fret buzz

[Smpl9]

i put a warmoth 22-fret on my mim strat. after about 5 months, i'm getting a bit of a buzz up around frets  1-3 on hi-E&B.  the neck bows in just a bit, i believe like a strat should.

strings (10's) height appears even on all strings, 5/64.  it is a compound 16 neck.

just wondering if it is time to adjust the truss slightly or raise the strings a bit. you really notice the buzz whith monitor headphones on, say versus my lil practice amp.

tia

 

[dNA]

could be frets need work. If you're only getting buzz in one area and on certain strings, that's what I would imagine. My best guess is that your fourth fret is every so slightly raised around the high E and B string, so anything fretted below that will buzz on it.

but i'm no expert about neck buzz or frets so don't that for a fact

 

[Jusatele]

a small little tweak of the truss rod may do it if it is seasonal moisture change

 

[Cagey]

I'm with dNA on the 4th fret rise. Since it's just toward the #1 string side, and doesn't affect strings 3-6, it's unlikely the neck has moved. The fretboard radius on a compound neck is tighter the closer you get to the nut, so the probability of a fret floating up from its slot on one side is better. You may be able to take a small (6oz.-8oz. or so) hammer and tap on that that side of the 4th fret a few times to re-seat it. Be sure to get the strings out of the way, or you'll put slots in your frets.

 

[Smpl9]

thanks all, i'll try the small hammer idea and see if that helps.

if not, a ever so slight truss adjustment. i assume the direction is to add a bit to the relief, yes?  currently, the gap in between a straight edge and frets in the middle is just a bit less than 0.13mm. not much of a gap at all.

is it a good idea to put a small piece of wood on the fret prior to a few light taps with the hammer?

 

[Cagey]

You're right, 0.13mm (.005") is a small amount of relief. It's doable, but it's somewhat unforgiving because you need to have room for the strings to vibrate. So, if the hammer thing doesn't work as well as you'd like, loosen that truss rod about 1/8 of a turn or so.

Also, with the hammer, yes, a pad of some sort is a Good Thing if you're not using a fretting hammer. But use a very thin hardwood or a piece of flat metal or something like that. If you cushion it too much, the pad will absorb the hammer blows without transferring much energy to the fret. If you look at a fretting hammer, you'll see one side is hard plastic and the other is brass, and you don't use any pad with it.

 

[Smpl9]

i adjusted the truss rod all the way to .012 and the buzz was still there, mainly "B & E" string, and just a wee bit on "G". strings are at 5/64.

it was a good task anyways to do, as  i set the relief between .008 & .009. as a baseline fender suggests .008 for this radius.

i got the ol hard plastic hammer out, put a small  piece of wood, and tapped hard twice on 1-5 frets on the high side. buzz is basically gone now. maybe an ever so slight buzz on "B" but hardly noticeable even with headphones on.

a minute scratch was put on the first fret i tapped (fret 5) cuz i didn't put use a wood buffer. the plastic hammer had a piece of dried paint on it i didn't see, really tiny. bending is still smooth there. so no worry there.

never would have thought to "tap" the frets. you guys sure helped me, many thanks!

 

[dNA]

:blob7:

Awesome. I'm glad it worked! I'm just really happy that something I suggested (from a completely theoretical, not at all from practical experience, point of view) was right.
*patting self on the back*  :icon_jokercolor:



seriously though. congratz.  :icon_thumright: