A great article on Nickel-Silver vs Stainless Steel Frets

[burningyen]

having never owned a gtr w/ ss frets , I'm curious to know how & if they do change the tone of a gtr ? I'm of the opinion that all construction methods,parts & electronics have some effect on tone. any body go from one to another on the same gtr ? with what effect to tone ?

A very unscientific data point: http://www.thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=1246303 .

[anotherfreak]

"unobtanium" that's the stuff

[jettster]

I've had three guitars with SS frets, two custom orders and one was my first electric guitar, refretted last year with SS. I'm 100% certain that anything I have refretted in the future will be done with SS. At the same time, I think you would be hard pressed to find anyone that prefers to work with SS over other fret material. The guy that did mine locally only charged a little extra to do SS, out the door it was less than $300 and that included re-wiring a new pickup selector switch.

[HoboMan]

Here is MY personal experience.

I had my 1986 SG refretted with SS Jumbo frets.

I absolutely LOVE them.

The guitar is one of the best playing guitars I've ever laid my hands on.

I've noticed that strings last A LOT longer on this guitar.

The day after a gig my strings usually have corrosion starting and they are dead.

With the SS frets the strings still feel like brand new the day after a gig. I can still use them for a couple of weeks.

As for the tone, the guitar sounds friggin' great!

Not really sure if it's brighter but there is definitely a lot more clarity and is more articulate.

Playing on the low notes has an almost "piano" clarity that really cuts through.

I can tell you this about the brightness, I can get the exact tone I'm looking for with this guitar and my amp.

Not once have I thought to myself "damn, this guitar is too bright".

My tech charges $30 extra for SS and it's worth every penny.

I can play things on this guitar now that I couldn't in the past. It plays effortlessly. Bends are so easy and it has better "Grab" on the strings.

SS frets may not be for everybody but I'm damn glad I ignored all the people who said they hear a "Ping" on SS frets or said the guitar will be too bright.

SS frets will go on all of my guitars that get refretted.

My guitar was refretted by Scott at Fat Cat Guitars in Elgin IL.

He does impeccable work. I've had a couple of guitars Plek'd and Scott's fretwork is every bit as good if not better.

Set the action as low as you want without any buzzing.

And to top it off, he had it done it two days. Dropped it off on a Tuesday and picked it up that Thursday.

Here's a couple of pics.

[RJoseph133]

Stainless steel frets...y'know, for those of us who never quite understood the $75.00 patch cables...

[The Shark]

My buddy Jim has two Phil Jacoby stainless re-frets. I have a '81 blonde Special re-fretted by Peter Taylor at Chellee Guitars. They are smoother and have a bit of a brighter tone. Just my opinion. I'm not sure I like them better, but I like having one guitar with them.

[Ting Ho Dung]

I call BS. The article was written from the point of view of a guitar tech who is moaning that his fret nippers were destroyed when he used them on SS frets. He neglects to say that he could have used nippers made of a tougher alloy.

The article also alleges that stainless steel frets wear and deaden strings faster. Not in my experience (my Parker Fly, which was my #1 guitar for several years), and the only evidence provided by the author is pictures of some worn strings. Wear on guitar strings is caused by friction, which is not just a function of the hardness of the fret material, but also the smoothness of the fret surface. So while the SS frets are harder, they are also smoother. Is the tradeoff equal? I don't know for sure, but in my experience, even when using gold wound strings, there was no appreciable difference in string wear or deadening.

I wouldn't rip out my nickel-silver frets and replace them with stainless, but when ordering my new Carvin, I was happy to shell out the additional $30 for the SS frets.

Well said. I love the SS frets.

[polara]

Whenever a thread on some tech-wankery thing gets this long, someone needs to jump in and say

"Or just write better songs and practice more."

[tbonesullivan]

Whenever a thread on some tech-wankery thing gets this long, someone needs to jump in and say

"Or just write better songs and practice more."

Oh man. And I was just about to get to Tune-o-matic bridge insert materials and what the best material for slide is...

[dragan]

Whenever a thread on some tech-wankery thing gets this long, someone needs to jump in and say

"Or just write better songs and practice more."

Always true , but this is a guitar forum & seemed like a lot of useful info . I'm sure the audience would never ever hear any difference in the many things guitarists/ musicians obsess about.( not that that matters, lol)

[MCChris]

My guitar was refretted by Scott at Fat Cat Guitars in Elgin IL.

He does impeccable work. I've had a couple of guitars Plek'd and Scott's fretwork is every bit as good if not better.

Set the action as low as you want without any buzzing.

And to top it off, he had it done it two days. Dropped it off on a Tuesday and picked it up that Thursday.

A good man! Highly recommended for the Chicagoland folks.

Whenever a thread on some tech-wankery thing gets this long, someone needs to jump in and say

"Or just write better songs and practice more."

