Official Luthiers Forum!

For the last 10 years I've been pretty much using the StewMac Medium or similar for new instruments. +/- .084 width .039 crown. I've played and refretted guitars with bigger frets and never noticed an enormous difference in playability.

There was a thread on the acoustic guitar forum recently about how many players preferred wider higher frets because it was easier to play the instrument.

What size fretwire do you guys usually use on an acoustic flat top and why?

_________________
It's not what you don't know that hurts you, it's what you do know that's wrong.

Medium width, maximum height. This is what feels best to me, and it leaves some room for future fret dressings.

I prefer the feel of low frets on acoustic, so I just use the medium width, medium height fret wire. On electrics, I like jumbo frets because I like to get my fingers under the adjacent strings when I'm bending.


Ken Jones
Mountain Song Guitars

_________________
Mountain Song Guitars www.mountainsongguitars.com

I use what you use Terry. Think mine are .080".
Recently, I had to fret Dave Hull's GC-6 guitar with .110 x.060".
As I didn't care to carry a pound of that stuff, he bought a pack of frets. Had to bend them by hand as they were too short to go through the bender. Added about 6 hrs to the fret job...

Evo is what I prefer. Jumbo all the way.

Terry,
I've been using Jescar .080 width and .043 crown height. Pretty much what you are using.

Chuck

_________________
_________________

I know a lot of players can be quite picky about their fret wire size - guess I'm not one of them. Maybe it's because the majority of my playing time is spent on every variety of everyone's instruments but my own, but my preferences have turned to "I really couldn't care less". Yeah, there are differences, but a few seconds with an instrument in my hands and I guess I acclimate myself to it's nuances without much thought and move on. .030"-.060" height, .040"-.120" width - if they're dressed well I find myself not bothered by any, with hardly any preference to speak of.

Perhaps it's the left hand touch as well. I've strived to develop a left hand style of no more pressure than necessary, so once the strings touch the frets it matters quite little what shape or space is left beneath them. If you have a heavier left hand grip then it may matter more, but which way those preferences may lean can be as individual as any other preference between players.

_________________
Eschew obfuscation, espouse elucidation.

Be careful of that left hand technique Mr. Collins. With it you won't be fussing about a 0.2 mm higher action change either.

Oh no - the lighter the touch, the more critical every thousandth of action becomes.

_________________
Eschew obfuscation, espouse elucidation.

I'll have to disagree. Once that economy of movement, the 'effortless' playing is achieved even high actions don't feel that difficult. The left hand starts to feel like a 10 ton clamp. That's been my experience anyway.

I just bought two pounds of large fret wire from eBay. Must say I found it to be rather soft as it bends super easily. Nothing like the medium that I get from Stewmac. I like the size but I think they will wear out super quick.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Fret height does become significant if you are playing barre chords in the lower frets . . . it's the flesh of the fingers which touch the fretboard, after all, not the strings (unless you are playing with really light gauge strings and a heavy touch) , but for .012 -.053" and heavier, the flesh hits the board before the strings.

The corollary is that unless you have skeletal fingers (and some people may) it is far easier to do barre chords in the lower positions when the fret heights are .045" and upwards, irrespective of how well set up the instrument is.

This is true for steel strings, things may be different with a classical guitar.

Could well be they will, did the seller say if they were 12% or 18% nickel?

_________________
The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

My last two I used Jescar stainless 47/95

Colin I neglected to ask so don't know what to do with them.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk