Count me amongst the unlucky few...

[CrackedPepper]

... that got a new Warmoth neck that needs to be fret levelled.  I've been experiencing buzzing on only the E and A strings from about the 5th fret on down that setups and truss rod adjustments have not been able to solve.  So I took it to my local Fender shop and they looked at it and think there are several frets in the higher end of the neck that need leveling.  I asked about improper fret seating and they assure me that this is not a problem.  I am bummed  :sad1:  

I recognize that I don't have the experience or the tools to do this myself.  The neck is a compound radius so my concern is the guy at the Fender shop does not have the experience with compund radius necks.  So here are my questions:  

- Can any luthier/technician perform this leveling?
- Are there other "big name" guitar companies out there that use compound radius necks?  I'm thinking if brand X uses them, I could take it to a shop that services brand X guitars.
- Does anyone have experience with shipping a guitar to an out-of-their-local-area shop that they could recommend if I cannot find a shop locally here in God-forsaken Pittsburgh?

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[old_metal_head]

Hey I'm in Pittsburgh too.

I have some simple tools you can use if you like.

I have a diamond fret leveler that works well and a set of fret files.

What kind of relief is in then neck and what is the string height from the 12th fret?

 

[tfarny]

These compund necks are not that uncommon, even my Larrivee acoustic has one. If a tech is unsure of that, I'd say he doesn't know enough to earn your business. Evan Gluck in NYC might help you out if you want to ship him the neck. He did a fret level on my warmoth compound and it was perfect.
Rudy's Music Stop in NYC can definitely help you, but when I asked them they wanted $350 for a full grind and polish.

 

[CrackedPepper]

Hey I'm in Pittsburgh too.

I have some simple tools you can use if you like.

Thank you for the offer - I just don't feel confident enough to do this myself.  I need to find someone who does this for a living.

 

[CrackedPepper]

If a tech is unsure of that, I'd say he doesn't know enough to earn your business.

That's my feeling as well.  The search goes on...

 

[CrackedPepper]

I reviewed one of my earlier posts looking for a luthier in Pittsburgh and Steve_Karl mentioned a guy named Mike Caldwell at Pianos 'n' Stuff.  Turns out my tech knows him and says he's good.  Just got off the phone with Mike and I am taking it to him right now.  Thanks for everyone's help on this so far!

 

[hannaugh]

Necks with a compound radius aren't super common, but they are common enough that a good tech should know how to work with them, at least according to Dan Erlewine.  Jackson, Taylor, Martin, and Collings all use a compound radius, or did at some point. 

 

[CrackedPepper]

So I took my guitar to Pianos n Stuff and talked to Mike Caldwell.  It turns out that not only did agree to work on my neck but he is very familiar with Warmoth.  He builds guitars with Warmoth bodies & necks and sells them at the store.  He had two strats and a VIP there.  If I had a camera, I'd have taken pictures - they were pretty nice builds: SD pups and hanrdmade wooden pickguards on the Strats made from cocobolo.  Sweet!

 

[Mor Paul]

Tell him to join the forum!

 

[CrackedPepper]

I never thought of that - I will mention it when I pick up my baby

 

[CrackedPepper]

Well he wasn't there today when I picked up "Jane" so no new Pittsburgher on the site.  But, the buzz is gone and, apparently, the neck/frets have been plek'd.  Life is good!

 

[Steve_Karl]

Well he wasn't there today when I picked up "Jane" so no new Pittsburgher on the site. But, the buzz is gone and, apparently, the neck/frets have been plek'd. Life is good!

Hey there ... any new news about Pittsburgh Tecs?
I'm thinking I want an SS fret job but it seems everyone here is the Steel city is afraid of SS frets.

 

[stratamania]

Hey there ... any new news about Pittsburgh Tecs?
I'm thinking I want an SS fret job but it seems everyone here is the Steel city is afraid of SS frets.

Did you know this thread is 14 years old, Steve?

The user has not been seen on the forum for about 4 years.

 

[Spud]

As far as I know and do fret leveling is fret leveling regardless of radius. I still use the same flat bar and files. Works for old Spudder

 

[Steve_Karl]

Did you know this thread is 14 years old, Steve?

The user has not been seen on the forum for about 4 years.

Yea. I just thought I'd give it a try.

 

[stratamania]

Yea. I just thought I'd give it a try.

Perhaps do a search somewhere that does Plek services. https://plek.com/plek-finder/