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Strange frets dressing


zvirus
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Hello,

I just want to establish if Im a fool or maybe Im not. Ive got GMR 4 string bass custom made.
I had some great wear on the 1st fret so decided to go to the luthier. He honestly admitted there is no need to refret whole neck just needs some dressing.

After 24h I have received my bass and sadly spotted a lot of buzz on A string fret 2nd and 3d, took my caliper and found kind a interesting thing...

1st fret 1.24mm height
2nd fret 1.04mm height
3d fret 1.08mm
4th fret 1.12mm
5th fret 1.26mm
until
24 all around 1.26mm



My caliper has 0.02mm accuracy and I`d say we talk about +- 0.04-0.06mm error while measuring.

Took it back to my luthier and after a week I found.... same situation the only difference is first 7 frets are lower than the rest of them so still can not set the string action low as I wish and Im very very frustrated.

You can see even by an eye that first few frets are LOWER.

Anyone can tell me what kind of dressing is this? I expected ALL frets filed to the SAME level from the 1st to the 24th
It looks like I have to sort it out on my own... I'm quite disappointed.

Any advice?

Edited by zvirus
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The height above the board is not the thing to focus on in fret dressing. What you need to determine is whether line described by the tops of the frets is straight. A good way to do this is to find a short straight edge which spans just a few frets, lay it across the tops of the frets (along the length of the neck) and see if it either rocks or has any visible gaps.

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[quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1405763877' post='2505012']
The bass has received two fret dressings by the same person and there's still an issue? I think you need to find a new luthier.
[/quote]

I want to know what "fret dressing" means in plain English as still unsure. As said need to know if I'm fooled or not.
My father used to say "need to good job to be done? - do it yourself!" and maybe he was right... Im not going to spend another £50-70 for new dressing. Im going to spend it on tools... its crazy but this is what Ill do.

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[quote name='Beer of the Bass' timestamp='1405764358' post='2505017']
The height above the board is not the thing to focus on in fret dressing. What you need to determine is whether line described by the tops of the frets is straight. A good way to do this is to find a short straight edge which spans just a few frets, lay it across the tops of the frets (along the length of the neck) and see if it either rocks or has any visible gaps.
[/quote]

I did this with the long steel ruler and they are not same level.... :( > edited - i have found my ruler is not straight :(


After trying everything here it is what I have:

Buzz on a random strings and random frets like D string frets 2-7.
The only solution which works is lifting up the strings up to 4mm on 24st fret which is an action which nobody will accept.
I have played basses with action like 2mm on the last fret and there was no buzz.

There is no buzz on frets 8-24 and as mentioned above those were not touched...

Later on:

After messing around I have managed to get low as 3mm over 24st fret and there is no buzz.
Bowed the neck more + removed shim under the neck...

It looks like this was just a matter of proper setup.... again...

Edited by zvirus
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