swampstomper
Full Member
The only thing that really worried me was the ether.
Posts: 136
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Post by swampstomper on Dec 24, 2006 7:25:49 GMT -7
I'm going to have to have my strat re-fretted soon. I had the frets dressed recently and now they are just a bit too low for my liking. I figured this would be a good place to ask about fretwire and re-fretting in general.
The original wire on this guitar is Dunlop 6105 (.096 x .047) I like the frets on the high side and this was a comfortable wire for me. I'm curious if any of you have been using the Dunlop 6100 (.122 x .055) wire. It's taller than the 6105, which I like, but I'm not sure about the extra width. Any of you have guitars or experiences with both of these sizes? Any comments pro or con with regards to the extra width?
I'm also thinking about trying stainless fretwire. It was suggested to me by the place that will be doing the work (Guitar Factory in Orlando). He explained the downside of stainless as being harder to work with and thus a more expensive job. On the plus side I was told that the feel of stainless is very smooth and that they will last much longer than nickel/silver.
I've got some time to think about this as he will not be able to take the guitar in for several weeks at the minimum. I've not used the Guitar Factory for repairs before but they appear to have a solid reputation and no shortage of customers waiting to have work done.
Any comments or suggestions much appreciated.
Oh, and Merry Christmas to all of you!
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Post by mward on Dec 24, 2006 8:00:14 GMT -7
I've got 6100 on my tele and various sizes on other guitars. I much prefer the 6100 for bends and ease of playing. As my other guitars need refrets I'll put 6100 in them also. I will probably never use a smaller fretwire size ever again. I've even been tempted to refret my acoustic with 6100 but I'm not sure how it would affect that. I've got big hands and big fingers and I like the big wire because it keeps my fingers from dragging on the fretboard when doing bends and stuff.
I was reading on the internet, it might have been ed roman's site, that said stainless fretwire sounds too bright by virtue of its hardness. I like a darker sound so on that basis I'd never use it, but it's something to keep in mind. You might ask to play a guitar with it before going with it to see what you think.
Let us know what you decide.
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Post by pappy on Dec 24, 2006 8:08:07 GMT -7
I'm always interested to hear what people have to say about steel frets. Parker swears by them saying the lifespand of them is the bee's knees. I don't doubt him, but woud like to hear any opinions on what it does to tone.
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Post by mudskipper on Dec 24, 2006 8:58:36 GMT -7
i think stainless steel frets feel great and wear well. i also feel that they do add "air" to overall sound but that wouldn't be bad for everyone. the difference isn't as noticeable as going from brass bridge saddles to titanium saddles on Teles.
fret size preferences are pretty personal, i think. for example, i disliked 6100. i'm fine with 6105 and have a couple of necks with those. my preference is for "medium" size fret like 0141 from StewMac or similar. but if you like the feel of scalloped f'boards without scalloping, go with 6100.
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Post by billyguitar on Dec 24, 2006 10:09:45 GMT -7
There seems to be a split between guitar gurus about stainless verses regular fret wire. I've read in interviews where guys say things like stainless is so bright it'll shatter glass! They are just being jerks. It adds a little air on top just like Muddy Mudskipper says. It can be smoother but just a bit. It won't wear, that is it's biggest bonus. The guys poo-pooing it just don't like that it's ruins their tools, too bad. We'll pay for the new nippers etc. in the cost of the job - just quit your bitchin'! I'm a big fan of the 6105 size because looks good and it's tall enough to take three or four polishes. When I ordered my Lentz the 6105 was the tallest he wanted to go with. It was okay because I've had a Slingerland Black Hawk, 1951 Epiphone Triumph and a Tele already done with that wire and it's nice, especially on a vintage style instrument. Lentz says he uses a European fret wire that is the shape of the Dunlop wire but harder. My Tom Anderson has heavy stainless frets and they are great. this is a bright guitar but it's much the pickups than the wire. I just sold another TA that had about the same pickups but was older and it had standard fret wire. There was really no significant in the sound of the two guitars.
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Post by skydog958 on Dec 24, 2006 10:19:20 GMT -7
mudskipper, what is the change between brass and titanium tele saddles? I've always wanted titanium when I finally get a tele.
