Luthier in the Charlotte NC area?

[Blue Strat]

My El Cheapo Rogue ST-3 (squier Strat) has issues with it's frets. Anyone know of a luthier in the Charlotte NC area that can do a fret dress job at a decent price? Anyone I could maybe ship the neck to for this job? Would I come out better doing it myself?

 

What I'm concerned about with doing it myself is that I'm not 100% sure that the problem is the fretboard. I'm getting string buzzes in different places, usualy around frets 1, 2, and 3. I've raised the height of the saddles, which helped some but didn't fix the problem. The truss rod could be a part of the problem, so could the nut, and I don't know enough about what to look for to accurately diagnose the problem.

[pauldil]

Bluestrat, have you checked out LA Guitar Factory yet? My friend had a fret job done there on his Les Paul and was very happy. Not sure how much it cost him though.

 

Paul

[Blue Strat]

Originally posted by pauldil:

Bluestrat, have you checked out LA Guitar Factory yet? My friend had a fret job done there on his Les Paul and was very happy. Not sure how much it cost him though.

 

Paul

I haven't been in there yet, but it sounds like a great idea for my day off tomorrow. Thanks for the reminder!

[Blue Strat]

Originally posted by bluestrat:

Originally posted by pauldil:

Bluestrat, have you checked out LA Guitar Factory yet? My friend had a fret job done there on his Les Paul and was very happy. Not sure how much it cost him though.

 

Paul

I haven't been in there yet, but it sounds like a great idea for my day off tomorrow. Thanks for the reminder!

Just did a search for an Army surplus store in the area too. It's just a little farther down the road, so I'm going to check it out too. Looks like a plan is coming together.

 

"I love it when a plan comes together".

[strat0124]

Well if you bring it to a sho nuff luthier, you'll get your ass handed to you in the price. I suggest taking it to a decent guitar tech at a music store. Its still gonna cost though. And to be totally honest, the fret job might cost more than that specific guitar.

[Blue Strat]

Yeah, that's what I'm scared of. I don't want to spend another $100 to get it fixed. I could buy another one at that price.

[Dave da Dude]

bluestrat,

 

Try Tillman's in Gastonia. The father is the guitar tech there, and I've had good experience with him. It's where I've got my Highway 1 on layaway, and it was set up well enough to sell it to a confirmed anit-Fender Strat guy (me).

 

I think you're the one who told me about the place. They sell Fenders and Gibsons. He changed strings for me on my Raven and set it up really well, all for $25 (it was already set up pretty well, he did better). He might not charge too much for a fret job.

 

Dave

[Blue Strat]

I'll check Tillman's out sometime, when I can get away from Lowe's Hell! I've got exams next week and they've got me scheduled everyday from 7am till around 2pm. Not gonna work too good.

 

I've found out what the problem is, I think. The 3rd fret is high. I used a ruler with a straight edge and laid it across the frets. The ruler would rock back and forth over the 3rd fret. It looks like it might never have been leveled from the factory. The good thing is that I think I can fix that myself with a big flat file and some sandpaper.

[Jedro]

I HIGHLY recommend this guy, he does fantastic work. I think he's still there.

 

Craig Landau

Cotter's Guitar Repair

704-566-0802

 

Off Tuckaseegee Rd. in Charlotte

[Dave da Dude]

Jedro,

I HIGHLY recommend this guy, he does fantastic work. I think he's still there.

Do you know if he works on acoustics? My D-18 is probably due for a neck straightening, when I'm "back in the money".

 

BTW, brief trivia note: "Alice's Restuarant" was written on a D-18; from a Martin ad in Acoustic Guitar World.

 

Dave

[revolead]

Just do it yourself, otherwise its not worth it, not afor a guitar of that price range. If you go to Caevan's Guitar Building tips, I posted how I did mine. If you still need help or are wondering about the process feel free to PM me.

- Rev

[Dave da Dude]

revolead,

 

What is Caevan's site URL?

 

Dave

[revolead]

Originally posted by Dave th Dude:

revolead,

 

What is Caevan's site URL?

