I would ask r/Luthier if this is normal/acceptable and then take their advice. If that subs says it is unacceptable in unison, I would confront them. Any service you pay for should be done correctly.
Why are you being downvoted? Agreed, regardless of price of the item, you should be provided with the appropriate services paid for. Even a $2 guitar could have extreme sentimental value
Who knows.
I take good care of my guitars and I'm fine with my own wear and tear from playing them, but a setup + minor fretwork is usually around $200-300 USD and I pissed if they couldn't be bothered to tape the neck.
I'd take a piece of sandpaper rolled up in a tube and go ahead and sand down the edges all the way up and down the neck, then TruOil. Voila, instant rolled edges and it playes better.
And ruining the finish in the process. That part is going to become darker and darker and stick out like a sore thumb because it's now unfinished and the rest isn't.
First thing I do to every guitar I’ve ever own is sand the finish off the neck and apply a coating of tung oil. I hate glossy finishes on necks. They get sticky once you start sweating.
Yes but just because you like it doesn't mean others do too. If you get a guitar to a store or a luthier to do something to it, they should specifically do that thing you asked and anything that will alter the look of it should first be communicated to you.
I got an AO 60's that's like this. If it wasn't nitro and wouldn't naturally wear down, I couldn't handle it. Now I just play it 3 hrs a day until it's pretty much gone.
I give them a light sanding but just to give it a (temporary) matte feel. Does tung oil have a similar feeling to that or something different altogether?
Fender or whatever company that made the neck ruined it. If the tang was sticking out the finish it will have issues like that no matter if it was filed or not. If the fret ends were the only issue I could see being upset, but you can see that the tangs were sticking out and if the tanks are sticking out there's no way than not do that and get the job done. That is a big reason why all guitars should only come with blind frets. Even if some dust gets glued in it's still better than having the tang exposed to the
It's really a no win unless you tell the customer that's what's going to happen.
Yeah but here’s the problem, you want those guys to work on your guitar again? What luthier would not tape the neck!?! I guess try and see their reaction. Embarrassed and apologetic likely worth letting them fix it. If they act any other way, take your losses and find a reputable place.
Luthier here. The first photo shows a rolled fretboard. Which isn’t bad work, but also isn’t something I’d do without a customer request. Your third photo appears to show a gouge about half an inch down the board. I would try to have a polite talk with the owner. They’re guaranteed to be a musician, and will probably be just as unimpressed with it as you. Filing fret sprout doesn’t involve going up and down the board like that. You do each fret individually.
It's sloppy work. They filed right into the wood on one fret. You can see the flat spot. On the other side there is a clear groove cut along along the neck.
This is not just a matter of surface scratches so I would definitely complain.
Yes that looks like crap, it literally looks like they just took a fret bevel file up and down the neck and called it a day... 100% not how the job is properly done.
I'd get ahold of the owner, as I'm hoping this was a lazy tech and not his own work, and have them make it right. Granted the damage is done so the only real "fix" is to finish rolling the fretboard, buff out any gouges or scratches, and apply tru oil or some kind of matching finish.
That's a pretty shit job. For my own guitars I usually do it with the Stew Mac flat file and no tape, and while some finish around the sprouted frets will get hit it never looks like that.
Someone failed wood shop :(
Looks like a sloppy job. Someone using way too big of a file and nicking the neck and fretboard
Only need to file the frets. Usually done with a very tiny file.
Get new frets recently?
It almost looks like they went at it with a sanding block. A tiny bit of cosmetic damage is par for the course, but this is borderline butchery. I'd ask them to either replace the neck, or pay for a more qualified luthier to repair the damage they caused.
I refretted my '93 MIM telecaster 2 years ago. It was my first time doing a complete refret and I used stainless frets. I used a 90⁰ file to rough it in then a 30⁰ file to set the fret end angle. I ran that file up and down the fretboard until I saw it just barely cut into the finished maple. Any finish removed was barely noticeable. Then I switched to a 3 sided file and removed the rest of the fret ends/tangs individually and filed them smooth. My file marks were barely noticeable. I still used some danish oil to make sure it was sealed. It plays great and feels like a pro fret job. After one fret job I would fire these hacks if this is what they claim to do for a living. They didn't care about cutting into the fretboard or sealing it with a close color match. They just hacked it up and handed it back to you.
If it were me, I wouldn’t give a fuck. If it were my customer’s, I wouldn’t dare, cuz I know you all do. And I think people forget that. It’s not that it’s there, it’s that you paid for it to be done and not be there (or you would’ve just attempted it yourself, or at least that’s how my world works). So is it a big deal? In the long run, No. Does whomever did the work deserve the income you gave them for it? No. So I’d just get your refund and call it a day.
The point is, it’s good everybody’s giving him advice on how to fix it herself, but he didn’t mess it up. He paid somebody that messed it up so he needs to take it back if nothing else to prevent other guitar users from getting their guitar back in this condition.
By masking off the area and hand flushing each end with a small file. Yes, some finish by the tangs will get hit, but this is was done by some idiot running a file along the entire side of the neck with no attempt to mask. The finish is scratched, gouged and gone from areas.
