Official Luthiers Forum!

I've had a maple fretboard tele come in that needs a re-fret. The fingerboard is finished and I'm looking for any tips people have on this type of job. I've picked up lots of good info from some of the StewMac fretting books, but I thought some of you who have done this a few times may have some additional insights to add. Tips on removing frets cleanly from a finished board (the finish seems fairly thick and is partially covering the frets) and installing the new frets would be appreciated.

Thanks

Josh

_________________
Josh House

Canadian Luthier Supply
http://www.canadianluthiersupply.com
https://www.facebook.com/canadianluthiersupply?ref=hl
House Guitars - Custom Built Acoustic Instruments.
http://www.houseguitars.com

I used to use a razor to cut the lacquer around the frets if I had to pull them. Touching up with new lacquer after fretting was tedious. I also tried pulling the frets, scraping the fingerboard down to bare wood, and refinishing with super glue or spraying lacquer before refretting. Both have equal merits, and both have problems to handle.

Any questions?

_________________
"Act your age, not your shoe size" - Prince

Hey I just saw a refret video on YouTube with a finished maple fretboard the other day. Just search refret on youtube

john levan in his book refrets a maple fb on a fender

Some of it will depend on the expectations of the customer and the condition of the fretboard.

Recently, I replaced the frets on a well-used Telecaster. The customer didn't want the fretboard cleaned-up, which was an advantage in some ways. I eventually cleaned-up the areas of the fretboard that were under the frets. I explained to the client that doing this would help the frets seat better.

Since the client didn't want the fretboard re-lacquered and, in fact, didn't object to more relicing, I didn't protect the fretboard during leveling the frets.

This is a photo after the frets were removed. Most likely the areas around the frets had been cleaned-up a little at this time, too.



Even before removing the frets, some of the lacquer had come off. This was fine with the client.



I heated each fret before removing it to reduce chips.

Its hard to say how I'd approach it without seeing it. If the guitar is well played, it's a lot easier...If its not well played you can probably get away with a grind and polish. And if you cant get away with a grind and polish then I'd recommend scoring the finish around the frets and pulling. If that goes well, I'd then refret. If that doesnt go well, then I'd plane it, fret it, and refinish it. But like I said, its hard to say without seeing.