Post by CTGull on Feb 20, 2024 8:43:53 GMT -5
THE BENEFITS OF A NECK RESET AND FRET LEVEL
The benefit of a neck reset is obvious, lower action. The problem is a vintage FG neck reset is difficult (tight joint, too much glue in places it shouldn’t be, and the possibility of “mystery” glue) and expensive (requiring previous experience, a high degree of skill, and many hours of work). Most luthiers won’t touch vintage Yamaha FG’s because they are known to be so hard to get apart, and an unsuccessful attempt can severely damage the guitar. Not everyone can justify the expense when a neck reset can cost more than the value of the guitar. Most of the customer’s vintage FG neck resets I’ve done either had sentimental value, or it was a working musicians instrument. Putting $300+ into a $300 guitar doesn’t make much sense unless you really like the guitar. Spending $300+ to buy an unplayable guitar doesn’t make much sense either.
High action is part of the game of vintage acoustic guitars. 40-50 years of string tension pulls the neck up (and sometimes the bridge), tipping them inward, and raising the action. It happens to every acoustic guitar. Vintage Yamaha FG’s (1966 to 1981) are lightly built, but the all plywood construction gives them a little extra stiffness. It’s that extra stiffness that also makes sure the extremely slow changes aren’t easily reversed by any method of steam and clamp. That’s a whole other discussion.
There are other methods of reducing high action. All of them are low precision, reduce the value of the guitar, and create more work if the guitar is ever properly fixed. Cut the heel and convert to bolt on; “slip the neck block”, sand the bridge and saddle until there’s nothing left, or steam and clamp. These might be OK for a cheap guitar that you just want to be sort of playable, but a bad idea for a vintage guitar.
“Tweaking” the truss rod does not fix high action. The truss rod is to adjust the neck relief – the curvature in the first few frets, to add a little extra clearance between the strings and the first few frets. Yes, excess neck relief can slightly add to high action. But the problem with vintage guitars is a bad Neck Angle, which the truss rod does not affect.
In many cases, the Bridge Doctor does not fix high action. The Bridge Doctor tips a tilted bridge back to horizontal, which is caused by the same decades of string tension that pulls the neck up. In some cases, tilting the bridge up can raise the action slightly as it lifts the front of the bridge, which is where the saddle is. It tends to be more effective lowering action with solid top guitars vs. plywood.
One thing that isn’t discussed much is the importance of having a level fret plane BEFORE doing a neck reset. When I first started doing neck resets, the only consideration with the frets was the height and condition; worn/divoted/low frets should be replaced. I recommend a full refret if many of them are .025” high, or lower (because they’ve been leveled before). You might as well start with new frets now, instead of doing it later, which will lower the action and require a new higher nut and saddle (included in a neck reset or complete refret). But I became aware of the fret plane when someone complained of buzzing when the action and neck relief were correct. Further investigation showed high and low frets, creating a jagged fret plane. Pressing on a low fret would result in buzzing at a higher fret. Then I discovered the “wavy” neck – the frets are typically high around the 1st & 2nd, and 12th thru 16th (the 14th fret hump), and low around the 6th thru 8th. The frets may not be high or low across the whole fret, creating high or low pockets.
Lowering the action exposes the “rocks” of high and low frets. Those “rocks” will cause buzzing or dead notes. Sure, you could just set up the guitar with higher action to reduce the possibility of exposing the “rocks”, but WHY would you want to have high action when lower action is much easier to play??
A fret level is less than half the cost of a complete refret if there is enough fret height available. The fret plane can be hard to see because many times a guitar with high action will have the straight edge hit at the first and last frets because the neck is bent up where it meets to body at the 14th fret. This is why the fret leveling should be done after the neck has been removed, and before fixing the neck angle.
Also, it is difficult to find all the low areas until the high areas have been sanded somewhat. When doing a fret level, I always take before, during, and after pics; to show how the low areas become more visible after the high areas are partially sanded down.
If the frets are too low (or deep divots) a full refret will be required. This includes sanding the fretboard level, resulting in essentially a new neck. However, this costs almost as much as a neck reset. It requires A LOT of precision sanding and measuring to be sure the frets end up on one level plane, which will allow very low action without buzzing or dead notes.
Leveling the frets also includes: crowning, filing, sanding, and polishing. Crowning is done with a radius or triangular file, to relieve the sides of the fret so only a thin line of the fret contacts the string. Then I use a very fine file to smooth the crowning file marks, then sand those marks with 600 grit sandpaper, then polish with various grits (Stew Mac’s Fret Erasers) to end up with a near mirror finish.