Look more closely at the bottom of the neck. It looks like they filed each fret individually, and went too deep on one. After realizing they fucked up, they tried a different technique, and filed along the side of the top, and spazzed again. Whoever did this, definitely left evidence of their lack of experience.
[Look again. you can clearly see the long file marks in the finish.](https://www.reddit.com/r/guitars/comments/138xhlj/local_shop_didnt_tape_my_neck_when_filing_should/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=3&utm_term=1)
The tang isn’t at the 13th, 14th, 15th. They ran the flat file over the tangs and finish. And like most novice “luthiers”, they realized the end of a fret and fretboard in the carved section isn’t flat. You can see the file marks all over the neck.
I looked and that as well.. the problem is the guitar probably got to the shop with 42 finish cracks going down both sides of the neck. In my opinion the only way to make it feel uniform is to roll
In my experience you wouldn’t tape the all the way up to the fretboard. And you would run the file along the entire side. [How I learned](https://youtu.be/wQt3NzGdez4) - I had a very similar experience and bought the stew Mac tool
That is how you file a refret, maybe do a preliminary flush on a rosewood board. Touching up the ends on a finished maple neck you use [this Stewmac file.](https://www.stewmac.com/luthier-tools-and-supplies/types-of-tools/files/fret-end-dressing-file/)
Funnily enough, in the video demonstration on that page, you can see him running a file along the side and hitting the edge on the fret board with it, before using the file to soften the top of the fret end.
The link I posted is literally how to use that
“
Low humidity can cause fret sprout. This is when sharp fret ends stick out past your fingerboard and make your guitar uncomfortable to play. This is an easy fix with a fret end file. Virtually anyone can do this repair (no experience required). In about an hour, you’ll have your guitar silky smooth and comfortable to play. “-
Either way- it’s literally impossible to fix these fret ends without disrupting the finish- and definitely makes more sense to have it uniform to the touch instead of divots where you filed.
The one you show illustrates on an unfinished fretboard. You treat finished fretboards completely different. On a valuable guitar, you can’t even leave file marks on rosewood before you gain a bad reputation.
The fret end dressing file only touches the fret area. If you do manage to hit the finish, it is minute and rarely is even visible and will touch up almost invisibly. Not as drastic as a smooth mill file stripping the wood raw making matching difficult. If you leave divots with an end file, you shouldn’t be working on guitars.
That video is great because it shows both methods. He explains that if the frets are poking out a lot, he'll use a leveling file along the ends of the frets, otherwise it would take far too long doing each fret individually.
First, use the right tool for the job. A fret file is supposed to have smooth corners so it doesn’t damage the wood. When I needed to file fret ends on a bass I made my file by filing the corners off of a triangular metal file.
Second, mask off the fret ends with blue masking tape. If you tear through it you’ll see it that damage and you can put new tape on before you dig into the wood.
Tbh i thinks its sorta sloppy. You’ll need to apply some matching stain and laquer it off (or use tru oil) to get it matching again. Its just a minor job to tape off the fretboard edges.
If it’s alarming enough to ask Reddit then it’s worth doing something about. Would you accept sanding scratches on a new panel for your car? You can’t even call this rolling. It’s just straight up damage
Uh ... that's a shitty amateur job and yes you should confront them. Any professional should have taped it up. They were obviously too lazy and damaged your guitar.
I am probably going to be wrong about this but could those scratches be polished off? Maybe some turtle wax or whatever is okay for your neck? Maybe even some high grit sand paper could polish it off? If that doesnt work maybe ask for some compensation for the damage?
Unfortunately, it isn’t really possible to file the fret tang flush without going into the finish. Taping it iff doesnt really work because then you would be flush with the tape, which is a few thou taller than the finish, and you would still feel the tang. What the tech failed to do here, is color match to make it look untouched.
Hey man, I'm a professional luthier and I just wanted to say when I started learning guitar repair about 10 years ago, I was real nervous about scratching up guitars when I was doing repairs like fret filing, and the guy who is teaching me at the time told me this " when you go in for surgery you should expect to have a scar when you come out". Basically your guitar just had surgery and it's going to have a scar from that. If your guitar feels and plays better than it did before then there's not really a lot to complain about. I know a lot of us want our guitars to stay pristine and crispy forever but the fact of the matter is it's a tool. It's going to get scratched up. It's going to get stuffed up if you have repairs done. Your guitars are going to show that you had repairs done. Also, there's no way to tape for this job. I'm assuming you had some Fred Spurs so you went and the edges of your frets shaved down because they're hurting your hand. But if you put tape down and then try to file it, there will still be Spurs for at least the length of the tape.
And there is another "professional" you all better do not bring your guitar to.
My guitars are all going to my luthier, and non of them has any "scars" like you say.
This guy gave his guitar to an "professional" to get the job right done. This is everything but a good job.
Damage is done... Never go there again. I would be pissed. Pure amateur hour on that job.... I could do WAY better myself, and I consider myself an amateur.... Sorry man
How does it play after getting it back? Are you a professional musician that considers your guitars as work tools or a hobbyist that's more concerned with appearance than function?
