A Two-For-One?

 What?!? Did you think I'd let a bass carcass go to waste?

Remember my sacrificial lamb? Perhaps it can be resurrected! The Bass Gods work in mysterious ways.

Quite a few fret pulling videos on Youtube end with a fretless conversion. There must be tens of thousands of poor basses leaning against the back of closet walls, remembering how they once had precision note-making abilities in their youth, much like I sometimes dream of once again having long lustrous locks of hair hanging in my face or trailing behind me as I sprint my BMX towards a jump. 

Fretless or not, one thing all the advice had in agreement was that you did not want to leave frets out for long, because the neck would bow in their absence. I don't know how true that is, but with the summer starting and the humidity in more flux than usual, I wasn't going to risk it. 

One video mentioned using polystyrene strips often used by model train hobbyists, because they flex less than wood filler or wood strips. I also like the fact that they will show up nice and white against the rosewood. A quick cleaning of the slots, tracing the bottom of the strips and using scissors to cut in the matching radius, and a generous schlopping of glue later, and I have this beautiful mess.

Of course I can't leave the Peavey Patriot to suffer, especially not this close to Independence Day. 

Last time I mentioned the plethora of special tools to buy or not to buy. The fret press seemed like a cool but expensive device, much like the fret wire radius benders. I'll let you look those up if you are really that much of a guitar tool nerd. Let's just say one bends fret wire to the desired radius, and one presses them in with an arm you pull down, much like a drill press. They have little inserts for each radius, much like this pile of poop hand tool version I got on Amazon.

Well, you get what you pay for sometimes, and let's just say it only took one attempt until I decided to go with the caveman method and give up on the crappy press. The fret wire itself was purchased from Stew-Mac already cut into sections and pre-bent into the 7.25 radius of the fretboard. A generous amount of glue (to fill in any gaps and prevent dead notes) and some strategic strikes with the hammer, and the refret to regret was in full swing.

It didn't take long to do, but the hammer strikes took their toll! In retrospect I might've attempted using the hand press a few more times if I knew I'd get some laquer chips and cracks. Especially this coolness right at the first fret, where I can look down at it forever and always!

Since the frets are in, let's get back to the other hot mess.

Once the glue had a day to dry, I could clip the plastic down and make sure the fretboard was level.

Then, I decided I didn't like how flat the radius was so I decided to sand it with the radius block I got for the Peavey's frets and match the radii. Did I say that right!?!

Almost there. I have to admit, this sanding took a toll on my beat up elbows.

One I had the radius sanded in, and did the boring stuff of moving from finer to finer grits, the fretboard took a real shining to the old Music Nomad F-One oil.

I would go on, but just like trying to get a band together for a practice, real life can often get in the way.

I'm currently helping my mom with some wonky health issues. At least I get to spend Independence Day in the Flag City, my little home town of Findlay, Ohio. 

Next Up: No Pedantic Antics Here