The benefit of a neck reset is obvious, lower action. The problem is a vintage FG neck reset is difficult (tight joint, too much glue in places it shouldn’t be, and the possibility of “mystery” glue) and expensive (requiring previous experience, a high degree of skill, and many hours of work). Most luthiers won’t touch vintage Yamaha FG’s because they are known to be so hard to get apart, and an unsuccessful attempt can severely damage the guitar. Not everyone can justify the expense when a neck reset can cost more than the value of the guitar. Most of the customer’s vintage FG neck resets I’ve done either had sentimental value, or it was a working musicians instrument. Putting $300+ into a $300 guitar doesn’t make much sense unless you really like the guitar. Spending $300+ to buy an unplayable guitar doesn’t make much sense either.
High action is part of the game of vintage acoustic guitars. 40-50 years of string tension pulls the neck up (and sometimes the bridge), tipping them inward, and raising the action. It happens to every acoustic guitar. Vintage Yamaha FG’s (1966 to 1981) are lightly built, but the all plywood construction gives them a little extra stiffness. It’s that extra stiffness that also makes sure the extremely slow changes aren’t easily reversed by any method of steam and clamp. That’s a whole other discussion.
There are other methods of reducing high action. All of them are low precision, reduce the value of the guitar, and create more work if the guitar is ever properly fixed. Cut the heel and convert to bolt on; “slip the neck block”, sand the bridge and saddle until there’s nothing left, or steam and clamp. These might be OK for a cheap guitar that you just want to be sort of playable, but a bad idea for a vintage guitar.
“Tweaking” the truss rod does not fix high action. The truss rod is to adjust the neck relief – the curvature in the first few frets, to add a little extra clearance between the strings and the first few frets. Yes, excess neck relief can slightly add to high action. But the problem with vintage guitars is a bad Neck Angle, which the truss rod does not affect.
In many cases, the Bridge Doctor does not fix high action. The Bridge Doctor tips a tilted bridge back to horizontal, which is caused by the same decades of string tension that pulls the neck up. In some cases, tilting the bridge up can raise the action slightly as it lifts the front of the bridge, which is where the saddle is. It tends to be more effective lowering action with solid top guitars vs. plywood.
One thing that isn’t discussed much is the importance of having a level fret plane BEFORE doing a neck reset. When I first started doing neck resets, the only consideration with the frets was the height and condition; worn/divoted/low frets should be replaced. I recommend a full refret if many of them are .025” high, or lower (because they’ve been leveled before). You might as well start with new frets now, instead of doing it later, which will lower the action and require a new higher nut and saddle (included in a neck reset or complete refret). But I became aware of the fret plane when someone complained of buzzing when the action and neck relief were correct. Further investigation showed high and low frets, creating a jagged fret plane. Pressing on a low fret would result in buzzing at a higher fret. Then I discovered the “wavy” neck – the frets are typically high around the 1st & 2nd, and 12th thru 16th (the 14th fret hump), and low around the 6th thru 8th. The frets may not be high or low across the whole fret, creating high or low pockets.
Lowering the action exposes the “rocks” of high and low frets. Those “rocks” will cause buzzing or dead notes. Sure, you could just set up the guitar with higher action to reduce the possibility of exposing the “rocks”, but WHY would you want to have high action when lower action is much easier to play??
A fret level is less than half the cost of a complete refret if there is enough fret height available. The fret plane can be hard to see because many times a guitar with high action will have the straight edge hit at the first and last frets because the neck is bent up where it meets to body at the 14th fret. This is why the fret leveling should be done after the neck has been removed, and before fixing the neck angle.
Also, it is difficult to find all the low areas until the high areas have been sanded somewhat. When doing a fret level, I always take before, during, and after pics; to show how the low areas become more visible after the high areas are partially sanded down.
If the frets are too low (or deep divots) a full refret will be required. This includes sanding the fretboard level, resulting in essentially a new neck. However, this costs almost as much as a neck reset. It requires A LOT of precision sanding and measuring to be sure the frets end up on one level plane, which will allow very low action without buzzing or dead notes.
Leveling the frets also includes: crowning, filing, sanding, and polishing. Crowning is done with a radius or triangular file, to relieve the sides of the fret so only a thin line of the fret contacts the string. Then I use a very fine file to smooth the crowning file marks, then sand those marks with 600 grit sandpaper, then polish with various grits (Stew Mac’s Fret Erasers) to end up with a near mirror finish.