Stainless Steel Frets Option

[ieso]

I have SS frets on three (non-G/L) guitars and love them.

I'd like to recommend this option for G&L guitars.

[darwinohm]

I would like to see Stainless frets as standard on most models. They last and I played a Parker Southern the other day and I liked it. They are difficult to dress but once installed and dressed most of us would never wear them out.

[Woodfixer]

i have done a few ss refrets. they took 3 times as long to do. you won't wear them out! some claim they don't like them. I'm apt to think that the increased denseness can lend to tone and sustain. not on the the top of my list of must have options unless you are wearing out standard frets often.

[jazzrat]

I've had them on Carvin guitars and on the Parker Fly I have now....I like them a lot. I'm easy on frets but I still like the smooth feel.
I think they would make G & L's even more of a lifetime keeper.

[ieso]

I've had them on Carvin guitars and on the Parker Fly I have now....I like them a lot. I'm easy on frets but I still like the smooth feel.
I think they would make G & L's even more of a lifetime keeper.

Wow! We're like a two-man club of Carvin, Parker, and G/L owners

[jazzrat]

I've had them on Carvin guitars and on the Parker Fly I have now....I like them a lot. I'm easy on frets but I still like the smooth feel.
I think they would make G & L's even more of a lifetime keeper.

Wow! We're like a two-man club of Carvin, Parker, and G/L owners

You got it man. If guys would look past F & G, Carvin, Parker and G&L along with Hamer are some great guitars!

[sirmyghin]

I love these, have them on my Carvin bass and my main guitar (also carvin, c66)

Are these available on G&L now? I looked on their site but the list there is spartan and doesn't mention them, local dealer is someone I don't see often but planning to get an ASAT (as I am tele shopping and it was love at first feel, didn't even plug it in) after I get an amp (mark v , might be set back due to the need for some canine training for fear aggression though ).

[Craig]

I love these, have them on my Carvin bass and my main guitar (also carvin, c66)

Are these available on G&L now? I looked on their site but the list there is spartan and doesn't mention them, local dealer is someone I don't see often but planning to get an ASAT (as I am tele shopping and it was love at first feel, didn't even plug it in) after I get an amp (mark v , might be set back due to the need for some canine training for fear aggression though ).

No, not yet. I had passed this suggestion on to Steve at G&L, that they should consider offering them. One of Steve's concerns is the affect they might have on the Plek machine cutters. It's probably on his list of things to do. Should it become an option, it will be added to the Options list on their main website. So, I would periodically check there.

[sirmyghin]

No, not yet. I had passed this suggestion on to Steve at G&L, that they should consider offering them. One of Steve's concerns is the affect they might have on the Plek machine cutters. It's probably on his list of things to do. Should it become an option, it will be added to the Options list on their main website. So, I would periodically check there.

Thanks for the heads up. Seeing as I won't be ready til late in the year anyway gives me something to hope for. So that options list is 'complete' then , as far as standard stuff goes? (not that I want anything outside it, more curious)

[Craig]

No, not yet. I had passed this suggestion on to Steve at G&L, that they should consider offering them. One of Steve's concerns is the affect they might have on the Plek machine cutters. It's probably on his list of things to do. Should it become an option, it will be added to the Options list on their main website. So, I would periodically check there.

Thanks for the heads up. Seeing as I won't be ready til late in the year anyway gives me something to hope for. So that options list is 'complete' then , as far as standard stuff goes? (not that I want anything outside it, more curious)

Yes, both the Guitar and Bass Option pages plus all the Instrument Spec pages are current and up to date.

[Ledergeist]

So I was just browsing the Plek homepage, getting some insight on how it cuts and dresses the frets. I've only seen one run on video. As a machinist, I'm dealing with cutter vs. workpiece issues all the time. Plek's site says their fret-cutter is carbide, so all else being equal, running stainless frets would likely decrease tooling life a little bit.
If offering a stainless fret on all G&L's is worth using up some more 'cutting modules' a year, I'd say it's worth it.

My $2 Worth...

Adjusted for Inflation,
BW

[Dave el Asattwanger]

Wow a thread on stainless frets and G&L's.

What a novel idea. If G&L would have offered stainless fretts I might still be playing them. It sucks buying a hot rod and 6 months down the road having to need work done to it, and 6 months again and again and again.

