Please Help Me Save My Guitar.

[JECalvert]

I'd give that 18th fret a good hard look. Does it buzz on every string? What fret does the neck join the body at? How much relief do you have in the neck? Ie when you fret at teh first and at the last fret, bow much space is between the top of the seventh fret and the bottom of the string?

18th fret don't buzz?

Nope it doesn't. I took a little of the 18th and 20th and helped alot, lowered it to a more comfortable height. But in the end I'm just going to take it to someone that really knows what he's/she's doing. Thank you for the advice everyone.

[Prostheta]

I second the idea of going to get a tech to sort it. Invariably, you would need to remove the strings to sort it out which might cause the neck to move to a different degree of bow. Getting someone who has done this many times before will cover all your bases. It could be setup, bad fret seating, wear, neck angle, trem height....any number of things, which tech would balance out for you.

Plus it'll be like getting a completely new guitar once it's sorted.

[Moth]

I personally think a truss adjustment is in order. However, if that ideas has already been passed, and all the action ajusting/basic guitar setup ideas have already been tried, then go ahead and take it to a tech and have them see what they can do.

If I were to work on it, that's how I'd go through troubleshooting it.

[Bionic Dave]

I personally think a truss adjustment is in order. However, if that ideas has already been passed, and all the action ajusting/basic guitar setup ideas have already been tried, then go ahead and take it to a tech and have them see what they can do.

If I were to work on it, that's how I'd go through troubleshooting it.

+1 I bet the Truss rod just needs a 1/4 turn or so I don't think there's a fret issue at all. unless the fret has popped out some from the slot.

I say check the neck first. don't fu*k with the frets till your 100% sure it's them thats causing the problem.

[pauliemc]

go to a tech with it. You will regret going at this with abrashives. Fret levelling & dressing is best left to someone who knows what they are up too.

[ihocky2]

go to a tech with it. You will regret going at this with abrashives. Fret levelling & dressing is best left to someone who knows what they are up too.

I agree. You can get by with some make shift tools in a pinch, but you really need to know what you are doing and at least have a few specialty tools to really set it up nicely. It could be just the truss rod needs a tweak, which a tech could tell. But since it is only two frets, I doubt it is the truss rod. The truss rod doesn't have much adjustment that far down the neck, the majority is concentrated around the 7th fret. You don't say how new the guitar is. It could be a poor setup from the factory, which is common. Or if it is a little older, you just wore a few frets down quicker than others.

[Moth]

I agree. You can get by with some make shift tools in a pinch, but you really need to know what you are doing and at least have a few specialty tools to really set it up nicely. It could be just the truss rod needs a tweak, which a tech could tell. But since it is only two frets, I doubt it is the truss rod. The truss rod doesn't have much adjustment that far down the neck, the majority is concentrated around the 7th fret. You don't say how new the guitar is. It could be a poor setup from the factory, which is common. Or if it is a little older, you just wore a few frets down quicker than others.

While that's true with most guitars, I find that a lot of the Ibanez ones that I do (especially the ones with the generic floyd trems for some reason) can have buzz on the 14th and 15th until I adjust the truss. That, and I always seem to have to shim the nut... and replace the lock nuts, because they have string grooves dug into them...

But yeah, the truss rod has the potential to effect higher frets. If you look down the neck from the bridge, you can even see it when there's bow or backbow.

[Our Souls inc.]

Not to start a debate here , but anyone who fixes this guitar will do so with abrasives. If it was buzzing on 2 consecutive frets , I'd call TR , but the 17th and 19th ? doubt theres a correctable bow that would cause that.

I still vote for a fine nail file - taken in 3 or 4 stroke incriments. He said the nearest tech was 4 hours away and its 2 frets , not his whole board...........

spot fix it. Its worked for me more than once.

BTW - when I say use the "fine" side I mean that. They go up to 12,000 grit and they're just the right size for working small areas.

[MiKro]

I say Jimi it. Hold it firmly by the headstock, holding the body high above your head, swing smartly towards the floor smashing the body as hard as you can. This should break the neck from the body and maybe other fractures as well.

I'm positive this will fix the problem as you will need to buy a new one.

Seriously,

I would seek out a tech.

mk

[Samba Pa Ti]

Not to start a debate here , but anyone who fixes this guitar will do so with abrasives. If it was buzzing on 2 consecutive frets , I'd call TR , but the 17th and 19th ? doubt theres a correctable bow that would cause that.

I still vote for a fine nail file - taken in 3 or 4 stroke incriments. He said the nearest tech was 4 hours away and its 2 frets , not his whole board...........

spot fix it. Its worked for me more than once.

