STA-1MH The King's first PB kit.

[Sonic Mountain]

Nice one. I'd like to get one of those cauls before my next neck build.

I agree re radius, it can be difficult to notice, although for some reason it feels more pronounced on bass guitars to me. I'm not very fussy with neck profiles and fret board radius, but like anything with guitars I'm sure there are people who prefer/swear by it.

[king casey]

Nice one. I'd like to get one of those cauls before my next neck build.

Thanks Sonic. I reckon if I'd have 7.25" radius fret-wire it would have gone easier, but having the clamp and patiently going fret-by-fret...
I got them all fairly even all the way along.
Made it easier to get them all level in the end.

cheers, Mark.

[McCreed]

Good on ya Mark. We learn by doing!

I've done a few re-radius jobs now and learn something each time. All have been without any problems, but the first is always the most stressful.

Also, you can get a fret wire bender really cheap and save yourself having to buy pre-bent wire. Just get straight wire and bend it to whatever radius you need. I got mine for about $70AU delivered, through AliExpress. It's as good as any I've seen for more than double the price from luthier supply shops.
If you plan on doing more re-radius jobs or fret replacement, it's worth the investment. More tools is never a waste of money imo.

[king casey]

Thanks McCreed.
I must be a slow learner though, I first experimented on a discarded neck.
Then had 2 goes at the Strat-Tele before calling it a success.
Outlay for the frets was a tad under $4.00 a packet, but you require patience for delivery (ironically titled 'Ali-EXpress').
Figured that I'll get one successful fret radius done, and then see if it's worthwhile doing any further.

I'm still considering as I fine-tune the one I've done.
BTW I notice that those fretwire bending tools don't appear to have calibration marks.
Is it trial and error to get them accurate?

cheers, Mark.

[Simon Barden]

7.25" definitely makes it harder to get a really low action, certainly up the neck, as the strings just have to be higher to avoid choking out on string bends. If you go for a medium/high action, then that's less of an issue. Saying that, the frets on my 7.25" radius Fender CS NOS Dave Gilmour Strat were finished so well that I could set an extremely low action, too low in fact, so that even I had to raise it.

A tighter radius makes it easier to play chords, especial first position ones and more so for those with some joint stiffness/arthritis. A 12" radius is my normal preference though.

[king casey]

I did read beforehand some comments about bends choking out and a generally 'slower' action etc.
Fortunately I'm not into fret-board gymnastics.
Much like most folk are probably too young to appreciate the experience of driving with drum brakes,
I was interested to experience how the early Fenders were setup.

Next I'll be joining the meth drinkers and the corn circle society (hehe good ol' Red Dwarf).

cheers, Mark.

[McCreed]

BTW I notice that those fretwire bending tools don't appear to have calibration marks.
Is it trial and error to get them accurate?

The short answer is, yes, but it's not as tedious as you might think.
Mainly because you're doing full 12" lengths of fret wire. Once to dial it in; lock it down, you just keep running the rest of the wire through. I know the last refret I did was a 12" and I left the bender locked in that position when I put it away, so I'm pretty confident if I pulled it out today, it wouldn't have changed. I was going to "calibrate" mine, and it could done, but it's not really a big deal in the end.

My process is: run the first length through set to a fairly minimal radius; check it with my X" radius gauge; adjust the bender a little more; run it through again & re-check; rinse & repeat. I usually get in 3 or less adjustments.

ALWAYS go from larger radius to smaller. It's a lot easier than trying to re-straighten the wire. (but you can do it)

Obviously doing a compound radius would require a lot more stuffing around, but completely doable.

Much like most folk are probably too young to appreciate the experience of driving with drum brakes,
I was interested to experience how the early Fenders were setup.

I would much rather do a re-radius/re-fret than work on drum brakes ever again!!! Thanks for the memory!

[king casey]

Finally got this back in good playing condition.
May give this re-fret 7.25" radius lark a repeat on another victim.
Reverted to the original colour scheme.



Spending this government sanctioned 'do f@ck-all' campaign on building guitar knowledge.
Nothing like learning the fretboard by painstakingly transcribing tunes and working them out.
https://www.soundclick.com/artistAdm...&content=music

cheers,

[ILRGuitars]

Nice work KC.

[king casey]

Thanks IRL

cheers, Mark.