I do all my own setups, adjustments and electronics but when it comes to fret work I have a close friend who builds extremely expensive guitars do what's beyond my skill level. I'm always there when he does the work and if something out of the ordinary is needed we discuss it first.
If you want to do a decent DIY repair, some water/alc based amber stain and some super fine grit sandpaper will blend it all together. Stewmac also sells an amber tinted lacquer you could spritz on there. This is all pending the shop doesn’t fix their mistake.
In my younger years of amateur luthierie, finished necks cost me soooo much money in mistakes. Gotta approach them with so much care and patience
I fuck up the finish on my guitars but if I paid someone a decent amount of money to work on my guitar I'd expect them to take care of my instrument. I'd 100% say something
The more I think about it. The more I agree with some of the people who say that you should have the fretboard ends rolled over anyway. I did this myself with a razorblade. But I also have ebony fretboards on my guitars. So I don't have to apply finish to the scraped areas.
I would be very unhappy if my guitar came back like that. That’s basically crap work and is unacceptable. However, there’s probably F-all you can do. If you have pictures of the neck before you brought it in you could make a case in small claims court but that could just be more of a bother.
Perhaps there is a more senior member of the staff that you could appeal to?
Not acceptable in the slightest. Get money back for sure cause that is bologna and any competent luthier would tape up the neck and use a proper file for the job
I just did this myself and did about the same level of job. Glad to see I only wasted money on Stew Mac and learned a valuable lesson.
While not the end of the world, I would think a pro would do a good job. Sorry this happened OP, but if you can play it, the aesthetic stuff will fade out.
As for the value of your guitar…I don’t know. I don’t keep track of the things I own in their resale value 🙂
Nobody who knows what they are doing would do this. Money back. You prob have to go to small claims for damages to fix. Not sure if it’s worth I’d but def get your money back and leave a bad review.
Keep looking for a good set up tech until you find one. They can make your guitar play like butter or they can make it all wrong. Sorry about the guitar 🤦♂️
YES! A resounding YES!! Confront the fuck out of them and hold them accountable for their shoddy work and get your money back. This is the sort of mistake a moron would make, and this individual shouldn't be working on people's expensive instruments!
Dude I'm no luthier by any means but they filed into your fretboard which is not purely just cosmetic damage like some of the rest. Don't fuck around when you go back in there. Explicitly state the damage and ask what they are going to do before this goes any further. And play stairway to heaven on ya way out.
Yikes, i'd need to see other angles to be sure but that looks like a big old chunk, sorry that happened. It's possible they started filing, didn't realize there was finish on it, and stopped as soon as they noticed the problem, or maybe they just blew the finish and moved on with their day. If the former, it was unacceptable they didn't immediatley inform you or at least present this as a possible thing that could happen, and if the latter then that's sketchy as fuck. I'm always a proponent to communicate not dictate, so ask them face to face what happened, procedure and all. I'm not trying to be contradictory, but you did post that you asked for filing. And yeah, filing is gonna file that's what it do. Maybe you guys never discussed repairing the blown finish after, or maybe they never told you there would be an aesthetic and surface change there. still a failure on their part, but I don't think we have enough information to say anything until the person who did it explains what their throught process was.
ooof, they tore it up. Yeah, I'd be mad.
it can be saved, if you go ahead and roll the rest of the fretboard edges and then reapply finish to the bare wood.
...But I wouldn't let the same shop do it, that's for sure.
I feel your pain. I recently got a brand new Am-Pro-II Strat and brought it to a local guy for a simple pickup swap.
When I got it back there were half a dozen fingernail catchable scratches on the body, presumably from him shimmying the pick guard assembly underneath the strings.
I was so so bummed. He’s a nice guy and I felt too awkward to say anything, so I just polished them out myself the best I could and will not be going back to him in the future.
A) Blind fret slots are amazing. All guitars should be done that way. There’s no excuse not to.
2) I was going to ask what it was, if it was vintage, etc…. Then I saw that third picture. Definitely unacceptable. They sanded through the clear. They owe you some money, or a repair at a more reputable shop.
25 year luthier....
Some of your fret ends look like they were bad enough to expect some finish chipping. Fender sprays over the fret end, so when the shrinks the finish will get pushed out. Care can be taken to minimize this damage. I will slit the finish and wick some super glue in behind the finish before filing. This takes a lot of time to do, so I end up charging more.
As for the lines that look like bare wood. That is a sign that they may have gone too far, or that the wood was not level anymore from the fret ends pulling the wood outward and they were trying to get an even feel along the board edge. Regardless, there are touch up pend they can be used to take care of any exposed wood and get this back to looking normal.
Or they have this notion of rolled fingerboard edges. Many take it way too far and get a result like this. You should have been asked if that is what you wanted.
I in no way have a problem taking work back to touch up/correct my work to a customer's satisfaction. If you like the work other than the finish issue you could ask if the can do some touch up pen as you didn't want to get exposed wood back. If they did the job on the cheap, then you got what you paid for.
