Fretless

Dodgy rythym and thick strings here...

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Fretless

Post by Bg »

ok, I bit the bullet last night and decided as I wasn't using my Jazz much that I might as well defret it.

Took me about an hour and some patience to get the frets out. I used the tried and tested soldering iron on the fret/pull out with nail clippers. This worked very well, with only the odd bit of chipping to fill with epoxy.

Next step was to sand down - I made a radiused block out of a cork sanding block so I can keep the neck profile.

I'm waiting for the epoxy to dry now so I can sand it back and fill the fret slots. I've bought some black wood filler for this as I still want some markings, should be pretty invisible on the rosewood fretboard from a distance :)

Hopefully I'll be able to sling it together tonight so I can set up the action and find any buzzy spots. Then when its right I'm going to apply a good few coats of satin poly on the fretboard - I'm planning on using rounds to begin with.

So, any tips on the transition between fretted and fretless? I know the basics (fretting on the line etc)
So, is that low alcohol or no alcohol at all? mmmm, no alcohol, do you want to try it? Noooooooooo.
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Post by Zakk Wylde »

Buy a Cello...
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Post by Bg »

nope - Cellos should always be played by tasty looking birds. Nothing beats the sight of a bird furiously fiddling on a big cello between her legs :)

I'm thinking about defretting a Frankenstrat next :)
So, is that low alcohol or no alcohol at all? mmmm, no alcohol, do you want to try it? Noooooooooo.
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Post by Rog »

As far as playing a fretless goes, I found:

MUST be able to hear myself
MUST be able to hear myself
MUST be able to hear myself
MUST be able to hear myself
MUST be able to hear myself
MUST be able to hear myself

Other than playing on the lines, everything else comes really easily - all you have to do is train yourself to start your notes a tad upstream and muscle memory takes care of the rest.

Did I mention you must be able to hear properly?
He hit a chord that rocked the spinet and disappeared into the infinite ...
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Post by Bg »

so you think I need to turn it up loud :D

I'll probably end up using it on two or three songs but they do need it ;)
So, is that low alcohol or no alcohol at all? mmmm, no alcohol, do you want to try it? Noooooooooo.
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Post by ash »

Fretless bass is remarkable easy to play. I was surprised when I converted one at how readily I took to it.

Don't use satin polyurethane on the fretboard. It will scrape off as soon as you start to play. Rosewood is ok by itself for a while, or you can buy a 2oz bottle of thin CA glue from a model shop and flood the surface with that and polish it up.

You should drop the nut height a bit or it will feel horrible up that end. Play with the TR releif and action to get the right combo of buzz and mwaaahhh.
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Post by Bg »

mmmm I'll try it by itself, failing that lots of people recommend using the poly?!? Wears off after a few years apparently...

I am reluctant to put it on as I don't really want poly on a fretboard, how about danish oil instead? I could smother it in epoxy, that would be the other way.
So, is that low alcohol or no alcohol at all? mmmm, no alcohol, do you want to try it? Noooooooooo.
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Post by ash »

It may not be the same thing as we get there, perhaps? I can't see polyurethane making a meaningful contribution to the surface as it doesn't soak in much and isn't hard like epoxy or CA. Danish oil soaks in at least. I like CA the best because its quick, easy, soaks in, is hard, clear, polishable, abrasion resistant etc etc.

Lots of yanks use epoxy, but I don't like it because its just a plastic layer sitting on top of the wood. You may as well have a perspex fingerboard! Oiled ebony has worked on violins and cellos for hundreds of years, so oiled rosewood should suffice for as long as the frets would have.
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Post by Bg »

yeah cyanoacetate? makes more sense. I think I'll go for the oil finish :) If I start getting marks I'll go with the CA and flatwound strings.
So, is that low alcohol or no alcohol at all? mmmm, no alcohol, do you want to try it? Noooooooooo.
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Post by Zakk Wylde »

Again, buy a cello.


I'm going to uncover my sordid past on the 'where did you learn' thread thingy.
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Post by raz »

I wouldn't use any oil or polish on it. Fill the slots, then go up the grits with sandpaper , and then finish with 2000 grit. It can come out as good as any varnished & polished surface, and IMO much nicer to play.

my 2c worth anyway
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Post by Bg »

I can get a beautiful finish, its just wear on the fretboard I'm worried about, as I'm just using roundwound at the moment.

Anyway, I sanded to 1000 grit and then I gave it a coat of danish oil and it looks great :) setting the action now then I'll mess around with it for an hour before the final couple of coats of oil :) The black wood filler looks great against the rosewood, and you can't see them from 5 feet away :)
So, is that low alcohol or no alcohol at all? mmmm, no alcohol, do you want to try it? Noooooooooo.
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Post by B45-12 »

bluesgeek wrote:I can get a beautiful finish, its just wear on the fretboard I'm worried about, as I'm just using roundwound at the moment.

Anyway, I sanded to 1000 grit and then I gave it a coat of danish oil and it looks great :) setting the action now then I'll mess around with it for an hour before the final couple of coats of oil :) The black wood filler looks great against the rosewood, and you can't see them from 5 feet away :)
Do what us fretless banjo pickers do! surface the f/board with formica.
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Post by Tehhaxorr »

can we see some pics BG? i still cant quite picture what your talkibn about. is it an upright bass?
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Post by TMG 03 »

What happened to the Ash Strat ?
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