 

Dave

Building Guitars

Just a forum thread. My process is about halfway down the page. The whole thing is rather rudimentary, but it worked well for me.

[Blue Strat]

Originally posted by revolead:

Just do it yourself, otherwise its not worth it, not afor a guitar of that price range. If you go to Caevan's Guitar Building tips, I posted how I did mine. If you still need help or are wondering about the process feel free to PM me.

- Rev

I've done a little research online and came up with a few sites that outlined the proceedure. I'll have to give it a shot, shouldn't be too difficult. I mean, I used to work in ten-thousandth's (.0005 of an inch, to be exact) when I was a tool & die machinist. I should be able to handle dressing the frets on my Rogue, at least good enough for a guitar I've only got $100 tied up in.

[Hound Dog]

Originally posted by Dave th Dude:

bluestrat,

 

Try Tillman's in Gastonia. The father is the guitar tech there, and I've had good experience with him.

Dave

There was a story some years ago about a local music store (Charlotte area) which had the priviledge of repairing one of Clapton's guitar's when he was in town. The name Tillman sounds right. Was he the one?

[Dave da Dude]

Hound Dog,

quote:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Originally posted by Dave th Dude:

bluestrat,

 

Try Tillman's in Gastonia. The father is the guitar tech there, and I've had good experience with him.

Dave

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

There was a story some years ago about a local music store (Charlotte area) which had the priviledge of repairing one of Clapton's guitar's when he was in town. The name Tillman sounds right. Was he the one?

I don't know, but I'll ask when I pick up my Highway 1 Strat.

 

BTW, the one in Gastonia is "Tillman's", there is also a "Tillman" (w/o the 's) in Rock Hill. They're also a Fender dealer, but I have no guitar repair / adjustment experience with them. The two stores are related by family, but not in business. Next time I'm in there (drooling over the LP DC in Emerald Green on consignment), I'll ask them too.

 

Dave

[demarc]

Hey Blue!

 

I used to live in Chapel Hill, but moved away 6 years ago.I am usaually in NC for Thanksgiving. Problem is I am stuck down here in South Florida... If I was more local (loco?.. not possible...) I would love to help you out.

 

It sounds like you are considering trying to do it yourself. If you are going to try to do it yourself.... If you have ONE high fret, take a good close look at it. It may have just lifted out of the slot. If it did lift out, I would try to reseat it. You could try just reseating it first. (with a hammer and a block of wood) Some times when they slip out, the slot may be big.

 

But first, check the rest of your neck and try ajusting the truss rod slightly if needed first.

 

Some people have used cyanoacryalyte(spelling?) (super glue) by inserting glue under fret, then QUICKLY reseat(hammer and block of wood method) and HOLD pressure until glue set. This is tricky and kinda semi-permanent if it is done wrong. I would use super glue Only in EXTREME situations on a cheap guitar.

 

Short answer: scope it out closely and reseat fret first(if needed) before dressing it down.

 

BTW, You were into tool and die? I have over 20 years as a toolmaker. Just in NC, I have worked in shops from Selma, to Raleigh, to Siler City. I won't even start with MA, CT and FL.

 

Hope some of this helps.

 

BTW, after the holidays, I may go back to my screen name of demarc.

[Jedro]

Originally posted by Dave th Dude:

Jedro,

I HIGHLY recommend this guy, he does fantastic work. I think he's still there.

Do you know if he works on acoustics? My D-18 is probably due for a neck straightening, when I'm "back in the money".

 

BTW, brief trivia note: "Alice's Restuarant" was written on a D-18; from a Martin ad in Acoustic Guitar World.

 

Dave

Dave,

Craig does everything. He was building acoustics a few years back, too. I can't explain exactly why he's so good, there just seems to be a magical quality about his work, even on something as simple as a setup. He's a good guy, too.

[Blue Strat]

Originally posted by Hermey:

Hey Blue!

 

I used to live in Chapel Hill, but moved away 6 years ago.I am usaually in NC for Thanksgiving. Problem is I am stuck down here in South Florida... If I was more local (loco?.. not possible...) I would love to help you out.

