Fretless butchery....

[howdoesitgoagain]

I originally asked the same question in the wrong section possibly...

I have a cheapo Biscayne 4 string that is not getting used due to a much better bass taking it's place, it has some issues with neck straightness and playability [ but not so bad it is a total reject ] so is probably a good candidate for experimentation.. and could mean a bass is back in use again instead of gathering dust..

Any advice welcome and may be acted on

Cheers, Steve

[Ou7shined]

The best advice I can give is to get the right tools for the job. Try and find a fret puller or similar (jeweler's snips). They are definitely the secrect to taking out frets with the minimum of damage to the fretboard. Use a sideways pinch and rock movement.

You will still probably have to fix whatever issues the neck has as a fretted neck though.

[megallica]

I had my Biscayne bass fitted with an ebony fingerboard by a local bass tech and he replaced the truss rod as well.

They're not the greatest basses but because it was my first bass I didn't want to get rid of it, at least this way I can try and get my fretless playing up to scratch (eventually)

[Jean-Luc Pickguard]

Not sure where I heard this, but I recall hearing a tip to use a soldering iron to heatup each fret & it should come out cleaner - or is this BS anyone?

[Bloodaxe]

[quote name='Jean-Luc Pickguard' post='972669' date='Sep 30 2010, 01:46 PM']Not sure where I heard this, but I recall hearing a tip to use a soldering iron to heatup each fret & it should come out cleaner - or is this BS anyone?[/quote]
I've heard similar, but never tried it. Can't remember how I de-fretted my SB-1000... I [i]think[/i] I may have started them by placing a jewellers' screwdriver tip against the ends & tapping them out from the side until there was enough protrusion to get the pliers on.

The soldering iron theory goes that [i][b]either[/b][/i] - warming up the fret will expand it ever so slightly, compressing the wood & when it cools the gap will be a smidgen bigger - [i][b]or[/b][/i] - heating the fret releases some of the natural oils in the wood, thus lubricating the passage, Matron - [i][b]even possibly[/b][/i] - if the frets have been glued in (rare but not completely unknown), heat will soften the glue a bit making renoval that bit easier. Probably not BS, but sounds like a lot of nancying about for not much reward.

Don't forget that Jaco used a butter knife, Plastic Padding & boat epoxy on his.

Pete.

[daz]

[quote name='Jean-Luc Pickguard' post='972669' date='Sep 30 2010, 01:46 PM']Not sure where I heard this, but I recall hearing a tip to use a soldering iron to heatup each fret & it should come out cleaner - or is this BS anyone?[/quote]

I think you have to soak the frets first, the soldering iron then steams some looseness or somesuch. i have seen a 50/50 mixture of water and rubbing alcohol being used. the water helps the fretts pull out cleaner and the alcohol stops the wood swelling, as it evapourates quickly. it all depends on how the frets were put in situ in the first place. ie: hammering, glueing or pressing them in. Be carefull with the solder iron though, too hot and you may splinter the wood, especially rosewood.
A great guitar repair book to read is [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Guitar-Player-Repair-Dan-Erlewine/dp/0879309210/ref=sr_1_1?s=gateway&ie=UTF8&qid=1285863343&sr=8-1"]Guitar player repair guide[/url]. it has a large section on fretting, amonst many other things and comes highly reomended. Some Fenders were fretted sideways, and he shows how to de - fret this way too. Though it needs a well clamped bass, a cool nerve, a steady eye, & hand and done with [i]extreme[/i] care. Or if the frets are not being re used you can drill a small hole with a dremmel or similar, just enough to get a grip with whatever tool you are knocking it out with.

Edited September 30, 2010 by daz

[Ou7shined]

I can only reiterate what I've said above and hope you don't go "knocking " them out with anything.

Use a fret puller and gently ease them out....



... and only use heat if you have exhausted every other avenue.

You can pick up cheap jeweller's snips which should last you at least one defret job for under a fiver off the bay.

[mcnach]

[quote name='Ou7shined' post='973067' date='Sep 30 2010, 07:05 PM']I can only reiterate what I've said above and hope you don't go "knocking " them out with anything.

Use a fret puller and gently ease them out....



... and only use heat if you have exhausted every other avenue.

You can pick up cheap jeweller's snips which should last you at least one defret job for under a fiver off the bay.[/quote]


+1

I also read about the heating up frets (without moisture!), in fact, there's a video on youtube showing you how to do it.

However, I have just defretted one of my OLPs in under 20 min, simply using a fret puller like the one in teh picture (eBay, was something like £3-4 plus delivery). Start slowly at one end, gently, carefully... and the frets lift much more easily than I had imagined. I didn't remove the strings while doing it, I just pushed aside the bit of string that was in the way.

I still need to smoothen the fretboard and will eventually have the slots filled etc, but I can already play it even if it's not perfect. No wood chipping (maple board)... and I really like that fretless "mwaa" sound.

Go for it. Just be careful and don't rush.

However, bear in mind you'll need to do some work getting the fingerboard up to scratch. On my bass there was an area that was clearly a bit taller and the frets had been levelled shorter to compensate... so fretted it played just fine all over the fingerboard. Without the frets... there's a "no go" area between frets 13-17 especially noticeable on the D & G strings. Not too bad, might just fix it through sanding...
So don't expect that the bass will immediately play alright. Also the nut might need lowering if it wasn't already pretty low.

[MoonBassAlpha]

If the rosewood splinters bit, glue the bits back in before you lose them with superglue. I was told this by a luthier. After I had done mine.