Servicing, Setups, Nuts and Frets

All pricing applies to 6 string electric guitars and basses - Acoustics much the same.

Service and Re-string £30 + strings

• Clean & polish guitar
• Clean and lubricate control pots, switches and jack socket
• Clean & degrease finger board
• Polish fret crowns
• Lemon Oil fingerboard
• Re-string guitar

Service and Full Setup £50 + strings

• As above Plus ...
• Check and adjust Machine Heads as required
• Adjust truss rod tension
• Re-cut nut to optimise action - lubricate if needed
• Set pickup height
• Check and adjust/lubricate Machine Heads as required
• Fret level check. Any lifted frets (very common) will be properly seated again (glued usually too)- lose those buzzes.
• Adjust action to discussed preferences
• Lubricate trem and adjust settings (trem guitars)
• Adjust intonation

This service does include what is often termed a light fret dress. My full fret dress as below is far more complex and detailed. The aim being to get your guitar to it's maximum playability.

Fret Dressing £80 + strings

• Service and Setup as above Plus ...
• Level frets to uniform height and radius. This is carried out using a "state of the art" full guitar jig that allows me to set the neck straight under full string tension in the playing position. Then I can return the guitar to the work position, remove the strings and use the jigs deflection dial gauges to put the guitar neck back into the position it takes in the playing position with the strings on. This catches little twists and humps that are very common (if not universal). Leveling is carried out using full length leveling beams that I had made to 5 micron accuracy over their full length. A guitar neck will move that much if you blow on it! Better to be more accurate than necessary.
• Re-profile fret crowns
• Re-level - second stage - fine leveling
• Polish re-profiling
• Polish fret crowns (3 stage process)
• Fret end dressing included as standard.
• Worn in effect for Rosewood / Ebony necks optional - makes a new guitar feel like an old friend! Fender call it rolled edges in their custom shop.
• Fingerboard Rosewood / Ebony fingerboards smooth/satin finish optional
• Satin finish (low stick) to rear of neck optional.

This service includes full playability optimisation - subtle longitudinal re-profiling is included. This allows a lower, faster, clearer action than normal fret-dress approaches. I'll happily explain this approach when you bring your guitar and always have a couple of guitars available to try out the results. These are hard played, gigging guitars so you can actually try out what the guitar will be like 2 years after the work rather then just after I've finished.

I often find little cracks in the neck and body (neck pocket on bolt-ons)- usually I'll just sort these as part of the service. Little problems like over-tightened neck bolt screws or loose bridge posts generally get sorted at this time - I have some very neat ways of doing this kind of thing.

If I find that the frets slots are a little loose and the frets are not properly seated then a fret gluing as below make a huge difference. This can apply to any price of guitar but it's clear that some factories are cutting the slots wider as it means little skill is required to fit the frets .... I've measured the fret slots during re-fret many times and companies like PRS / Gibson / Fender / Ibanez and every UK made guitar I've re-fretted cut the slots properly. Of course I can solve the problem on any re-fret at no extra cost as the re-fretting process I use naturally solves all these problems.

Fret Ends included free with £50 Setup and £80 Fret Dress Service.

Less expensive guitars often have fret ends that are very sharp and uncomfortable. They also may be slightly raised allowing the top string to catch under them. Each fret end needs individually rounding and polishing, gaps need to be filled with epoxy. About 1.5 hours work - much less of course during the above setups.

 

Fret Gluing £20

Many guitars have frets that are too loose in the slots from new. Some manufacturers clearly cut the slots too wide so fretting can be done by staff with a low level of skill. The result is high and low frets after a little use and exposure to a cold room in British winter etc.

This can apply to any price of guitar. I've measured the fret slots during re-fret many times and companies like PRS / Gibson / Fender / Ibanez and every UK made guitar I've re-fretted cut the slots properly. Of course I can solve the problem on any re-fret at no extra cost as the re-fretting process I use naturally solves all these problems.

The problem is easy to spot and I'll happily identify and mark all problem frets when you bring the guitar. Some crafty gluing of the frets solves the problem using an ultra thin industrial super-glue. It improves tone and sustain, of course, to have the frets tight and does not effect later re-frets.

Re-frets - click here for re-fret pics here

Always includes Service and Setup as above and of course the optimised fret dressing process. Only the finest fret-wire is used Van Gent, Dunlop and Jescar stainless, nickel silver and Evo Gold. Many modern new guitars are fretted with quite soft and cheap fretwire. It does not hold a polish (essential for a good vibrato) and wears quickly. Using the finest 18% nickel fret-wire (like PRS / USA Gibson and Fender) playability is greatly improved.