My current #1 has stainless frets. Everyday 2-4 hours of play and they are perfect. Never again will I buy a new guitar without stainless frets. I paid $100 MSRP for the upgrade. That's a big saving over a dress every 6-8 months and adjust the action to allow for wear.

[zapcosongs]

I'm clearly not in the majority but I don't like SS frets. I think it changes the sound of the guitar and makes the notes picked more percussive, for lack of a better word. I have one guitar with SS frets (an Anderson) and I have to play it differently than all my other guitars. Also, I don't play for hours a day and have enough instruments to rotate through that wearing out "regular" fret wire is not an issue for me. Still, if folks like them, I'd give them the option. The customer is always right! - ed

[Jim Sams]

I have a Warmoth Strat neck with the SS 6105 frets and I have to say they are great.
Tone was only enhanced. Maybe peoples complaints are from the super jumbo sized frets?

[sirmyghin]

I have a Warmoth Strat neck with the SS 6105 frets and I have to say they are great.
Tone was only enhanced. Maybe peoples complaints are from the super jumbo sized frets?

I have 6105 (med jumbo?) on my bass and 6100 (jumbo to carvin, or med jumbo to G&L) on a c66. You mean 6000? when you say jumbo? Like ESP?

[Jim Sams]

Well actually I mean both the 6100 and the 6000 frets.
Both are tall enough for the string not to necessarily contact the fretboard while playing.

[sirmyghin]

Well actually I mean both the 6100 and the 6000 frets.
Both are tall enough for the string not to necessarily contact the fretboard while playing.

Indeed, I like the feeling personally, like a scalloped fretboard without the resale value hit

[meowmix]

Wow a thread on stainless frets and G&L's.

.....It sucks buying a hot rod and 6 months down the road having to need work done to it, and 6 months again and again and again.

.....Never again will I buy a new guitar without stainless frets. I paid $100 MSRP for the upgrade. That's a big saving over a dress every 6-8 months and adjust the action to allow for wear.

That's about right. After 6 months, my G&L needs work on the frets to level them. What makes it worse, G&L don't have replacement 3 bolt necks. So once the frets wear out, the guitar is finished.

[sirmyghin]

That's about right. After 6 months, my G&L needs work on the frets to level them. What makes it worse, G&L don't have replacement 3 bolt necks. So once the frets wear out, the guitar is finished.

Ever heard of a refret? Frets gone =/= need new neck.

[Craig]

No, not yet. I had passed this suggestion on to Steve at G&L, that they should consider offering them. One of Steve's concerns is the affect they might have on the Plek machine cutters. It's probably on his list of things to do. Should it become an option, it will be added to the Options list on their main website. So, I would periodically check there.

Thanks for the heads up. Seeing as I won't be ready til late in the year anyway gives me something to hope for. So that options list is 'complete' then , as far as standard stuff goes? (not that I want anything outside it, more curious)

Yes, both the Guitar and Bass Option pages plus all the Instrument Spec pages are current and up to date.

Dave has been busy updating the G&L main website. Check out the updated USA Guitar Options page, Stainless Steel frets are now available!!! :

There is more to come, so check back again later.

Just wanted to let you all know about the Stainless Steel frets option.

Hope this helps.

[Elwood]

Thanks for the heads up Craig,
That's gonna make for some rock solid guitars,
especially with the newer DF materials.

[sirmyghin]

6 bloody months too late. Dang.. ( I had dealers asking in August), Also how the heck do you need a levelling after 6 months, that set off some bells when I thought of it.

[darwinohm]

This is great news. If I order a new one it will have them. They last forever! G&L , I am glad you are listening. -- Darwin

[meowmix]

6 bloody months too late. Dang.. ( I had dealers asking in August), Also how the heck do you need a levelling after 6 months, that set off some bells when I thought of it.

I didn't mean to scare anyone of the issues I am facing. Let's put it in context.

From the neck, the guitar was built in Nov 1995. There is a stamp "D" on it as well. Not sure what that means.
Being the original owner from 1996, I played very little of it. It sat most of it's life. Only in the past 5 months, I took it out of the shell and started practicing again with vengeance.

Long story short, the neck needed work because of so many things. Length of time, wrong strings, incorrect adjustment, humidity, bla bla bla. Who really knows? So my complaint was misguided. But look at all the good things that came from it. Updated webpage, Ebony fretboard, SS Frets and DFS Vibrato upgrades are now possible. You all should thank me!

