Jumbo frets for my 1st build?

[Harley90]

Having a great guitar built after many years of playing, I really flog it from time to time I'm I'm a fan of bigger frets in the electric world.

I have a few Martins that I love the sound of but the frets are so small it makes it a little more effort to play, so with that out of the way....

I'm building an OM, Rosewood/Adi short scale guitar, going for jumbos....any issues that I should be aware of?

Any acoustics that are made this way ( Martin sound?)

Thanks for any feedback.

[justonwo]

Originally Posted by Harley90

Having a great guitar built after many years of playing, I really flog it from time to time I'm I'm a fan of bigger frets in the electric world.

I have a few Martins that I love the sound of but the frets are so small it makes it a little more effort to play, so with that out of the way....

I'm building an OM, Rosewood/Adi short scale guitar, going for jumbos....any issues that I should be aware of?

Any acoustics that are made this way ( Martin sound?)

Thanks for any feedback.

Absolutely a great decision. One potential downside for those that apply too much fretting pressure is greater potential to fret the notes sharp. However, if you already use jumbos on electric, this likely isn’t an issue.

Most of my acoustic guitars are fretted with Jescar 55090 (0.055” tall and 0.090” wide) using the EVO alloy. I find it much easier to play acoustics with larger frets, particularly for barre chords and bends. There are a few builders who use large fret wire by default. One is Burton LeGeyt. Laurent Brondel also comes to mind. 55090 is less common that shorter frets but not unheard of.

I would strongly encourage you to consider EVO. It is more resistant to tarnishing than nickel and much harder, so it lasts longer than a nickel alloy.

[Harley90]

Thanks for the reply, EVO frets are the pick I had, I think 6100 frets.

I have good pressure control, from Les Paul's to Yngwie strats.
Larger frets on a short scale seems to make sense to me but I just have never seen it. Martins sound so good to me but the frets are just tiny.

Pumped on my build!

[TennesseeWalker]

Hopefully the 6100’s will serve you well - however, and it’s probably just me -

I purchased my H and D Honduran many years ago from a guy who had the 6100’s installed for flatpicking. I tried to get used to them and couldn’t, just felt like I was driving over railroad tracks while playing and even tho I felt as if I have good finger pressure control, gave in within a few months to having them replaced with some evo gold 55090’s - they are a little bit taller and wider than standard frets and might be a good alternative to full size 6100’s. (There’s no real cost/price difference when ordering gold as opposed to the silver alloy)

If the standard frets are too small/cumbersome for you, good to avoid going that size

[tkoehler1]

I went all jumbo about 8 years ago and I encourage all to do the same. Jumbos on steel strings and classicals.

I use the Jescar FW57110 - that's .057" high by .110" wide.

The only downside - if you have a high tension (long scale or heavy strings) and you play with a death grip - the notes can go sharp. I've never found it to be an issue at all. Instead I just get the comment "hey your guitar is easy to play! Why is that?"

[justonwo]

Originally Posted by tkoehler1

I went all jumbo about 8 years ago and I encourage all to do the same. Jumbos on steel strings and classicals.

I use the Jescar FW57110 - that's .057" high by .110" wide.

The only downside - if you have a high tension (long scale or heavy strings) and you play with a death grip - the notes can go sharp. I've never found it to be an issue at all. Instead I just get the comment "hey your guitar is easy to play! Why is that?"

That's pretty much how I see it, too. I'm using 55090, but same basic concept. I use 57110 on my electrics. Love it.