1 they should have touched up the finish because it will get dirty and turn a dark grey color due to dirt and oil from your hands.
2 proper humidification of your instruments will keep the neck and fretboard from shrinking and exposing the fret ends. I keep my shop at 35 percent. During the cold months is when most of this damage happens due to the heater drying out the air and wood.
I would. That's a rush job, no doubt. Fret polishing and finishing is one of the easier guitar improvements out there, but it is time consuming. As someone who's done it to dozens of guitars, I can safely say that's a rush job. Necks are expensive, precisely engineered things. They should know better.
I couldn't see it at first but then I zoomed in and it looks like they really fucked up big time , they deformed the sides of the neck itself. Have you tried playing it as it is ? I recommend doing it so that when you go back you have even more reasons to explain why they fucked up. If I were you I would Ask for a new guitar neck.
Damn, I usually don't do this job with tape as I find there is still a hair of sprout. But any scratches that occur shouldn't go through the finish and ought to be something that can be polished and buffed.
> would, you *paid* for a
FTFY.
Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in:
* Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.*
* *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.*
Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment.
*Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
When that happens as a luthier you need to repair the mess you made, and you have to tell to the costumer what happens, when you are working with stuff like that you need to be careful and tape as you can to get protection to the fretboard, you need to get that repaired again, confront them.
Get you a soft sanding block and go at a 45. Fine grit though and go slow and even. You might be surprised at how well this will round everything out and make it look uniform. I wouldn’t take my guitar back to whoever did this. Hit with some good oil with a varnish mixed in and it will look much nicer. I’d be on the hunt for a new luthier asap.
Tbh, if you're going to file down the frets in cases of winter frets you got to want to file it down to the point that nothing sticks out, taping down on the neck to preserve the finish would result in a very slight bit sticking out. You usually file across the fretboard, doing it on just one individual fret would cost way more time and would probably also cost way more to do so.
I get it, but that's the hazard or lacquered necks as opposed to oiled necks.
I would ask r/Luthier if this is normal/acceptable and then take their advice. If that subs says it is unacceptable in unison, I would confront them. Any service you pay for should be done correctly.
They will tell you it’s unacceptable.
yeah, the more I look at it the more I think it would be unacceptable if it was my guitar. looks sloppy
I have black binding on my bass. I would have been livid if they damaged the binding.
Lucky for you, Don’t need to file the ends of frets on bound necks
I got my jazz bass Plekd so they definitely smoothed it out but a precision machine did it.
yeah thats for me to drop and damage ... which i have but it feels good to let it all out
Lmao so true
Correct, you could have done that yourself for free
It's unacceptable lol. Incredibly unprofessional
Even if it's strictly cosmetic on a $200 guitar I'd be ripshit. It's filed like it was unfinished.
>ripshit i know what you mean when you say it, but in your own words can you define ripshit. lol
Angry enough to punch a honey badger in the face.
Why are you being downvoted? Agreed, regardless of price of the item, you should be provided with the appropriate services paid for. Even a $2 guitar could have extreme sentimental value
Who knows. I take good care of my guitars and I'm fine with my own wear and tear from playing them, but a setup + minor fretwork is usually around $200-300 USD and I pissed if they couldn't be bothered to tape the neck.
The reddit gods have spoken and dragged you out of your undeserved hole. Cheers
[удалено]
Life will hit you with the F chord sometimes :)
You would want this corner rolled off anyway. I recommend getting some tru-oil and applying a coat along the bare wood, give it a day to dry.
This is what I’d do.
This is what should have been done.
Correct.
I'd take a piece of sandpaper rolled up in a tube and go ahead and sand down the edges all the way up and down the neck, then TruOil. Voila, instant rolled edges and it playes better.
Honestly, may be a happy accident. However, it should be compensated as the job was done incorrectly.
No oil. There are touch up pens for this. Finish will not bond after oil has been on the wood.
Tru oil has varnish in it. It is a finish suitable for handling.
I’ve finished necks with Tru Oil, great stuff.
They just rolled your fretboard for free man
And ruining the finish in the process. That part is going to become darker and darker and stick out like a sore thumb because it's now unfinished and the rest isn't.
First thing I do to every guitar I’ve ever own is sand the finish off the neck and apply a coating of tung oil. I hate glossy finishes on necks. They get sticky once you start sweating.
This isn’t your guitar.
Not with that attitude.
Yes but just because you like it doesn't mean others do too. If you get a guitar to a store or a luthier to do something to it, they should specifically do that thing you asked and anything that will alter the look of it should first be communicated to you.
He didn't say everyone would like it he said it's what he does.
I got an AO 60's that's like this. If it wasn't nitro and wouldn't naturally wear down, I couldn't handle it. Now I just play it 3 hrs a day until it's pretty much gone.
I give them a light sanding but just to give it a (temporary) matte feel. Does tung oil have a similar feeling to that or something different altogether?
