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Joined:
February 2002
Posts: 25
Location: Jacksonville, Florida | My 1996 Collector's Edition has very sharpe edges on both sides of each fret at the neck binding. (This is the only negative thing about this guitar). I called Ovation and discussed the problem with a very helpful customer service rep. He suggested lightly coating the fingerboard with mineral oil to "swell" the ebony and close the gaps under the fret edges. This didn't produce any noticeable effect. I've considered "filing" the sharpe points off the fret ends but I'm afraid that one slip would scar the binding or the fingerboard. This is not a huge problem untill you try to slide up or down the neck on the high E string. Any suggestions would be appreciated!
Thanks... |
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Joined:
February 2002
Posts: 5750
Location: Scotland | The "fix" recommended by customer service is laughable. The moisture content of the wood was too high at manufacture, & the fingerboard has shrunk slightly as the wood has dried, causing the problem you describe. Any amount of oil is not going to fix the problem. The soloution is as you describe, though I would suggest that this should be covered by the warranty, as it is arguably a manufacturing defect. Do not attempt it yourself unless you have the fingerboard masked, the correct tools, a steady hand & several years of experience in guitar repair. Wood, unlike synthetics is unpredictable and the odd piece will have a higher moisture content, which will not be bought down enough by standard kiln or air-drying times. You've been unlucky. Lots of 70's Ovations have lower-bout top cracks because they did not get the moisture content of the Spruce low enough. Yippee for Carbon-fibre tops!
Paul
[ February 12, 2002: Message edited by: Paul Templeman ] |
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Joined:
December 2001
Posts: 7211
Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | I totally agree with Paul. This can happen if the guitar is stored in too dry of an envoronment too. I had this happen... to a GS, but nonetheless.... it happened. A good luthier can re-dress the frets and make it all better.
Miles |
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Joined:
December 2001
Posts: 57
Location: Jersey near NYC | Sorry for my laughable solution, but sharp fret ends are caused by the fingerboard contracting due to lack of humidity. Oiling the fingerboard will swell the fingerboard and eliminate the need for a fret dress IF the damage is not too severe. It sounds like you need to contact a tech and have the frets dressed.
kkeller |
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Joined:
February 2002
Posts: 5750
Location: Scotland | I was not meaning to be rude, I should have said "It's possible that the moisture content was too high at manufacture" If the wood has shrunk enough to allow fret-ends to protrude, then your suggested fix is very unlikely to work. The problem can be caused by either too much moisture when the instrument was built or too little later in the instrument's life. However if it was due to lack of humidity in the storage conditions it may well manifest itself in other parts of the instrument, especially with all-wood guitars (which is one of the reasons we love our Ovations) Regional climate has a huge influence on this. We rarely have problems with guitars moving due to lack of humidity in the UK (if the wood is dry enough when the instrument was built & the guitars aren't stored near radiators during our bitter winters) The poster is from Florida, which may tell you more than it does me, as I have yet to vist that part of the USA. I have friends in Austin who need to keep Hygrometers & humidifiers in their guitar cases.
Regards
Paul
[ February 12, 2002: Message edited by: Paul Templeman ] |
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Joined:
December 2001
Posts: 7211
Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | Hey Kim,
Could you post the "oiley" instructions? I want to try this on my GS. The guitar is in mint shape otherwise, and plays real well, but the neck shrunk. Is rubbing the oil in good enough, or do I need to soak it? Recommendations of brand/type mineral oil (Is there a difference?) and how long will it take? I would like to attempt to fix this on my own... just for the "I did it" factor. If it doesn't work... then I guess my warrantee will cover it :eek: I realize it won't |
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December 2001
Posts: 57
Location: Jersey near NYC | Oiling a rosewood or ebony fingerboard is really pretty simple. First, remove the strings and clean the fingerboard and frets with 0000 steel wool. Liberally apply the oil to the fingerboard and let it soak in as much as possible, then wipe off the excess and restring.
I recommend light mineral oil, it is widely available, inexpensive and non-toxic, although I have been using a synthetic (Ai-Syn) oil lately on my personal guitars just because I have it around. I do not recommend lemon oil or any comound containing lemon oil. Lemon oil is a solvent and will clean grunge off your fingerboard, but will also dry it out.
Kim |
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Joined:
December 2001
Posts: 7211
Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | I'll give it a try, however it may be too far gone on closer inspection. How long should it take to see results? days, weeks... should I re-apply after a period of time?
Thanks for the tips. |
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Joined:
January 2002
Posts: 14127
Location: 6 String Ranch | to old 12 bar
Take a file to it or rub the side of the neck with steel wool.
If they're sharp they gotta get knocked down. Oiling the f/b is ok but probably won't work enough to make the problem go away, but being in the best state in the Union you'll want to oil it anyway. |
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"Sharpe" fret edges
