How To Polish Your Frets

[felagund23]

heres my take on cleaning up your frets- 320 sandpaper followed by 420 sandpaper then a little 800 or 1000 sandpaper- WARNING! only use on frets that have been replaced to get rid of that freshly filed look.

[Kirkasradio]

how often should i polish the frets?

i mean i dont wanna end up with no frets :D

[Mannnncho1]

what can replace the steel wool?

[MrSpottedpython]

@Mannnncho1 nothing

[TomEire1]

@Mannnncho1 3m polishing paper, its far cleaner and much faster and way less abrasive than steel wool. search stewmac{DOT}com for it.

@MrSpottedpython You don't have a clue what you are talking about.

[felagund23]

@Mannnncho1 use some very fine grit sandpaper like 800 or even better 100 grit sandpaper. easily available from hobby shops :)

[GibAKeekVideo]

If you do this with the neck still on the guitar, make sure to tape off the pickups or the steel wool dust will stick to them...they're magnets!

[codrutoctavian]

I used a dremel with some felt bits and some polishing paste after masking the fretboard. The result is very nice.

[Nickhead87]

@pilotoatomico

I didn't use tape once and it actually rubbed the fretboard of one my guitars and made marks. It's better to use the painter's tape because it comes off cleanly and protects the fretboard. It also allows you to clean the frets better since you don't have to worry about rubbing the wood.

[pilotoatomico]

@Nickhead87 it really depends on what kind of fretboard u got.

[jagekingable]

when u remove the strings, will the string be useable after removed? lets say i wanna take them off and then put them in again, does that work?

[rampage222555]

when bending and adding vibrato to bends and sustain is affected by scratchiness of frets, its time to do this

[59Hellfire]

is that autopsy i'm hearing?

[oldschooltillDeath]

i m too lazy to do that..nice song you chose

[rockstarfriend2049]

Use (0000 Grade) Steel Wood and don't press too hard and this is 100% safe. It works, I've done this for 20+ years...nice tip.

[EddieVedder13]

How often do you do this?

[InterspeciesErotica7]

@EddieVedder13 - Perform as necessary. If you bend a string and you can hear the fret scratching the string(kinda loudly), you need to polish your frets. Alot of people think this is just a beauty thing but it's mainly for better performance. If you use steel wool, tape off the pickups so the shards don't collect on them(magnets attract steel, duh!), and wear rubber gloves. The steel wool turns your finger tips a silvery black color after your done.

[wangmsater]

I don't have turtle wax, but is autosol fine?

[XXxSTEELHEADxXX]

dude :D :D what is this song ???

[matt420740]

@XXxSTEELHEADxXX

"Ridden with Disease" by Autopsy

[Clipster15]

Don't you just love a polished fret? Makes your guitar look all new again. :) Just got me some steel wool @ 0000. Going to polish mine up next string change.

[mjs70]

I just do it in one step by rubbing them down with Nevr-Dull (that's how they spell it) wadding polish.

[azfryguy]

I heard any steel wool bigger than 0000 will take to much metal off of the frets and ruin personnally i use 0000 then dunlop fret polish paper

[eazye1968]

what kind of fretboard does your guitar have?

[matt420740]

@eazye1968

The neck is this video has a rosewood fretboard.

[kweerb8]

thanks man. a luthier told me that using metal polish is bad because it can seep in to the fretboard and cause white streaks. has this ever happened with your method?

[matt420740]

@kweerb8

Thats what the tape is for. To protect the fingerboard.

[garydudu]

hey bro...

can i use any of the steel wool?

example like the steel of the steel woll is bit thicker?

sorry for my bad english....

hope to hear u soon...

thanks bro...

[slayerxv]

yes.u dnt need any of the compound or anything.jsut get the thinnist grid of steel wool and rape off the wood and rub rele hard on the frets.takes it all rite off

[matt420740]

@slayerxv

Rape the wood? Damn son........ You get personal with your guitars huh? Seriously though, the rubbing compound isn't a necessity. You can do the job without it, but the frets will look better, as it removes all the fine scratches from the steel wool.

[slayerxv]

haha my bad bro i meant to type tape but i hit the R on accident.lmfaooo.and yeah i konw i use the finest grid of steel wool so it looked fine but that compound i guess adds the finishing touch

[mjfan123085]

there are different kinds. use the finest one which in america is 0000. i dont know about your country.

[MNRS]

fuck yeah, ridden with disease

[TheDragthewaters]

very good bro

[BLaZe071775]

thanks for the tutorial man! i am doing this right now!

