Is this an early sign of fret wear?

[FoxHound4690]

Hey guys,

check out this photo I took, it's a picture of the fifth fret of my AmPro Stratocaster. i've had it since June. Apologize if the photo is poor quality I really struggled to get my phone to focus on the key spots properly.... What i'm describing may be hard to make out in the photo...

https://imgur.com/gallery/THR3ENB

There's very tiny slight little bits where the fret feels kind of rugged and when i do bends and vibrato's on that particular fret I can kinda feel the string catch on the bits that are rugged, it's kind of like there's a coating or something that's started to wear off the fret a little bit. but My question is I suppose... Is this a sign of fret wear and is it normal for electric guitars to get these little rugged feeling bits on them over the course of time with regular play.

This is my main electric and I play it virtually every single day so is it just a simple case of wear and tear or is it a defect I should get looked at?

[1neeto]

Do you fret those notes a lot or capo that fret a lot? I’d expect that kind of wear after years of playing or from a $250 guitar. Not from a $1500+ USA made Strat.

[FoxHound4690]

Originally Posted by 1neeto

Do you fret those notes a lot or capo that fret a lot? I’d expect that kind of wear after years of playing or from a $250 guitar. Not from a $1500+ USA made Strat.

Very rarely capo this guitar at all, it's literally just from fretting those notes.... bends and vibrato's etc. I usually play in A minor pentatonic over jam tracks alot so thats why my fingers are always around that 5th fret.... I've been doing some googling and from what i can determine it sounds like frets have a finish over them which starts to wear off with time so not sure...

Could be Fender have started cheaping out and using poor quality fret wire, i'd be interested to know.

[1neeto]

Originally Posted by FoxHound4690

Very rarely capo this guitar at all, it's literally just from fretting those notes.... bends and vibrato's etc. I usually play in A minor pentatonic over jam tracks alot so thats why my fingers are always around that 5th fret.... I've been doing some googling and from what i can determine it sounds like frets have a finish over them which starts to wear off with time so not sure...

Could be Fender have started cheaping out and using poor quality fret wire, i'd be interested to know.

If it’s deep enough for you to feel the strings catching, then I think it’s more than just a coating coming off. Or you’re putting excessive pressure when fretting.

[FoxHound4690]

Originally Posted by 1neeto

If it’s deep enough for you to feel the strings catching, then I think it’s more than just a coating coming off. Or you’re putting excessive pressure when fretting.

Ok i'd like to rephrase something i said haha the strings aren't "catching" as such just can feel the very slightest little ridge when they pass over where this "coating" seems to be coming off i'm looking at it more closely trying to figure it out for myself and it does seem like theres a coating of sorts that's wearing off i might need to take it to my luthier to get an experienced view on it. might be just what I need to get the answer I'm looking for.

[rmp]

I don't see fret wear persay, but I see frets in need of some attention

I'd give them a good polish and see what happens.

You can use this..
Frine Fret Polish

The old school method is steel or brass wool (0000 grit) but you'll want to use a low tack tape (blue painters tape) and cover all the pickups so the wool residue doesn't cling to the poles.

Also some fret guards to protect the fretboard is needed.
Fret Guards

I like the Nomad Frine stuff (First link), it does a pretty good job.

There are other products out there, you can do some searches and see what looks the best for your own preferences.

[jonfields45]

Looks like the fingerboard finish was not completely cleaned off the the frets and you are wearing through it. If it was my guitar I would ignore it.

[KevWind]

Angle of photo and lighting are problematic for me (no doubt it is hard to photo with out taking the strings off )

Fret "wear" to my mind is ,,, when you look horizontal across the surface of the frets, there are tiny little concave depressions under the individual strings and when deep enough often result in string buzz on low action guitars. And usually these will be apparent on most of the first 3-5 frets .

[cheer tunes]

does not immediately strike me as fret ware

[Tuch]

Nope-its not fret wear....Yet!=it can be polished out.
divots,grooves...in the 'central' area of the fret would indicate fret wear.[over time] or may even be a symptom of over fretting just because,too low an 'action',string slot depth at the nut too low etc.
The strings 'underside' is causing the issue [can occur with typical playing use just because etc etc]

[Paleolith54]

Originally Posted by FoxHound4690

Hey guys,

check out this photo I took, it's a picture of the fifth fret of my AmPro Stratocaster. i've had it since June. Apologize if the photo is poor quality I really struggled to get my phone to focus on the key spots properly.... What i'm describing may be hard to make out in the photo...

https://imgur.com/gallery/THR3ENB

There's very tiny slight little bits where the fret feels kind of rugged and when i do bends and vibrato's on that particular fret I can kinda feel the string catch on the bits that are rugged, it's kind of like there's a coating or something that's started to wear off the fret a little bit. but My question is I suppose... Is this a sign of fret wear and is it normal for electric guitars to get these little rugged feeling bits on them over the course of time with regular play.

This is my main electric and I play it virtually every single day so is it just a simple case of wear and tear or is it a defect I should get looked at?

Fret wear is like someone described above as "divots." Your pic is definitely not that, looks like a crummy fret job from the factory. As someone said, you can probably polish it out. If not, I'd get it fixed where I bought it or, failing that, have the fret replaced on my own nickel.

[rmp]

yea that is NOT fret wear

Just to add...
That last strat I bought, (in 2014, a USA Standard) Worse out of the box frets I've ever seen.

I was pretty surprised given all the other fenders that have come and gone in my house over the years.

30 minutes with some 0000 steel wool, and that was the end of that bizzness.

[roylor4]

Originally Posted by rmp

I don't see fret wear persay, but I see frets in need of some attention

I'd give them a good polish and see what happens.

You can use this..
Frine Fret Polish

The old school method is steel or brass wool (0000 grit) but you'll want to use a low tack tape (blue painters tape) and cover all the pickups so the wool residue doesn't cling to the poles.

Also some fret guards to protect the fretboard is needed.
Fret Guards

I like the Nomad Frine stuff (First link), it does a pretty good job.

There are other products out there, you can do some searches and see what looks the best for your own preferences.

I agree, not fret wear at all. Poorly finished (polished) frets.use 0000 steel wool and tape off your pickups first (the dust will all be attracted to the magnet pole pieces).

[Dru Edwards]

Originally Posted by KevWind

Angle of photo and lighting are problematic for me (no doubt it is hard to photo with out taking the strings off )

Fret "wear" to my mind is ,,, when you look horizontal across the surface of the frets, there are tiny little concave depressions under the individual strings and when deep enough often result in string buzz on low action guitars. And usually these will be apparent on most of the first 3-5 frets .

+1 Kev.

Looks like the frets may need to be polished.

Any chance it always looked like that and you just noticed?

[FoxHound4690]

Ok Guys thanks so much for your replies, You are all right with what you say it is indeed NOT fret wear. and it's certainly not divots either....

I found out exactly what it is, I took it to my luthier and got him to have a quick look at it and straight away he knew what it was.

Because my strat has a maple neck which is lacquered, The frets simply have a bit of residual lacquer left on them from when the neck was done. It's this lacquer that i've gradually started working off of the frets with natural play. I've been looking around on strat talk and other forum sites and alot of people have said the same thing, some people have they've polished their frets to get all the leftover lacquer off and got them smooth as silk and others have just naturally worked it off the frets with natural play.

So yeah, in conclusion its nothing to worry about and certainly not fret wear =P my mind is now at ease.