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Old 02-22-2021, 08:15 PM
eyesore eyesore is offline
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Default fret filing [revisited]

Hi , I want to bring this up again from my previous post. I have been filing away at these frets [stainless steel ] for a few days. It never makes a difference. Asking an opinion here;I am considering giving this guitar to another tech to have standard frets put back on [OM28 Martin]. Not stainless steel. Think this is a good idea? Thanks.
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Old 02-22-2021, 09:05 PM
charles Tauber charles Tauber is offline
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I’m not following your reasoning. If there is something about the feel, look or sound you don’t like about the stainless, it might make sense to have them changed. If it is just because the ends need to dressed, spend the $50 and have a professional dress the ends. In theory, once that is done you’ll never again have to have anything done to the frets of that guitar.
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Old 02-23-2021, 03:37 PM
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ArchtopLover ArchtopLover is offline
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Stainless steel fret wire is much, much harder than nickel/silver fret wire. Your tools are either dull and worn out, or you are using the wrong tools. For stainless steel fret wire, diamond coated files are recommended. Brand new, high-carbon regular files will work, but they will dull much faster.

Here is an example:

https://www.stewmac.com/luthier-tool...ret-files.html
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Old 02-23-2021, 07:45 PM
eyesore eyesore is offline
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yeah , I give up . I called a guy[ guitar tech reputable]. He said "no problem. I didn't think about it but he said "you'll go thru strings faster with ss. "I wish I stayed with standard fret wire.
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Old 02-23-2021, 09:42 PM
charles Tauber charles Tauber is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by eyesore View Post
yeah , I give up .
Don't give up. Many people are very happy with their stainless steel frets. If you have a moderate, rather than "death" grip, when you play, you probably won't find that the strings wear any faster.

Pay the small sum to have the fret ends dressed then enjoy playing the guitar, knowing that you'll likely never have to replace those frets.
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