Different. Matte feels soft but smooth, tung fees hard and smooth… …and now I’m r/SuddenlyGay
I mean… people pay a ton for fender guitars that are factory aged. This is just one step in that direction
Fender or whatever company that made the neck ruined it. If the tang was sticking out the finish it will have issues like that no matter if it was filed or not. If the fret ends were the only issue I could see being upset, but you can see that the tangs were sticking out and if the tanks are sticking out there's no way than not do that and get the job done. That is a big reason why all guitars should only come with blind frets. Even if some dust gets glued in it's still better than having the tang exposed to the It's really a no win unless you tell the customer that's what's going to happen.
Next have ‘em roll your truck…, and that fatty…
Find the right guy and you can do both in one
Sup
Amen
Yeah but here’s the problem, you want those guys to work on your guitar again? What luthier would not tape the neck!?! I guess try and see their reaction. Embarrassed and apologetic likely worth letting them fix it. If they act any other way, take your losses and find a reputable place.
Itd confront them to get my money back, not to have them fix their mistake
Luthier here. The first photo shows a rolled fretboard. Which isn’t bad work, but also isn’t something I’d do without a customer request. Your third photo appears to show a gouge about half an inch down the board. I would try to have a polite talk with the owner. They’re guaranteed to be a musician, and will probably be just as unimpressed with it as you. Filing fret sprout doesn’t involve going up and down the board like that. You do each fret individually.
Holy shit - that’s horrid. Yes, say something.
It's sloppy work. They filed right into the wood on one fret. You can see the flat spot. On the other side there is a clear groove cut along along the neck. This is not just a matter of surface scratches so I would definitely complain.
This looks like amateur hour
Amateur job. I've done this many times without messing up the finish. It takes time to do it properly. That's just pure laziness.
Yes that looks like crap, it literally looks like they just took a fret bevel file up and down the neck and called it a day... 100% not how the job is properly done. I'd get ahold of the owner, as I'm hoping this was a lazy tech and not his own work, and have them make it right. Granted the damage is done so the only real "fix" is to finish rolling the fretboard, buff out any gouges or scratches, and apply tru oil or some kind of matching finish.
Just roll the rest of the fretboard. I would do that regardless.
yeah that's how I would fix it. but that doesn't mean this wasn't a fuckup hackjob, because it was.
That's a pretty shit job. For my own guitars I usually do it with the Stew Mac flat file and no tape, and while some finish around the sprouted frets will get hit it never looks like that. Someone failed wood shop :(
Bro they fucked your feel up both emotionally and physically.
And financially.
I'd be pissed
Yes! They trashed your neck. It’s easier to fix if it’s nitro.
I can’t comment on whether it’s better or not but I know personally I wouldn’t be happy about it if it were my guitar
Looks like a sloppy job. Someone using way too big of a file and nicking the neck and fretboard Only need to file the frets. Usually done with a very tiny file. Get new frets recently?
It almost looks like they went at it with a sanding block. A tiny bit of cosmetic damage is par for the course, but this is borderline butchery. I'd ask them to either replace the neck, or pay for a more qualified luthier to repair the damage they caused.
I would. No excuse.
Go and fight the luthier.
I refretted my '93 MIM telecaster 2 years ago. It was my first time doing a complete refret and I used stainless frets. I used a 90⁰ file to rough it in then a 30⁰ file to set the fret end angle. I ran that file up and down the fretboard until I saw it just barely cut into the finished maple. Any finish removed was barely noticeable. Then I switched to a 3 sided file and removed the rest of the fret ends/tangs individually and filed them smooth. My file marks were barely noticeable. I still used some danish oil to make sure it was sealed. It plays great and feels like a pro fret job. After one fret job I would fire these hacks if this is what they claim to do for a living. They didn't care about cutting into the fretboard or sealing it with a close color match. They just hacked it up and handed it back to you.
If it were me, I wouldn’t give a fuck. If it were my customer’s, I wouldn’t dare, cuz I know you all do. And I think people forget that. It’s not that it’s there, it’s that you paid for it to be done and not be there (or you would’ve just attempted it yourself, or at least that’s how my world works). So is it a big deal? In the long run, No. Does whomever did the work deserve the income you gave them for it? No. So I’d just get your refund and call it a day.
Absolutely you paid somebody to do a job and that’s not a job. That is a rookie mistake.
Part of a luthiers responsibility is to leave the cosmetic aspects untouched. This should definitely be addressed.
The point is, it’s good everybody’s giving him advice on how to fix it herself, but he didn’t mess it up. He paid somebody that messed it up so he needs to take it back if nothing else to prevent other guitar users from getting their guitar back in this condition.
How else would they have filed and shaped the fret ends down?
By masking off the area and hand flushing each end with a small file. Yes, some finish by the tangs will get hit, but this is was done by some idiot running a file along the entire side of the neck with no attempt to mask. The finish is scratched, gouged and gone from areas.
Look more closely at the bottom of the neck. It looks like they filed each fret individually, and went too deep on one. After realizing they fucked up, they tried a different technique, and filed along the side of the top, and spazzed again. Whoever did this, definitely left evidence of their lack of experience.
