Fret height and wear
Worn crowns can often be levelled. If too little material would remain afterwards, we consider replacement.
Guitar Lab · Selected Vintage Guitars
Guitar and bass refretting
Refretting restores the fret surface when wear or damage leaves too little usable material for a fret dress. At Guitar Lab in Poznań, Poland, we carry out fretwork on electric guitars, acoustic guitars and basses. We begin by assessing the frets, fingerboard and neck adjustment.
The scope follows the instrument and your playing requirements. Where a setup or fret levelling, crowning and polishing is sufficient, we recommend that service. For a refret, we also discuss fretwire, slot condition and any nut work that may be needed.
GUITAR LAB / POZNAŃ
What we check
Fret wear, fret seating, slot condition and the fingerboard are separate issues, and each needs its own assessment.
Seating and slots
A fret that moves or lifts must be stabilised first. Dirty or damaged slots are a separate stage of work.
Fingerboard
After removing the frets, we assess fingerboard geometry and slot condition. Any correction to the wood is considered separately. Bound and finished fingerboards require attention to the condition of the finish and edges.
Setup, levelling or replacement
The decision depends on the instrument’s condition, not on one universal specification. With light wear, a setup or levelling, crowning and polishing may be enough. Replacement makes sense when the frets are too low, damaged or can no longer be levelled properly.
Fretwire chosen for your playing
Fret crown height and width affect how the instrument feels under your fingers. We select the profile and material with the guitar’s construction, your playing style and your preferences in mind. Options include nickel silver and stainless steel. We also check whether the new fret height calls for work on the nut.
After the frets are seated
Once the frets are securely seated, we level and crown them, dress the ends and polish the playing surfaces. The final setup includes checks of neck relief, action and intonation. We adjust the instrument for your strings, tuning and playing style.
Case studies
From our workbench
Two projects show refretting as part of wider neck work. The third, an Ibanez BTB605MS bass, shows levelling of existing stainless frets without replacing them.
Ibanez / GUITAR LAB
Why fingerboard preparation matters when refretting. Ibanez Musician
New frets need a stable seat. This project explains fret-slot preparation and a restoration that preserves the character of an older instrument.
Read the case study
Morris / GUITAR LAB
Restoring an acoustic guitar: from diagnosis to setup. Morris WL-35
When does an acoustic need more than a setup? Our Morris WL-35 project shows how to organise the work around the instrument’s actual condition.
Read the case study
Ibanez / GUITAR LAB
Stainless steel fret leveling on bass: when setup is not enough
Your bass buzzes, but a fret rocker finds no uneven frets? Using an Ibanez BTB605MS, we explain when stainless steel frets need leveling and what to check before setup.
Read the case studyGUITAR LAB / EUROPE
How the work proceeds
Every job starts with an assessment, and we agree the scope together before any work begins.
Assessment
We check the frets, their seating, the slots, the fingerboard and the neck adjustment. We tell you plainly if a setup or levelling is enough.
Agreeing the scope
Together we choose the fretwire and agree any fingerboard, slot or nut work. The quote lists these stages separately.
Installation and setup
After seating, the frets are levelled, crowned and polished. We then set up the instrument and adjust the intonation.
Frequently asked questions
Does fret buzz always mean a refret?
No. The cause may be the neck adjustment, string height or a single uneven fret. An assessment shows whether a setup or levelling will do.
Should I choose stainless steel frets?
That depends on the instrument, your playing and your preferences. We discuss different profiles and materials, and stainless is not an automatic recommendation.
Do you refret bound or finished fingerboards?
We assess these fingerboards individually, because they may need a different approach. We discuss the possible scope after inspecting the instrument.
Does a refret mean a new nut?
Not always. We check the nut after the fret work. Sometimes an adjustment is enough, and we only suggest a new nut when it is needed.
GUITAR LAB / SELECTED VINTAGE GUITARS
Book a fret assessment
Describe where buzzing or playing difficulties occur. Include the instrument model, tuning and string gauges, with photographs of the frets and fingerboard. Acceptance of a guitar or bass from abroad and transport arrangements are agreed before shipping.
ul. Dąbrowskiego 307, 60-406 Poznań, Poland+48 789 093 840
shop@selectedvintageguitars.com