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Post by slider on Dec 24, 2006 18:48:14 GMT -7
Getting my Les Paul re fretted as I write this. Wish I would have read this first. I picked the size and type of fret by feel. It's just wrie after all.
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Post by mudskipper on Dec 24, 2006 19:52:02 GMT -7
mudskipper, what is the change between brass and titanium tele saddles? I've always wanted titanium when I finally get a tele. in a word, brass saddles sound "fatter" than titanium ones. it's a good way to filter out a lot of of spiky-ness from Teles and add some low mids. this being desirable traits or not is harder to say. i don't like brass saddles because they don't cut as well with various OD/Distortion sounds and the sound gets too tubby. i like to use my tone control on my Teles and with brass saddles, i can never get the response i want out of the tone control. i use either steel or stainless steel saddles. i used a set of titaniums for a while on my bender Tele, but i ended up switching to stainless steel saddles. hope this helps,
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Post by dei305 on Dec 25, 2006 22:27:07 GMT -7
mudskipper, Just a quick heads up, my opinion,and experience with titanium saddles. I have a 52RI tele with the bigger dunlop frets, a set of titanium compensated saddles, Bill Lawrence pups, 5 way switch , and a .047 sozo cap. The sozo works wonders for the tone control. Far greater range and transparency over a ceramic cap, mallory, or sprague. I am also using 10-46 nickel wound Curt Mangan strings. I find the Titanium saddles bring out more harmonics, sustain longer,intonate better,and they don't rust. I am now using titanium saddles on my two strats, two LP's, 68-ES345;ES-135; and ES-333. I, too, like the bigger dunlop frets. Rick
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Post by kruzty on Dec 26, 2006 6:26:01 GMT -7
Every time I'm play my Tom Anderson, I'm amazed at how "easy" it is to play. It could be the neck, but I'm almost certain it is due to the steel frets. I think of where I want to go, and my fingers slide to the exact location.
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Post by billyguitar on Dec 26, 2006 8:29:09 GMT -7
I have a TA and other guitars. If the other guitars have properly crowned frets they are just as slick to me. If frets have become flat topped that increases drag. So do frets that are getting too low and your finger drags on the fretboard.
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Post by The Fifth Column on Dec 26, 2006 17:28:17 GMT -7
Personally I like the tallest frets possible. My warmoth LP has 6100 nickel silver and thats perfect for me because I like the height too for bending etc. I also own a warmoth PRS style that has stainless that are just as tall but a little narrower 6105 I think and that neck is also fully scalloped.
I don't know about the width as I though that related more to how they wear so I don't know if it changes feel that much.
As for stainless frets, I like the idea a lot because who wouldn't want frets that will hardly ever wear. Since I've played them though I'm not really a fan anymore for a few reasons. First, to my ear they are a little bit harsher on tone. I don't know if I'd call it brighter but the overall tone seems just slightly less harsh on the nickel fret guitars to me. This could also be just because of the guitar construction too. They definitely feel slicker to my fingers but, at least on the scalloped neck, it makes it almost too easy to bend and so you bend chords out of tune without knowing it.
Without a side by side I don't know if you'd hear or feel a difference. From my experience a lot of techs are more hesitant about working on stainless frets if you end up having neck problems (like I have on that guitar), which I think was mentioned.
Personally I'd take 6100 nickel over 6100 stainless unless I got to play it first and the setup was just perfect.
Just my thoughts.
Dave
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Post by mudskipper on Dec 26, 2006 19:29:44 GMT -7
hey, Rick, thanks for the heads up. yeah, i believe we are talking about the same thing when you say "more harmonics" and i say "a touch more air". i'm not sure if the material of saddles have a lot to do with the intonation, though. it is possible that the titanium saddles you got were machined better than those you replaced (hence better intonation). or in case of Telecasters, slanted 3-pc saddles would intonate better than regular Tele saddles.
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Post by skydog958 on Dec 26, 2006 20:26:34 GMT -7
maybe the "more harmonics" allowed the intonation to be dialed in more or better?
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Post by dei305 on Dec 26, 2006 23:08:14 GMT -7
skydog958, Yes on the intonation. Thanks! Rick
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Post by skydog958 on Dec 26, 2006 23:54:06 GMT -7
Any time, Z brotha!
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