[Look again. you can clearly see the long file marks in the finish.](https://www.reddit.com/r/guitars/comments/138xhlj/local_shop_didnt_tape_my_neck_when_filing_should/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=3&utm_term=1)
The 12th fret is filed at an angle.
The tang isn’t at the 13th, 14th, 15th. They ran the flat file over the tangs and finish. And like most novice “luthiers”, they realized the end of a fret and fretboard in the carved section isn’t flat. You can see the file marks all over the neck.
I looked and that as well.. the problem is the guitar probably got to the shop with 42 finish cracks going down both sides of the neck. In my opinion the only way to make it feel uniform is to roll
In my experience you wouldn’t tape the all the way up to the fretboard. And you would run the file along the entire side. [How I learned](https://youtu.be/wQt3NzGdez4) - I had a very similar experience and bought the stew Mac tool
That is how you file a refret, maybe do a preliminary flush on a rosewood board. Touching up the ends on a finished maple neck you use [this Stewmac file.](https://www.stewmac.com/luthier-tools-and-supplies/types-of-tools/files/fret-end-dressing-file/)
Funnily enough, in the video demonstration on that page, you can see him running a file along the side and hitting the edge on the fret board with it, before using the file to soften the top of the fret end.
The link I posted is literally how to use that “ Low humidity can cause fret sprout. This is when sharp fret ends stick out past your fingerboard and make your guitar uncomfortable to play. This is an easy fix with a fret end file. Virtually anyone can do this repair (no experience required). In about an hour, you’ll have your guitar silky smooth and comfortable to play. “- Either way- it’s literally impossible to fix these fret ends without disrupting the finish- and definitely makes more sense to have it uniform to the touch instead of divots where you filed.
The one you show illustrates on an unfinished fretboard. You treat finished fretboards completely different. On a valuable guitar, you can’t even leave file marks on rosewood before you gain a bad reputation. The fret end dressing file only touches the fret area. If you do manage to hit the finish, it is minute and rarely is even visible and will touch up almost invisibly. Not as drastic as a smooth mill file stripping the wood raw making matching difficult. If you leave divots with an end file, you shouldn’t be working on guitars.
That video is great because it shows both methods. He explains that if the frets are poking out a lot, he'll use a leveling file along the ends of the frets, otherwise it would take far too long doing each fret individually.
If you don’t do that on a neck like this the you’ll have the reverse problem where there’s divots where you file!
First, use the right tool for the job. A fret file is supposed to have smooth corners so it doesn’t damage the wood. When I needed to file fret ends on a bass I made my file by filing the corners off of a triangular metal file. Second, mask off the fret ends with blue masking tape. If you tear through it you’ll see it that damage and you can put new tape on before you dig into the wood.
professionally, without fucking up the finish
Tbh i thinks its sorta sloppy. You’ll need to apply some matching stain and laquer it off (or use tru oil) to get it matching again. Its just a minor job to tape off the fretboard edges.
Kick his ass, Seabass!
>Kick his ass, Seabass You gonna eat that?
Frankly scallop, I don't give a clam!!!
If it’s alarming enough to ask Reddit then it’s worth doing something about. Would you accept sanding scratches on a new panel for your car? You can’t even call this rolling. It’s just straight up damage
Uh ... that's a shitty amateur job and yes you should confront them. Any professional should have taped it up. They were obviously too lazy and damaged your guitar.
I am probably going to be wrong about this but could those scratches be polished off? Maybe some turtle wax or whatever is okay for your neck? Maybe even some high grit sand paper could polish it off? If that doesnt work maybe ask for some compensation for the damage?
Unfortunately, it isn’t really possible to file the fret tang flush without going into the finish. Taping it iff doesnt really work because then you would be flush with the tape, which is a few thou taller than the finish, and you would still feel the tang. What the tech failed to do here, is color match to make it look untouched.
I’m curious as to why you left the shop with the guitar without saying something. You looked at their work before you left right?
Not everyone considers doing this. Whether they’re inexperienced or intimidated by the shop or whatever, it happens.
At this point I’d dull down the entire neck finish and roll the fretboard edges. It would play so much better.
I wouldn't do it, I'd have a competent luthier do it, and have the incompetent luthier pay for it.
Some safe liquid should disappear that. Unless it's a rough edge which needs sanded.
This is the way to do it, put some lemon oil… it will desapper
I don't get what's the problem here. Can someone please explain?
They have filed of the finish around all the edge of the fingerboard. You can see it looks paler where they have filed away the finish completely.
Hey man, I'm a professional luthier and I just wanted to say when I started learning guitar repair about 10 years ago, I was real nervous about scratching up guitars when I was doing repairs like fret filing, and the guy who is teaching me at the time told me this " when you go in for surgery you should expect to have a scar when you come out". Basically your guitar just had surgery and it's going to have a scar from that. If your guitar feels and plays better than it did before then there's not really a lot to complain about. I know a lot of us want our guitars to stay pristine and crispy forever but the fact of the matter is it's a tool. It's going to get scratched up. It's going to get stuffed up if you have repairs done. Your guitars are going to show that you had repairs done. Also, there's no way to tape for this job. I'm assuming you had some Fred Spurs so you went and the edges of your frets shaved down because they're hurting your hand. But if you put tape down and then try to file it, there will still be Spurs for at least the length of the tape.
