Quality of Warmoth factory fret work~ say that 5 times fast

[Surf n Music]

So I am in the process of gathering all my part and researching all I need to do to make my dream guitar happen. I have decided to order a canary neck with ss105 frets. Their site says that their frets on "most" necks do not require any leveling. Just curious to others experiences with warmoth necks and their finish work. Thanks for sharing in advance.  :glasses10:

 

[AutoBat]

I haven't touched the frets on either of my necks (both are stainless steel).  They both play just fine.

 

[DslDwg]

I think most people with multiple pieces will tell you it depends.

Most are going to be pretty good right out of the box.

A rare few will need work right out of the box.

If you're really particular about you setup - i.e. fret ends, low actions, etc. You'll probably want to do finish work on every neck or take it to someone who can.

My experience over three necks. One needed nut work. One with 6230 fretwire had a very slight sharpness to the fret ends. The one with 6230's also needed a little touch-up to a couple of fret heights. These could have also been side-effects of the really small fretwire.

Two necks with 6105's were solid right out of the box and both supported a fairly low action.

All three were definitely playable out of the box. My personal need for comfort and action necessitated the work not a lack of quality.

Seems like most people have similar experiences.

 

[Surf n Music]

Well that is good news on both counts. I am going both ss and 6105. Thanks for sharing. First time putting together a guitar and just wanting to make sure before dropping the money.

 

[Hbom]

Excellent!
Pretty darn good.
Great!
Very, Very Excellent.

I've only bought four so I can't say it 5 times. Fast or slow.
But I'll be getting another one of these days and I'll be sure to let you know.
:rock-on:

 

[guitartom]

I haven't touched the frets on either of my necks (both are stainless steel).  They both play just fine.

+1 for me as well

 

[Kostas]

Their necks are fine without leveling and great after leveling. You can't expect it to be perfect unless you put the neck on the body and start working on it. If it's perfect it's only by luck.

 

[Surf n Music]

Their necks are fine without leveling and great after leveling. You can't expect it to be perfect unless you put the neck on the body and start working on it. If it's perfect it's only by luck.

Well that is fare enough. I just wanted to make sure of what I was getting myself into. Sounds like it is going to be good! Just ordered a canary on canary warmoth pro neck!!

 

[DslDwg]

Just to add my earlier post - all three necks I own have stainless frets.

2 with 6105's
1 with 6230's

For those that have on their first build my suggestion would be bolt that bitch up do a basic set-up and then see what you think.

You may be pleasantly surprised.

 

[Cagey]

So I am in the process of gathering all my part and researching all I need to do to make my dream guitar happen. I have decided to order a canary neck with ss105 frets. Their site says that their frets on "most" necks do not require any leveling. Just curious to others experiences with warmoth necks and their finish work. Thanks for sharing in advance.  :glasses10:

It depends on how particular you are. In my experience, you can bolt them right on and play them without any work at all and they're better than most factory necks. But, they're not perfect. There are always 3 to 5 frets that need a little kiss to make the whole thing shred-worthy, and the ends are raw. No dressing/polishing at all. They just bevel them and call it a love story. Throw a few hours at one, and it's the best piece on the planet.

For instance, this is what the frets will look like coming from Warmoth...

...and this is what they look like dressed...

That happens to be my fretwork, but the results are the same.

 

[Surf n Music]

It depends on how particular you are. In my experience, you can bolt them right on and play them without any work at all and they're better than most factory necks. But, they're not perfect. There are always 3 to 5 frets that need a little kiss to make the whole thing shred-worthy, and the ends are raw. No dressing/polishing at all. They just bevel them and call it a love story. Throw a few hours at one, and it's the best piece on the planet.

Thanks, you seem to give excellent advice. I found a thread you commented on in the tips and tricks section titled "Which files for fret ends, etc" and lots of good info there. I'm gonna get some of those fret edge files, 3m polishing papers and the 600 through 2000 grit wet/dry sandpaper and give this neck the luster she deserves  :toothy12: I am having fun on this build.

 

[AgentPotato]

Nice job Cagey! How do you dress the fret ends? What kind of tools do you use?

 

[Cagey]

You might want to review this thread.

 

[Tony Ounsworth]

You seem to have eaten into the binding a little there Cagey...

 

[Cagey]

Yeah, the ABS plastic modern binding is made of is pretty soft stuff. When you strop the ends, you eat into it a bit.

 

[Tony Ounsworth]

Jumble didn't on mine! ;-)

Before:

After:

 

[Cagey]

Mr. Jumble is clearly very good at what he does.

I was probably a bit more aggressive than I needed to be when I dd mine, at least in that area.

 

[Tony Ounsworth]

Hey, if I tried it there would probably be no binding left! Your's looks great, and it'll wear down with playing anyway right?

 

[Cagey]

Well, there's no finish on it to protect it, so we'll see. For as much as I play, it'll probably be good until long after I'm dead.

I was surprised to find how soft the stuff was. I always thought binding was meant more as a protective thing, rather than decorative. That it looked nice was a happy side effect, and while the neck has never needed it, it was a logical/aesthetic design continuation if the body was bound.

 

[Jumble Jumble]

Mr. Jumble is clearly very good at what he does.

That's very, very gratifying coming from you, Kevin. Thank you.