New Page 3

Re-doing a bad refret

I am showing this repair as an example of the numerous bad fret jobs I've come across. This one showed every sign of bad fretwork all in one- the fretboard was not leveled, the frets were seated terribly, the frets themselves were not leveled, and they were not fine-sanded or polished. In some cases, I've been able to fix a bad refret when the frets were seated properly but not shaped or sanded well, but the only option on this one was a total redo. It's always my goal to return guitars like this back to their former glory so they can receive the adoration they deserve.

(Click on any picture for a larger view)

Here is the Les Paul before I began. You can't tell much from this view, but let's go in for a closer look...

The frets have been very poorly seated and it's hard to find one where the upper part of the fret even touches the wood.

Here you can clearly see the gaps between the frets and fretboard. The frets are also roughly sanded and not polished at all. You could really feel the roughness when bending notes.

Another view of the the bad frets. At this point, I can't wait to get them out and start over with a clean slate.

Progress at last- those offending frets are out.

The pictures skip ahead because I neglected to take more along the way, but more of the refret process can be seen in my Gibson ES-295 refret page. These are the new frets.

The sign of a well-polished fret- you can clearly make out the string windings in the reflection.

Ahh- isn't that better? Besides being easier to play, well-done and well-seated frets give a better sound transfer through the wood, resulting in better tone quality and sustain.