 

It sounds like you are considering trying to do it yourself. If you are going to try to do it yourself.... If you have ONE high fret, take a good close look at it. It may have just lifted out of the slot. If it did lift out, I would try to reseat it. You could try just reseating it first. (with a hammer and a block of wood) Some times when they slip out, the slot may be big.

 

But first, check the rest of your neck and try ajusting the truss rod slightly if needed first.

 

Some people have used cyanoacryalyte(spelling?) (super glue) by inserting glue under fret, then QUICKLY reseat(hammer and block of wood method) and HOLD pressure until glue set. This is tricky and kinda semi-permanent if it is done wrong. I would use super glue Only in EXTREME situations on a cheap guitar.

 

Short answer: scope it out closely and reseat fret first(if needed) before dressing it down.

 

BTW, You were into tool and die? I have over 20 years as a toolmaker. Just in NC, I have worked in shops from Selma, to Raleigh, to Siler City. I won't even start with MA, CT and FL.

 

Hope some of this helps.

 

BTW, after the holidays, I may go back to my screen name of demarc.

Thanks for the tip, I'll check it out before I break out the mill bastard! Yeah, I ran a surface grinder for a while, as well as Bridgeport mills and Haas CNC mills and lathes(program & setup).

[Blue Strat]

I checked out the fret, and it's sittin' tight and even with the fretboard. I guess It just never got dressed down properly.

[demarc]

Hey Blue!

 

Those Haas CNC mils are something, eh? Pretty versatile and solid for the money. Definitely a lot of bang for your buck!

 

Glad to hear that fret is sitting tight. Have fun with the mill bastard! That is also my favorite first pass tool, running lengthwise on neck.

 

For those readers not familiar with fret dressing, I'll add this. Make sure you use a good straight and flat file! Brand new is nice, but please, not some old rusted relic from a yard sale. I like a Nicholson 10 inch mill bastard single cut, but there other great files out there. Try to dress the minimum amount! Before starting, I usually put a stripe down the center of each fret with Dykem(a magic marker will work also). This way you can see how much and from which fret you are dressing. Re-apply this stripe after every few strokes, and dress carefully! You do not have to get them all perfect! If you end up up dressing too much, you will lose the crown on the fret. You should try to keep the crown. I use some files that I modified the edge on by grinding a scalloped groove down center of edge. This keeps you from cutting into center of fret and losing that uniformity of all the frets being in one plane. You could also recrown a fret or two with a CAREFULLY applied small file(preferably a flat jewelers), but that could be tedious on more than one or two.

 

Again be careful with the file! Too much file stroking, and you could end up with a bunch of flat uncrowned frets that are too low to re-crown.

 

I like to finish with light 240 and 320/400 and then finally 600 and 1000(if you got it) wet/dry paper crosswise on the frets for the final finish. This helps polish the longitudinal scratches out. This makes for smoother bends and figer vibrato.

 

Hope this helps somebody...

[Blue Strat]

Originally posted by Hermey:

Hey Blue!

 

Those Haas CNC mils are something, eh? Pretty versatile and solid for the money. Definitely a lot of bang for your buck!

It's amazing how much material it can take off in one cut. On one part I did a few years ago, I was taking a cut of one inch depth on aluminum with a 6" cutter! Lots of stress on the spindle and the part. I can't remember the feedrate but it was on up there too, like 6 or 7 inches per minute!

[demarc]

It's amazing how much material it can take off in one cut. On one part I did a few years ago, I was taking a cut of one inch depth on aluminum with a 6" cutter! Lots of stress on the spindle and the part. I can't remember the feedrate but it was on up there too, like 6 or 7 inches per minute!

Yeah, those things are pretty solid! At those kind cuts, you must have had a solid setup!

 

What gets me is the price! 5 or 10 years ago they were going for half what a comnparable Leblonde Makino, Mitsui, or others were going for. (I was considering opening my own shop.)

 

And weren't they "Made in the USA"?