For the short period of time it was at the shop, I realize how much I miss that guitar. Playing on my backup non-G&L guitar was no fun. I really like the neck profile of the S-500 and so do my hands.

[sirmyghin]

6 bloody months too late. Dang.. ( I had dealers asking in August), Also how the heck do you need a levelling after 6 months, that set off some bells when I thought of it.

I didn't mean to scare anyone of the issues I am facing. Let's put it in context.

From the neck, the guitar was built in Nov 1995. There is a stamp "D" on it as well. Not sure what that means.
Being the original owner from 1996, I played very little of it. It sat most of it's life. Only in the past 5 months, I took it out of the shell and started practicing again with vengeance.

Long story short, the neck needed work because of so many things. Length of time, wrong strings, incorrect adjustment, humidity, bla bla bla. Who really knows? So my complaint was misguided. But look at all the good things that came from it. Updated webpage, Ebony fretboard, SS Frets and DFS Vibrato upgrades are now possible. You all should thank me!

For the short period of time it was at the shop, I realize how much I miss that guitar. Playing on my backup non-G&L guitar was no fun. I really like the neck profile of the S-500 and so do my hands.

Gotcha, I just play for more than a year or so before frets need a levelling (and I played one axe for over 2 years and the frets didn't have a mark, my only electric at the time). Hoping my G&L can keep up with that, otherwise I do have fret files and tools (that aren't seeing much use as all my other guitars are SS fretted, I bought the files to take care of the G&L specifically). I will have to learn to do it all but it doesn't appear very difficult, and I am great with my hands. Once they are worn out there , whenever it may be they will surely be replaced with stainless frets. I like my frets tall so I figured I might get 4-5 levels out of them, before I find them not tall enough. So a few years of playing either way. Don't get me wrong I love that guitar, but SS frets would have been the icing on the cake. I find it hard to believe they didn't know they were going to offer it yet based on timeline.

[jnnagel88]

Craig, are the stainless steel frets exactly the same size as the standard frets?
And they are an upcharge, right?
Regards

[scolfax]

Holy crap. For some reason I thought stainless frets were *not* an option... and my guitar is 2 weeks from being completed! My homemade strat with stainless frets is perfect - never needs tweaking... love them!

[meowmix]

Craig, are the stainless steel frets exactly the same size as the standard frets?
And they are an upcharge, right?
Regards

From my understanding, yes. They come in 2 sizes from the options page. From craig, medium jumbo is 6100 dunlop.

[scolfax]

Just checked and was told it's a $350 upcharge. Can someone confirm this? It sounds *very* high. Pretty sure it's only a $100 upcharge on a Suhr.

[sirmyghin]

Just checked and was told it's a $350 upcharge. Can someone confirm this? It sounds *very* high. Pretty sure it's only a $100 upcharge on a Suhr.

Wow, considering a refret from on place here costs 50$, and Carvin gives you them for 40 that is absurd. The fact I could do a complete refret for that price (was quoted)..

[scolfax]

In their defense they also PLEK their guitars, so that has to add some cost. Especially to any parts that suffer extra wear because of the tougher fretwire.

[sirmyghin]

In their defense they also PLEK their guitars, so that has to add some cost. Especially to any parts that suffer extra wear because of the tougher fretwire.

Yes , but most companies have a premium as is (for the file). I refuse to buy that the machinery will wear out that much faster, that one is beyond absurd. 150$ would still but them well ahead of what competition charges, and as the wire is not much more to begin with all the rest could go to maintaining the PLEK. I don't feel as bad about not getting them now. Good thing I have a light hand.

[scolfax]

Looks like I missed the cutoff. Good news is that I'll get my guitar soon!

[meowmix]

In their defense they also PLEK their guitars, so that has to add some cost. Especially to any parts that suffer extra wear because of the tougher fretwire.

Yes , but most companies have a premium as is (for the file). I refuse to buy that the machinery will wear out that much faster, that one is beyond absurd. 150$ would still but them well ahead of what competition charges, and as the wire is not much more to begin with all the rest could go to maintaining the PLEK. I don't feel as bad about not getting them now. Good thing I have a light hand.

I thought Suhr uses PLEK too.

Yea, the markup is $400 for SS.
Looks like I will hold off buying another G&L and wait for either the price to go down, or when my frets wear out.

[scolfax]

Oof, I didn't know quartersawn necks were an option too! Ug!

[ieso]

Hey, this is very good news. Great to see G&L keeping up with customer suggestions. Thanks so much.