I'm Chasing My Tail

Wooly · #1 05-10-2021, 06:35 PM

I have a guitar with 3 high frets as determined by a fret rocker. I file down the tops slowly and carefully and use the fret rocker to check every 2 or 3 few strokes until the rocking disappears. Then mark the tops with a felt pen in order to crown them with a three sided file with the edges ground off leaving a narrow strip of pen on the top. My problem is, when I get the fret down to where it stops rocking, then the next one adjacent to it is rocking like it's too high where it wasn't before. Almost like I took to much off the original. I have the strings loosened and straighten the neck before I proceed. Please advise as to what I am doing wrong. I've watched some videos and I don't think I'm doing anything different than most videos I have watched.

Confused

charles Tauber · #2 05-10-2021, 06:49 PM

That’s the nature of filling individual frets. It can work successfully but a light dressing of the whole fingerboard is the usual approach I use.

redir · #3 05-11-2021, 08:34 AM

You have to address the issue of why you have high frets too. If they are loose then you can have problems filing them and they go right back to where they we're.

Wooly · #4 05-11-2021, 08:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by redir

You have to address the issue of why you have high frets too. If they are loose then you can have problems filing them and they go right back to where they we're.

I don't think the issue is loose frets (checked that) but more of the guitar being an inexpensive one.

Robin, Wales · #5 05-11-2021, 08:55 AM

I would agree with both Charles and Redir; treat the fretboard as a whole entity and look for causality.

Start by asking yourself why a fret is too high or too low? It may be not fully seated, or hammered in too deep, or sprung up because the slot was cut too wide, or over dressed, or under dressed compared to the surrounding frets, or the fretboard itself may not be level. Each of these scenarios may well need a different solution.

A fret rocker tool, like the one from StuMac, will only tell you that a fret is higher than one of the frets either side of it. And it could be that one adjacent fret is too low rather than the centre one too high. They are great tools to quickly highlight problem areas but you then need to investigate the specific issue. And more often than not you will end up lightly dressing the whole board.