Also available is "Evo" gold coloured fretwire and is Nickel free. This is much harder than even the finest nickel-silver types and holds a very high polish. Nearly as hard as Stainless Steel but with a warmer sound (from experience) and looks amazing. I keep a stock of Stainless fret wire too.

More detail on Evo fret-wire

This is a superb upgrade for basses as it's so hard and does not cut up with round wound strings like nickel silver.

With a Vicker’s hardness of HV5/250, it is harder than finest 18% nickel/silver wire (HV5/200), but softer than the stainless (HV5/300). This wire is not plated; it is gold all the way through and retains the gold color once the frets are dressed.

Gold medium jumbo 0.043"/1.1mm crown height 0.080"/2.0mm crown width
Gold extra jumbo 0.057"/1.45mm crown height 0.110"/2.8mm crown width - brilliant on a Les Paul. (Same as Dunlop 6100). There is an increased warmth in the midrange - and a singing sustain that I find very sweet. I always have an Evo fretted guitar available for you to try.

Evo Gold Fret-wire

Re-fret Pricing

Please remember a re-fretted guitar usually requires a new nut as the frets are higher. Hand-made Slipstone nuts only £20 with a re-fret.

• Unbound rosewood/ebony £120 + strings
• Bound fingerboard £140 + strings
• Maple fingerboard £150 + strings includes fingerboard re-finishing in Nitro Cellulose / vintage amber Nitro-Cellulose.
• Evo Gold Fret-wire / Stainless Please add £20 Evo Fretwire is expensive to import and so hard that re-frets take more workshop time - you are unlikely to need a fret dress for many years though as it wears very slowly indeed.
• . Partial re-fret £80 + strings - where some new frets are required. Much less if it's just a couple etc.

Please note re-fretting is required less often than you might think - often a full fret dress process will do wonders.

Nuts - one of the biggest improvements you can make to an electric guitar

• New Top Nut: £30

I always prefer to install nuts hand-made from Stewart MacDonald "Slip-Stone"

Slip-Stone nuts are made of Delrin, a synthetic self-lubricating material that helps the strings return to pitch smoothly, without binding in the slots. Great for players who bend strings a lot. The improvement in tuning stability is simply amazing.

I will make brass, bone and plastic nuts but you would never regret having a Slip-Stone nut. I have to import these from the US so they are a little more expensive.

If you require a black nut, I have a large stock of 15% graphite impregnated PTFE which is the only black material I have found that matches Slip-Stone performance.

Fingerboard Scalloping

Scalloping fingerboards is proving to be a popular modification. From the Ibanez Jem 21-24 scallop to a full neck scallop. References are to 24 fret necks but the same principle applies to 21 & 22 frets necks.

Popular options are frets 21-24, 15-24, 14-24, 12-2, 1-24

Styles: Ritchie Blackmore / Yngwie Malmsteen or whatever you want or can imagine.

Ritchie Blackmore style: frets 12-24 have a full scallop, frets 1-11 are scalloped mainly under the first 3 strings. The scalloping is deepest nearest the fret nearer to the bridge (where the fretting finger is generally placed).

Yngwie Malmsteen style: has a full scallop on every fret.

Scalloping generally requires the inlays to be replaced and the new ones to be cut to the shape of the scalloping. Thus it's economic to do this for dot inlays. I can fit white and gold Mother of Pearl or beautiful Abalone dots little cost over plastic dots.

If you need the scalloped feel, on a Les Paul for example, then a re-fret with Dunlop 6000 fretwire may be the way to go. This is the tallest fretwire available and gets quite close to a scalloped feel. Makes string bending far easier of course.

A recent job. Beautiful through neck Ibanez superstrat (thanks Alan). It now has a Yngwie Malmsteen style scallop from frets 1-24 and large 7mm Mother of Pearl dots installed. The big dots are wonderful on stage!

Scalloping prices: From around £12-15 per fret depending on the guitar. A fret dress / pro setup / service will also be required. £60 with scalloping (£20 discount here).

Scalloping with a re-fret is the normal approach though. Changing the frets to Dunlop 6100 or 6000 high and wide frets makes the scalloping even more effective. Replacement of dot inlays is also required.

Ibanez Jems with Tree of Life inlays can be effectively scalloped using higher fretwire and a partial depth scallop. It actually works very well indeed.

Jackson / Ibanez types with larger inlays can be scalloped effectively as well - Shark fin inlays etc.

I can effect a partial scallop on guitars with block inlays by re-fretting with the highest fret-wire and a little scalloping. The effect in terms of playability is very similar to a full scallop.