Always true , but this is a guitar forum & seemed like a lot of useful info . I'm sure the audience would never ever hear any difference in the many things guitarists/ musicians obsess about.( not that that matters, lol)

Ultimately, if any piece of gear makes you more confident in your playing and you can afford it, it's worthwhile. It's all psychological for clowns like us. The audience, on the other hand, doesn't give a rat's ass. Especially drunken audiences who are there to hear you play other people's music.

[dragan]

My guitar was refretted by Scott at Fat Cat Guitars in Elgin IL.

He does impeccable work. I've had a couple of guitars Plek'd and Scott's fretwork is every bit as good if not better.

Set the action as low as you want without any buzzing.

And to top it off, he had it done it two days. Dropped it off on a Tuesday and picked it up that Thursday.

A good man! Highly recommended for the Chicagoland folks.

Whenever a thread on some tech-wankery thing gets this long, someone needs to jump in and say

"Or just write better songs and practice more."

Always true , but this is a guitar forum & seemed like a lot of useful info . I'm sure the audience would never ever hear any difference in the many things guitarists/ musicians obsess about.( not that that matters, lol)

Ultimately, if any piece of gear makes you more confident in your playing and you can afford it, it's worthwhile. It's all psychological for clowns like us. The audience, on the other hand, doesn't give a rat's ass. Especially drunken audiences who are there to hear you play other people's music.

been looking for someone to refret my 1960 tv & a strat i use all the time , & exactly , thanks

[HAMERMAN]

I should post a pic of my once nice nippers...

That gave me a semi....

LOL!

[diablo175]

Ultimately, if any piece of gear makes you more confident in your playing and you can afford it, it's worthwhile. It's all psychological for clowns like us. The audience, on the other hand, doesn't give a rat's ass. Especially drunken audiences who are there to hear you play other people's music.

/\ This.

Was just discussing that very dynamic with a fellow board-er. There was a time when I wanted to believe that a new, higher cost guitar would translate to a quantifiable improvement in my playing. That carried over to amps, pick ups, trem systems, strings, pots, caps, and FRETS. Guitar straps even managed to factor in there, somehow

In short, if it made me feel good (funny how new shit always seems to do that) then, it should translate into better shred ability. Right?

Yeah, right.

The other point being the audience not giving a rats ass is pretty much dead on, too. Another myth I had to ween my self off of. Just last night, 'fessed up to the wife that one of my greatest contributing validations for acquiring new guitars was to wow the audience with the wondrous spectacle of a new, snazzy-looking guitar. Reality? 4 beers or mixed drinks into a set, the loud lout head-banging in the front of the crowd would be doing the same if I were playing a piece plywood and fishing line.

[polara]

Which almost leads back to the original topic. I do choose gear to some extent because I like how it sounds and feels - I need to make vain lil' ol' me happy after all - but number one is durability and number two is giggability. So I choose a tough, reliable guitar, amp and pedals that I can physically lift solo and set up and break down with little fuss. If the choice of fret and string alloys add up to my spending less time/money on strings or frets, cool.

Ultimately, if any piece of gear makes you more confident in your playing and you can afford it, it's worthwhile. It's all psychological for clowns like us. The audience, on the other hand, doesn't give a rat's ass. Especially drunken audiences who are there to hear you play other people's music.

/\ This.

Was just discussing that very dynamic with a fellow board-er. There was a time when I wanted to believe that a new, higher cost guitar would translate to a quantifiable improvement in my playing. That carried over to amps, pick ups, trem systems, strings, pots, caps, and FRETS. Guitar straps even managed to factor in there, somehow
In short, if it made me feel good (funny how new shit always seems to do that) then, it should translate into better shred ability. Right?

Yeah, right.

The other point being the audience not giving a rats ass is pretty much dead on, too. Another myth I had to ween my self off of. Just last night, 'fessed up to the wife that one of my greatest contributing validations for acquiring new guitars was to wow the audience with the wondrous spectacle of a new, snazzy-looking guitar. Reality? 4 beers or mixed drinks into a set, the loud lout head-banging in the front of the crowd would be doing the same if I were playing a piece plywood and fishing line.

[MCChris]

On that tip, with the basement thing I currently have going with my old college bandmates, I'd been using my Marshall 3203, because that was the amp I had in college. "Period-correct" gear, if you will. Last weekend I brought the Tremoverb. Needless to say, FAR superior sound, and I'll be using it from now on. So while I can get by with the Marshall, I prefer to use the Mesa.

[Nathan of Brainfertilizer Fame]

"unobtanium" that's the stuff

Isn't that just to help counteract neck-heavy guitars?

[Scottcrud]

I have 5 guitars. 4 have NS frets. My custom mockingbird has SS frets. I cannot tell a difference at all. They all play, sound badass. Of course I play in a metal band with a high gain Boogie amp. If the SS frets last longer, then to me they're worth it.