrink up in width. Frets are not going to shrink, So this is what can happen. I would suggest feeding the fingerboard with FB oil at least twice a year even thought it is humidified. It gets thirsty. This won't fix what has happened but it will help stop the shrinking.

the.ronin · #3 03-19-2013, 01:14 PM

Thanks for the reply, Armadillo. The sides are smooth and do not hinder playing. But this can be attributed to the lacquer pulled up.

I guess my concern is whether is is humidity induced fret sprout or simply inferior ebony expected to contract even further regardless of humidity which I've been reading does happen.

BrickGlass · #4 03-19-2013, 01:54 PM

As far as I know fret sprouting like that is usually humidity related so maybe it needs a little more moisture in the environment. Like Armadillo said hit it with some oil. I prefer lemon oil or linseed oil.

the.ronin · #5 03-19-2013, 02:49 PM

Thanks guys for the feedback.

After some thought and even though this is likely a humidity issue and not subpar ebony, I decided to against the Reyes. Also it turns out Apparicio makes Reyes! Although I like my Apparicio classical, I would definitely like to try a different luthier so ended up pulling the trigger on the Saez Marin instead. So stoked!!!

KenW · #6 03-21-2013, 07:59 AM

Ebony is the worst. Even high end guitars with well seasoned ebony fretboards will suffer some shrinkage, resulting in sharpies. Pretty much have to anticipate filing down the fret ends at some point.