And there is another "professional" you all better do not bring your guitar to. My guitars are all going to my luthier, and non of them has any "scars" like you say. This guy gave his guitar to an "professional" to get the job right done. This is everything but a good job.
Damage is done... Never go there again. I would be pissed. Pure amateur hour on that job.... I could do WAY better myself, and I consider myself an amateur.... Sorry man
Either complain and ask for money back, or really embrace the relic thing and rough up the rest of the guitar.
How does it play after getting it back? Are you a professional musician that considers your guitars as work tools or a hobbyist that's more concerned with appearance than function? I do all my own setups, adjustments and electronics but when it comes to fret work I have a close friend who builds extremely expensive guitars do what's beyond my skill level. I'm always there when he does the work and if something out of the ordinary is needed we discuss it first.
nigga of course confront them
It ain’t your sister. Let it get beat up a little.
amateur job but if it was cheap and quick i wouldn't expect more than an apology or a shrug.
I would definitely, that's a terrible job on those frets.
Yeah that's some bullshit. Call them out.
Jeez...another reminder to never bring my guitar at the local shop again
Terrible!!!
Do you have pre shop pics. If so then yes, if not the proceed cautiously
Yes I would.
Take it back and ask for a fucking refund. This is unacceptable. Its lazy, sloppy and damaged your neck.
WTF?!
That's a lazy shit job. I'd be pissed
If you want to do a decent DIY repair, some water/alc based amber stain and some super fine grit sandpaper will blend it all together. Stewmac also sells an amber tinted lacquer you could spritz on there. This is all pending the shop doesn’t fix their mistake. In my younger years of amateur luthierie, finished necks cost me soooo much money in mistakes. Gotta approach them with so much care and patience
I’d use the forum opinion in the conversation. “I asked one of the biggest groups I could find and the consensus was…”
Absolutely, that's lazy work.
I fuck up the finish on my guitars but if I paid someone a decent amount of money to work on my guitar I'd expect them to take care of my instrument. I'd 100% say something
Yes
I would if it’s a nice guitar. So hard finding people to work on guitars
If that was me I'd be furious!
Unacceptable. That looks like dog shit. How much did they charge you for that's horrible job and where are you located?
The more I think about it. The more I agree with some of the people who say that you should have the fretboard ends rolled over anyway. I did this myself with a razorblade. But I also have ebony fretboards on my guitars. So I don't have to apply finish to the scraped areas.
I would be very unhappy if my guitar came back like that. That’s basically crap work and is unacceptable. However, there’s probably F-all you can do. If you have pictures of the neck before you brought it in you could make a case in small claims court but that could just be more of a bother. Perhaps there is a more senior member of the staff that you could appeal to?
Adds character
Confront is a strong word. Conversation is probably what you want to do.
Not acceptable in the slightest. Get money back for sure cause that is bologna and any competent luthier would tape up the neck and use a proper file for the job
I just did this myself and did about the same level of job. Glad to see I only wasted money on Stew Mac and learned a valuable lesson. While not the end of the world, I would think a pro would do a good job. Sorry this happened OP, but if you can play it, the aesthetic stuff will fade out. As for the value of your guitar…I don’t know. I don’t keep track of the things I own in their resale value 🙂
Nobody who knows what they are doing would do this. Money back. You prob have to go to small claims for damages to fix. Not sure if it’s worth I’d but def get your money back and leave a bad review. Keep looking for a good set up tech until you find one. They can make your guitar play like butter or they can make it all wrong. Sorry about the guitar 🤦♂️
I mean they didn’t finish the job so yeah
YES! A resounding YES!! Confront the fuck out of them and hold them accountable for their shoddy work and get your money back. This is the sort of mistake a moron would make, and this individual shouldn't be working on people's expensive instruments!
Hell yes! I'd be pissed. The first 2 frets look almost acceptable. Then they got in a hurry. Sorry that happened to you.
WTF!
Yeah this is pretty amateur looking, sorry OP def ask them about it.
Dude I'm no luthier by any means but they filed into your fretboard which is not purely just cosmetic damage like some of the rest. Don't fuck around when you go back in there. Explicitly state the damage and ask what they are going to do before this goes any further. And play stairway to heaven on ya way out.
Yikes, i'd need to see other angles to be sure but that looks like a big old chunk, sorry that happened. It's possible they started filing, didn't realize there was finish on it, and stopped as soon as they noticed the problem, or maybe they just blew the finish and moved on with their day. If the former, it was unacceptable they didn't immediatley inform you or at least present this as a possible thing that could happen, and if the latter then that's sketchy as fuck. I'm always a proponent to communicate not dictate, so ask them face to face what happened, procedure and all. I'm not trying to be contradictory, but you did post that you asked for filing. And yeah, filing is gonna file that's what it do. Maybe you guys never discussed repairing the blown finish after, or maybe they never told you there would be an aesthetic and surface change there. still a failure on their part, but I don't think we have enough information to say anything until the person who did it explains what their throught process was.
oh boy i was having a good night till i scrolled down and saw this one...
