James ST-1

[Gavin1393]

You need to level the frets.
Once this is done then see the thread on intonation......follow the process shown there and if you are still having issues then we can help. Right now there are any of 7 or more things that may be causing the buzz.
For example:

1. Frets are not level.
2. The nut groove is to wide for the string
3. the bridge groove is too wide for the string
4. The action is too low
5. The nut slot at the 'D' string has been filed down too far
6. The saddle at the 'D' string needs to be raised.
7. The neck isn't straight......

[stan]

great work so far Walrus, must be time for more pics!

[Brendan]

/<\\/p>[]<\\/p>/Quote from Walrus on August 15, 2013, 11:23
Question: I need to do intonation and setup etc, but I've got serious buzzing on the D string. Open D is fine, but its hitting the frets around the 12th-15th...just for the D. The other strings seem ok (still not right, but action and setup isn't done yet).

Any tips on this? I think the frets around there might not be perfectly hammered the fingerboard, there might be a .5mm gap between the fret and the rosewood. The neck looks perfectly straight, so I'm considering adjusting the truss rod to have a slight curve. I'm also considering fret levelling.

Photos to come.

Stan - I think you know what to do - you've stated you need to do a fret levelling - they tend to be pretty rough straight from the factory. On top of that you need to check your setup, etc as mentioned above... Guess you're lucky it's only one of the strings not all 6 at the moment... I think that Gav Star has just posted instructions on fret levelling for best effect... Also worth brushing up on the intonation vid as well.

Good luck!

[Walrus]

Thanks guys, I figured it was fret leveling time, just thought I'd ask in case there might have been a simpler solution. No matter, I thought I'd need to do this.

The nut looks OK, I've raised the saddle (which helped a bit) but didn't cure the problem entirely.

I'm actually looking forward to this, because I have another old guitar which could do with a full fret dress so this will be good practice.

[DanMade]

I enjoyed levelling the frets on my first build I'm doing. It gives you some good experience and a greater understanding of what is needed for a good setup.
Take your time to understand the process the fist time you do it and you'll see that it's really a simple job with the right tools and a keen eye.

[Brendan]

James - if you're strung up and have access to a Katana, contemporary wisdom is that they're a great way to go - otherwise them strings may need to come off...

[Walrus]

What is the radius of the ST-1? I'm going to get a radius block for the fret level job.

[Brendan]

James - from memory, all the Pitbulls are 12".

[Gavin1393]

That is correct, you need a 12". Get one that is a minimum of 200mm long.

[Walrus]

So, I did the fret level and I'm pretty happy. All done. Just uploading a video I've made covering the build. Hopefully this gets the Pit Bull name some exposure, because I think this community and these kits are fantastic.

I ended up making my own fret leveler, which was crude but worked. The crowning I did by hand with a small file...that was actually really fun and the frets came up great, especially after sanding with 320 grit and polishing with 0000 steel wool.

Anyway, check out the video (should be my next post)...I even have some audio of me at the end pretending to be David Gilmour. I tried to film it, but I couldn't align the audio I'd done...there's a bit of learning for me to do there.