Bad fret - easy fix?

[wheresthefbomb]

If you don't have a dremel you can use a rat-tail file. Also if you don't have a dremel you should prob just get one, but a file is 1/10th the price and I use mine pretty often. Personally though, the $45 I spent on my machined notched straightedge was worth the peace of mind of knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that it is, in fact, a Straight Edge. Quite a few companies are making good ones now, including Crimson Guitars on your side of the pond.

 

[mpexus]

I'm in EU so I can't order from Stewmac but anyway, what tool is it? Maybe I can find it here.

Madinter is in Spain and they carry Stewmac tools. Not the same USA price but I dont think you would save money buying directly either.

Madinter Spain: Luthier Wood Supplies

The widest variety of tonewoods, wood for guitars, tools and accessories for constructing and repairing musical instruments, guitars, bass, violins. Everything for the luthier and guitar maker.

www.madinter.com

 

[AwakenTheSkies]

Madinter is in Spain and they carry Stewmac tools. Not the same USA price but I dont think you would save money buying directly either.

Madinter Spain: Luthier Wood Supplies

The widest variety of tonewoods, wood for guitars, tools and accessories for constructing and repairing musical instruments, guitars, bass, violins. Everything for the luthier and guitar maker.

www.madinter.com

Great. I'm checking out the site right now!

 

[AwakenTheSkies]

So in theory if I was going to buy a new guitar. Can I just show up at the store with a precision ruler or straight edge and start checking the fretboard for bad frets? Or would a fret rocker be better for that?
Would it even be a valid way to check if the trussrod isn't straight? I want to avoid buying any more guitars with defects like this.
I know for example on this 8 string I have even with some relief if I check the bad frets with a fret rocker I can still see that they're no good..

 

[lost_horizon]

So in theory if I was going to buy a new guitar. Can I just show up at the store with a precision ruler or straight edge and start checking the fretboard for bad frets? Or would a fret rocker be better for that?
Would it even be a valid way to check if the trussrod isn't straight? I want to avoid buying any more guitars with defects like this.
I know for example on this 8 string I have even with some relief if I check the bad frets with a fret rocker I can still see that they're no good..

Most guitars are no good. They will have at least 1 dead spot and 1 or 2 bad frets.

Just press down on the first fret and the 12th fret and look at the relief as a quick test. Truss rod tho can be fixed in 5 mins.

Went in a guitar shop yesterday, only new guitar that wasn't set up like crap was a Made in China Gus G Signature.

Fret rocker does no damage so i don't see why not. The question is if it is bad. Are you going to get a discount? More than likely not.

I buy guitars secondhand and they have 1-2 bad frets, usually fret polish fixes it in the process.

 

[AwakenTheSkies]

Most guitars are no good. They will have at least 1 dead spot and 1 or 2 bad frets.

Just press down on the first fret and the 12th fret and look at the relief as a quick test. Truss rod tho can be fixed in 5 mins.

Went in a guitar shop yesterday, only new guitar that wasn't set up like crap was a Made in China Gus G Signature.

Fret rocker does no damage so i don't see why not. The question is if it is bad. Are you going to get a discount? More than likely not.

I buy guitars secondhand and they have 1-2 bad frets, usually fret polish fixes it in the process.

I just want check my future guitars for problems like this before buying them. And it's complicated to see that at the store, most of them aren't setup so good like you said. At the store it might play fine, then you get home do your setup the way you like and boom there it is. I don't think it's something that you can see visually.
And I'm not super demanding, I set up my guitars with 1,5mm or 2/32 action at the 12th fret and just a tiny little bit of neck relief. That's not exactly ultra low action. But any higher than that and playing tricky stuff becomes more difficult.
I don't know what to say about every guitar having a bad fret. For example my PRS SE Tremonti Custom I can set the action lower than 1mm and it won't give me problems. Maybe I got super lucky. That guitar cost like 750€ back in 2014 when I bought it.
On the other hand I have this Jackson SLATHX 3-8 which cost the same and I just don't know what the fuck the builders were thinking. With the bridge on it's own, I can't set the action any lower than 1,5mm. That's pretty fucking crazy. Like the saddle is touching the bridge plate. So I have to compensate with the neck relief, which also helps lower the action and make the guitar more comfortable. But I can't set it as straight as the PRS SE, because the bad frets become really noticeable. That's what I'm trying to fix.