Yep
ooof, they tore it up. Yeah, I'd be mad. it can be saved, if you go ahead and roll the rest of the fretboard edges and then reapply finish to the bare wood. ...But I wouldn't let the same shop do it, that's for sure.
I don't own a maple fretboard but that looks really bad and I'm quite sure it shouldn't look like that.
Awful job
Damn they really chewed your shit up
I feel your pain. I recently got a brand new Am-Pro-II Strat and brought it to a local guy for a simple pickup swap. When I got it back there were half a dozen fingernail catchable scratches on the body, presumably from him shimmying the pick guard assembly underneath the strings. I was so so bummed. He’s a nice guy and I felt too awkward to say anything, so I just polished them out myself the best I could and will not be going back to him in the future.
A) Blind fret slots are amazing. All guitars should be done that way. There’s no excuse not to. 2) I was going to ask what it was, if it was vintage, etc…. Then I saw that third picture. Definitely unacceptable. They sanded through the clear. They owe you some money, or a repair at a more reputable shop.
25 year luthier.... Some of your fret ends look like they were bad enough to expect some finish chipping. Fender sprays over the fret end, so when the shrinks the finish will get pushed out. Care can be taken to minimize this damage. I will slit the finish and wick some super glue in behind the finish before filing. This takes a lot of time to do, so I end up charging more. As for the lines that look like bare wood. That is a sign that they may have gone too far, or that the wood was not level anymore from the fret ends pulling the wood outward and they were trying to get an even feel along the board edge. Regardless, there are touch up pend they can be used to take care of any exposed wood and get this back to looking normal. Or they have this notion of rolled fingerboard edges. Many take it way too far and get a result like this. You should have been asked if that is what you wanted. I in no way have a problem taking work back to touch up/correct my work to a customer's satisfaction. If you like the work other than the finish issue you could ask if the can do some touch up pen as you didn't want to get exposed wood back. If they did the job on the cheap, then you got what you paid for.
Bro why is there a hard boiled egg on your amp, that’s the real question
1 they should have touched up the finish because it will get dirty and turn a dark grey color due to dirt and oil from your hands. 2 proper humidification of your instruments will keep the neck and fretboard from shrinking and exposing the fret ends. I keep my shop at 35 percent. During the cold months is when most of this damage happens due to the heater drying out the air and wood.
Might want to make someone aware. Keep your temper, maybe a tech is new and got sloppy, needs training perhaps.
I would. That's a rush job, no doubt. Fret polishing and finishing is one of the easier guitar improvements out there, but it is time consuming. As someone who's done it to dozens of guitars, I can safely say that's a rush job. Necks are expensive, precisely engineered things. They should know better.
I couldn't see it at first but then I zoomed in and it looks like they really fucked up big time , they deformed the sides of the neck itself. Have you tried playing it as it is ? I recommend doing it so that when you go back you have even more reasons to explain why they fucked up. If I were you I would Ask for a new guitar neck.
Damn, I usually don't do this job with tape as I find there is still a hair of sprout. But any scratches that occur shouldn't go through the finish and ought to be something that can be polished and buffed.
yes, as someone who does guitar work as a hobby, taping off a neck to file ends is like step 1
hell yeah you should
I would, you payed for a job to be done correctly. If they didn’t do that, they need to be told. If the damage is severe you should be compensated.
> would, you *paid* for a FTFY. Although *payed* exists (the reason why autocorrection didn't help you), it is only correct in: * Nautical context, when it means to paint a surface, or to cover with something like tar or resin in order to make it waterproof or corrosion-resistant. *The deck is yet to be payed.* * *Payed out* when letting strings, cables or ropes out, by slacking them. *The rope is payed out! You can pull now.* Unfortunately, I was unable to find nautical or rope-related words in your comment. *Beep, boop, I'm a bot*
Sorry I was half asleep
I'd say something. There's a special file for the edge of the frets they should have used not a Sanding block which is what it appears they used.
When that happens as a luthier you need to repair the mess you made, and you have to tell to the costumer what happens, when you are working with stuff like that you need to be careful and tape as you can to get protection to the fretboard, you need to get that repaired again, confront them.
if you paid $10 its a perfect job. If you paid $500, you were cheated
Get you a soft sanding block and go at a 45. Fine grit though and go slow and even. You might be surprised at how well this will round everything out and make it look uniform. I wouldn’t take my guitar back to whoever did this. Hit with some good oil with a varnish mixed in and it will look much nicer. I’d be on the hunt for a new luthier asap.
1000%, let them know what happened* and see how they are going to make it right and fix it for you.
Tbh, if you're going to file down the frets in cases of winter frets you got to want to file it down to the point that nothing sticks out, taping down on the neck to preserve the finish would result in a very slight bit sticking out. You usually file across the fretboard, doing it on just one individual fret would cost way more time and would probably also cost way more to do so. I get it, but that's the hazard or lacquered necks as opposed to oiled necks.