[googxmsr]

I just use a belt sander, for tuff stains a mig torch....

[Moplu]

UG FTW ^^

Whats the song? Its kinda cool.

[matt420740]

"Ridden with Disease" by Autopsy

[spider5001]

great vid man! I used the steel wool but didn't know about the compound polish. Will definately give it a try next time! Thanx!!!! =D

[Sanson101]

Thank you man !...I did it and suddenly i can go faster on the neck huh?...I did it on a Rick Bass 4001 and really makes a difference.....

[heyitsthemokid]

the results at the end hurt my eyes...

too shiny... <3 thank you :]

[maica72513]

will this do for a maple fretboard?

[matt420740]

Yes, it will work fine. You're not actually doing anything to the fretboard itself, just the frets. Thats why I put the tape down so I don't scuff the board with the steel wool :)

[GuitaristBoi9]

@maica72513 this ia about FRET not fretboard

[06jIInG]

i think she/he was just asking if this works even in the guitar that has maple fretboard... =)

[FunkyBuddha15]

im so doing this

[treatb09]

thanks for the video , v  that douche obviously dont know what hes talking bout!

[Nyxu]

Nice way to get a fretless guitar.

[matt420740]

You're not too smart if you think a little steel wool is going to wear down your frets. How do you think fret jobs are done? Files are used to level down the frets, then they are re-crowned with another file. Steel wool isn't going to do anything but take off the oxidation.

[Nyxu]

@ matt420740

"Fret jobs", or whatever you wanna call it, may be made like this in a professional guitarist's guitar, only because there are player's that "re-fret" their guitars after 3 gigs (like EVH) but can't even compare this to an amateur player and his guitar with ordinary frets. These guys use the hardest frets ever and they still need to replace them but you think your guitar has as hard frets. Never, EVER, with steel wool! Polishing may be the hardest waay but is the better.

[luckyboys91]

Did you really just say that?? Really??? UG FTW

[litleangus77]

yes UG FTW

[Nyxu]

@ matt420740

btw, i don't know if i'm the only one but, i never let my guitar frets get to the level of oxidation that only goes away with steel wool. But this is only me. Go ask for advice in Musician's Friend or Guitar Center about thay wool.

[matt420740]

I already knew you were stupid, but now you just proved it.

[n00bje]

Ahahahahahahahahaha!

[andrew12095]

haha. matt , don't worry about him. people are just stupid and just dont know it.

[familyguyismint]

Really helpful, many thanks :)

[3928885]

good shit man

[a1993h]

cool. im doing this the next time i change my strings :)

[jepmue]

Great vid! 5*'s Whats song by the way?

[matt420740]

Thanks jepmue!! Sorry I didn't answer sooner, I missed your comment somehow. The song is "Ridden with Disease", by Autopsy

[Meatybenji116]

uh where cud i get steel wool? and uh is steel wool that thing u get in the kitchen? lol that green pad for cleaning pots and pans? is that thing steel wool? great vid, and good song choice ^^ 5/5

[matt420740]

Thanks. The green thing you speak of is a Brillo pad. You can buy steel wool at most convenient stores, and definatley at a hardware store.

[Meatybenji116]

ahh wel lthanks very much ^^ i think i'll get some tomorow

[matt420740]

Aria's are great for a beginner guitar. Once you learn and begin to get better you'll probably want to upgrade. Its never a good idea to buy an expensive guitar when you're just starting out, so you made the right choice :)

[matt420740]

No, its not going to actually remove any of the fret. Just the dirt and grime that has built up on them. I did this to a 1958 Harmony guitar the other day. I wish I had a before and after pic :)

[tooZexy]

Excellent tip!!

[schl0tte]

I wonder what your wife says with all the steel wool remains IN the carpet ;)

[matt420740]

No steel wool really comes off. It's just cleaning off the oxidation basically. With 2 kids we vacuum all the time anyways though :)

[DJBkrabi]

besides a better appearance, does polishing them improve playing? bending?

[matt420740]

It could, depending on how much buildup they have on them.

[LeftHandedJay]

Nice to show how to do it ...

I'd do it , but im so acidic , i'll re tarnish the whole damn thing in three days .

Its sad , cause clean and shiny frets makes the guitar looks so good !

[MetalMonsi]

gj matt!

[scbene]

awesome tutorial Matt and very helpful! thanks for posting this dude!

[matt420740]

Thanks dude, :) ur welcome!!

[mihawk1]

i do the same thing to my neck using 0000 steel wool.

[sonnedark]

yea :D