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  #1  
Old 09-02-2021, 09:19 AM
Captain Jim Captain Jim is offline
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Default Emerald now using a Plek machine...

Just saw the video on FaceBook - Emerald is now using a Plek machine on all their guitars to insure more consistent fret leveling. Nice addition to their building process.
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Old 09-02-2021, 09:20 AM
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When did they start using it?
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Old 09-02-2021, 10:06 AM
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When did they start using it?
They've just announced it today on Facebook. Someone who is receiving a guitar today asked whether it would have been Plek'd was told "yes", so they must have had it for a week or two, at least.
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Old 09-02-2021, 10:28 AM
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That's good news--one more step toward perfection.
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Old 09-02-2021, 02:50 PM
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Good stuff, I had an issue with one high fret on mine when I got it.

I almost want to buy another with all the cool new stuff (pinless bridge etc)
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Old 09-02-2021, 03:22 PM
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Plek is good for cutting nuts as well.

Bet it will have fun with fan frets.
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Old 09-02-2021, 05:48 PM
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Walnuts, pecans, and almonds???
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Old 09-02-2021, 10:01 PM
Jungestrand Jungestrand is offline
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Originally Posted by redi View Post
Plek is good for cutting nuts as well.

Bet it will have fun with fan frets.
Im thinking about ordering a fan fret 6string so I asked if they go through PLEK machine and the answer was no. That means that in addition to paying 600 extra for the fan fret you allso lose the value of having a pleked guitar.
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Old 09-03-2021, 09:41 PM
AZLiberty AZLiberty is offline
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Disappointing, but I understand the need to cut costs.
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Old 09-04-2021, 07:43 AM
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Disappointing, but I understand the need to cut costs.
Curious as to why you say ‘Disappointing’.
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Old 09-04-2021, 03:39 PM
AZLiberty AZLiberty is offline
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Originally Posted by David Eastwood View Post
Curious as to why you say ‘Disappointing’.
A skilled tech or builder will do a much nicer job than a PLEK.

The main reason to use a PLEK is labor savings. It's why Martin has PLEDed their guitars for a decade or so, and nobody would call their fretwork particularly outstanding.

On a custom instrument, I'd normally consider it a downgrade. Wouldn't prevent me from ordering another Emerald though.
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Old 09-04-2021, 04:32 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AZLiberty View Post
A skilled tech or builder will do a much nicer job than a PLEK.

The main reason to use a PLEK is labor savings. It's why Martin has PLEDed their guitars for a decade or so, and nobody would call their fretwork particularly outstanding.

On a custom instrument, I'd normally consider it a downgrade. Wouldn't prevent me from ordering another Emerald though.
I haven’t experienced a Plek’d guitar, so have no basis for comparison. Labour saving may be one aspect, but I suspect consistency is probably more important to a small manufacturer like Emerald, especially as their production increases.
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Old 09-04-2021, 05:17 PM
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It will be interesting to see how they incorporate the PLEK into their build process. Basically specialized CnC machines, the can be used to precisely cut nuts, true-up fingerboards, and do fret work - at least the first 95-98% of it pretty well and probably faster than any human. But for the best custom guitar work, a human has to come behind the PLEK and give it the last few percent, feel and fix, and sign-off. My guess is they were doing all this by hand before.

My Emerald necks are very nice, showing that someone spent some serious time getting them right, but I have no idea how much human work and rework has to be done out of the molds. We have few pictures or videos of the hand work at Emerald, and I don't know (and probably won't - I suspect they want to keep their magic/trade secrets it a secret) the work they have to do vs building a wood guitar. Probably a lot.

Maybe the PLEK will allow the volume to increase and the quality to remain acceptably high at the same time.

Last edited by redi; 09-05-2021 at 11:59 AM.
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Old 09-05-2021, 04:31 AM
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It's not very exciting for people (myself included) who favour handmade instruments but a PLEK machine used optimally by someone qualified is supposed to give better and more consistant results than what a tech could do. But that requires a proper initial set-up before the guitar gets Pleked. Then the process is iterative, with many redundant measurements under and without string tension, etc.

I'm not sure I would see any difference on my fav' OM though, the handmade build and set-up is so good that any improvement would be way below my perception threshold.

Last edited by Tøf; 09-05-2021 at 07:21 AM.
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Old 09-07-2021, 04:16 PM
jaan jaan is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tøf View Post
But that requires a proper initial set-up before the guitar gets Pleked.
This is where it'll get interesting. My 2 Emerald purchases came in clean as a whistle, but they were clearly not set up. If they are doing this first, and then pleking, it seems like a positive thing.
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