All scalloping prices are based on a quote - all such jobs include a full guitar service and full optimised fret dressing and pro-setup.

Dot Inlays

Many guitarists find that their favourite guitar has dots that are too small or too dark to see on stage. Many Ibanez guitars have this problem. I can replace the dots with larger white Mother of Pearl dots for visibility. See above picture. Larger Abalone dots can also be used. Larger black dots are available for maple neck guitars.

A very popular modification this. I buy in 100's of dots at a time these days. Best to combine it with a full service and fret dress as the guitar has to be stripped down anyway.

Discounted with full service/fret dress and setup the extra cost is £50 plus dots (usually about £8-10) This includes smoothing and polishing the rosewood/ebony fingerboard to give a very smooth feel.

Without the full service/fret dress and setup aspect the cost is £70 plus dots (usually about £8) + strings

Changing cheap plastic dots for pretty MOP or exotic Abalone is an attractive option too.

There is a similar discount on this service with a re-fret too.

Guitar Hardware

Bridges

• New Saddle(s): £25 + cost of parts & strings
• New Bridge: £25 + cost of parts & strings - Schaller hardware preferred
• Modify bridge saddles to prevent string breakages £15 + strings (not always needed)

Machine Heads

• Fit new Machine heads £15 plus parts - for example locking machine heads as an upgrade. Cost may be higher if headstock drilling is required.

Strap buttons

• Re-fixing if they are loose / falling out £10 + parts if replacements needed.
• Strap lock fitting (e.g. Schaller) £10 + parts

Electrical Servicing

Some guitars will require new strings fitted as they have to be removed to access the electronics.

• Fit new jack socket £10 + parts (I may be able to fix the existing one)
• New Pot (volume or tone) £15 + parts
  
• Rewiring: All guitars from £20 (charged hourly)
• Internal screening from £20 (charged hourly)
• Pickup installation: £25 for 1 pickup, £35 for 2, £40 for 3 + cost of parts & strings
• Selector switch £10 + parts
• Custom pickup circuits available - please email me for a list.

Pickup Potting (de-squealing!)

If you have nice sounding pickups on your guitar already but they squeal and shriek with high gain then I can pot them for you with my proprietary mix of wax - very effective and totally safe, The wax penetrates the coils and, when set, prevents the wire coils from vibrating.

Pickup potting: £25 for 1 pickup, £35 for 2, £40 for 3 + strings

If you want some pickups re-potting and want to do the removal and replacement yourself then you can post them to me, £25 a pair inc postage - each extra pickup £6. (£37 for 4 etc.)

Potting with a wax mixture which is mostly Beeswax has an effect on the tone of many pickups. Bare Knuckle picks do this too. It tends to warm up the sound of Gibson humbuckers is a very sweet and musical way. Works well with other makes too. No guarantee on this aspect but I've seen some pretty remarkable improvements on many guitars. Others it just stops the squeal.

Guitar Repairs
If your guitar has had a very bad day then bring it to me and I'll quote you for a repair.

• Failed electronics in a guitar is generally straightforward to repair.
• Neck / headstock breaks can usually be repaired so the guitar is stronger than before.
• Broken truss rods are a real pain but can be repaired.
• Damaged frets such as nicks and scratches are often caused by a guitar bumping into something hard - it's the strings that sometimes do the damage. Generally straightforward to repair. Often a fret dressing will sort the problem and give you a guitar that plays far better too. Replacing a single fret whilst fret dressing is not expensive.
• Etc. etc.

I quote for repairs rather than offering a list because proper assessment is required.

Guitar Repairs - Headstock repairs. I have come up with a method that will repair permanently even the worst kind of breaks. Even those where somebody has tried to repair it with white PVA wood glue, the Evostik and finally Araldite (just done that!) and there is missing wood. I'm currently repairing an ancient Gibson Les Paul Recording that seems to have been repaired 3 times and have not had a headstock attached since the 1980's. It will be stronger than new when it's done. A full set of photos of this repair will be on the website soon. I invented the technique for this very guitar and have tested since on every badly smashed guitar I could find or scrounge. Plus one I smashed myself .... well you wouldn't have wanted it!

Actually this method will directly repair guitars that have been previously badly repaired - must find one to try that out - does anybody have one?

Note: When you combine services such as a full service and pickup potting etc., then the overall time is less, so I'll agreed a discounted price with you.

If you have other requirements then please contact me directly. Quotes and advice are free!

Please note I have a minimum £30 workshop charge although if I can fix a little problem and get you going again and off to a gig etc. in just a few mins then I'll reduce this reasonably. Basically once the strings are off them the minimum charge applies.