BTW - when I say use the "fine" side I mean that. They go up to 12,000 grit and they're just the right size for working small areas.

not to argue how to fix it but it all depends whats up with the guitar, we havent seen pictures of it so it could be a bad setup or the neck angle could be slightly off, i dont know.

if the truss rod was bowed all you need is a straight edge to check, and a small ruler or string action gauge to set the string height and fret out any buzz, what im saying is a basic setup could probably fix this, but without seeing it, its hard to say but if the frets were that bad wouldnt it be buzzing all over the place ?

[Our Souls inc.]

Not to start a debate here , but anyone who fixes this guitar will do so with abrasives. If it was buzzing on 2 consecutive frets , I'd call TR , but the 17th and 19th ? doubt theres a correctable bow that would cause that.

I still vote for a fine nail file - taken in 3 or 4 stroke incriments. He said the nearest tech was 4 hours away and its 2 frets , not his whole board...........

spot fix it. Its worked for me more than once.

BTW - when I say use the "fine" side I mean that. They go up to 12,000 grit and they're just the right size for working small areas.

not to argue how to fix it but it all depends whats up with the guitar, we havent seen pictures of it so it could be a bad setup or the neck angle could be slightly off, i dont know.

if the truss rod was bowed all you need is a straight edge to check, and a small ruler or string action gauge to set the string height and fret out any buzz, what im saying is a basic setup could probably fix this, but without seeing it, its hard to say but if the frets were that bad wouldnt it be buzzing all over the place ?

Thats pretty much what I was saying .... If it needed a setup , it'd be buzzing in more than two spots.......

We're all just guessing - I'm just offering up a DIY approach instead of 8 hours of travel to stop 2 buzzing spots. If he fixes it himself - WIN. If he doesn't fix it - no change.

He can only go up by trying.

[DC Ross]

Not to start a debate here , but anyone who fixes this guitar will do so with abrasives. If it was buzzing on 2 consecutive frets , I'd call TR , but the 17th and 19th ? doubt theres a correctable bow that would cause that.

I still vote for a fine nail file - taken in 3 or 4 stroke incriments. He said the nearest tech was 4 hours away and its 2 frets , not his whole board...........

spot fix it. Its worked for me more than once.

BTW - when I say use the "fine" side I mean that. They go up to 12,000 grit and they're just the right size for working small areas.

The OP is obviously not a tech. There's a bit more to diagnosing and fixing high or low frets than what is outlined here. Fretwork is a precision operation, and without knowing the cause of the buzzing, sanding the frets with reckless abandon will more than likely make things worse and probably create new problems. On the plus side, it'll take about three months of vigorous sanding with 12,000 grit to do anything

[ihocky2]

The issue I have with going right at the frets is that you don't know what the problem is and you are only fixing the current issue and not resolving the underlying problem. If it is the truss rod needs adjusting because of seasonal changes, then leveling the frets is great for the next 6 months. But then when the weather swings again, you have new problems because you didn't fix the correct problem.

There are at least 7 steps to a proper setup, once you know the frets are level. Without the proper tools you can't perform a good setup, and from the OP it is clear he doesn't have those tools. Second you need to follow the steps in order. Jumping around the order throws off the balance of the setup and it won't get right. If he goes right at it to level the frets he has a 50/50 chance that he'll fix the problem. If he takes it to a tech, he'll know it is fixed right, and in the process have a better setup than he does now and a better playing guitar.

The original post says that "The only good tech is 2 hours away", not the only tech. So there are others around. For a full fret dressing or a refret, you only want to go to someone very good. For a general setup, anyone who calls themselves a guitar repairman or guitar tech had better be able to do a setup, since that is the most basic and common work. I am sure if you ask around to some other guitarist or at local stores, they can tell you who is nearby that can do a good setup.

[Prostheta]

If the playing notes at the 17th fret buzz, spend five days playing notes on the 18th fret till the buzz goes away :-)

[~davie]

If you're looking for a temporary fix and simply MUST have those frets ring when you play, you can just slightly raise your string action. You can do this by raising the saddles higher. But just so you know, this might affect playability since the action is higher.

[soapbarstrat]

+1 that up past the 15th fret, it's out of the truss-rod's range (although I'd certainly make sure the t-rod is at a decent adjustment before going after any of the frets with tools).

My most crude method when I suspect some fret popping, is to lay the hardened eraser end of an old short pencil (other end of pencil cut flat) on the popped area and tap the other end with a hammer. Usually a temporary fix if no glue is used, but I think of the procedure as more diagnostic.

[Mors Phagist]

I would suggest filing as more of a last resort. Try adjusting the action and boosting the string gauge. If that fails, adjust the truss rod. And If that fails, start filing.

Edit: Forgot the truss rod doesn't have much influence in the upper frets, so its pretty useless to adjust it...

Edited March 13, 2010 by Mors Phagist