TRBboy Posted August 23, 2020 Share Posted August 23, 2020 (edited) Hey folks, So, next on the shopping list for my build is fret wire. Don't really know what I should be getting, so just wondered what anyone recommends? I was reading that Dingwall use Banjo frets, is this a good idea or not? Grateful for any advice, I've no idea what I'm doing! 😂 Edited August 24, 2020 by TRBboy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted August 23, 2020 Share Posted August 23, 2020 I tried fretting once, long before youtube and I made a pigs ear of it. If I was doing it again I’d get one of those fret presses with cauls to do it evenly.  i think the banjo wire comes from lee sklar’s Dingwall, he advocates the lightest touch possible IIRC 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted August 23, 2020 Author Share Posted August 23, 2020 9 minutes ago, Geek99 said: I tried fretting once, long before youtube and I made a pigs ear of it. If I was doing it again I’d get one of those fret presses with cauls to do it evenly.  i think the banjo wire comes from lee sklar’s Dingwall, he advocates the lightest touch possible IIRC Thanks for that. Fortunately I'm going to be building in conjunction with a local luthier so that I can learn to do things properly, and use all the proper equipment! 😂 Any suggestions on what wire in particular I should be looking at? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geek99 Posted August 23, 2020 Share Posted August 23, 2020 I wouldn’t go jumbo modern, why not vintage spec ? You don’t say what style of bass it’s going into 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted August 23, 2020 Author Share Posted August 23, 2020 3 minutes ago, Geek99 said: I wouldn’t go jumbo modern, why not vintage spec ? You don’t say what style of bass it’s going into Ah yes, good point! It is going to be a mixture of vintage and modern really, I generally want the ergonomics and refinements of modern design, but with the tone and response of a vintage bass, with vintage inspired styling. Vague I know, but the best I can do! 😊 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itu Posted August 24, 2020 Share Posted August 24, 2020 Thin fretwire requires more attention from the fretting hand. If you are at Mr. Sklar's level, go for it. Otherwise some wider model is usually far easier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted August 24, 2020 Author Share Posted August 24, 2020 2 hours ago, itu said: Thin fretwire requires more attention from the fretting hand. If you are at Mr. Sklar's level, go for it. Otherwise some wider model is usually far easier. Thanks @itu I'm still feeling a bit out of my depth with it, but getting the feeling that medium or medium /jumbo kinda size might be best. But then there's the material too! What to go for? Stainless in assuming would be most hard wearing, but is there a downside? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HazBeen Posted August 25, 2020 Share Posted August 25, 2020 The thinner and lower the fret, the better your technique needs to be. Medium/Jumbo is a solid middle of the road option. A fretpress is easier, but you can certainly hammer frets in as well especially if you have a relatively flat fretboard it is quite easy as long as you think twice/take care. I would advise against Stainless Steel/Titanium and such. Reason being it is harder on your tools (you may even need harder = more expensive tools), detanging/rounding/finishing a stainless fret is significantly more work too. So for that reason alone I would advise to go for normal Nickel Silver alloy, not more than 25% alloy. You can buy fretwire in lots of price brackets. Sintoms is a make I see more and more of that is not very expensive, but gets good reviews. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted August 25, 2020 Author Share Posted August 25, 2020 33 minutes ago, HazBeen said: The thinner and lower the fret, the better your technique needs to be. Medium/Jumbo is a solid middle of the road option. A fretpress is easier, but you can certainly hammer frets in as well especially if you have a relatively flat fretboard it is quite easy as long as you think twice/take care. I would advise against Stainless Steel/Titanium and such. Reason being it is harder on your tools (you may even need harder = more expensive tools), detanging/rounding/finishing a stainless fret is significantly more work too. So for that reason alone I would advise to go for normal Nickel Silver alloy, not more than 25% alloy. You can buy fretwire in lots of price brackets. Sintoms is a make I see more and more of that is not very expensive, but gets good reviews. Thanks very much again for the info! I'm building this bass in conjunction with a local luthier, so he has all the proper tools (including a fret press I would imagine). I have just managed to find out what size fret wire my sandberg has, so that's a good start point too. It looks to be in the medium /jumbo bracket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted August 25, 2020 Author Share Posted August 25, 2020 Something like this @HazBeen? https://tonetechluthiersupplies.co.uk/guitar-fret-wire/sintoms-fretwire/sintoms-elite-fret-2-5mm-crown-width-25-nickel.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HazBeen Posted August 25, 2020 Share Posted August 25, 2020 1 hour ago, TRBboy said: Something like this @HazBeen? https://tonetechluthiersupplies.co.uk/guitar-fret-wire/sintoms-fretwire/sintoms-elite-fret-2-5mm-crown-width-25-nickel.html For instance 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HazBeen Posted August 25, 2020 Share Posted August 25, 2020 25% is relatively hard still, so you will get years of use before a refret is needed. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRBboy Posted August 25, 2020 Author Share Posted August 25, 2020 3 hours ago, HazBeen said: 25% is relatively hard still, so you will get years of use before a refret is needed. Superb, thanks very much 😊 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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