Can someone walk me through dressing a fret?

[niklikes6]

I have a 91 MIM with some good fret wear one 1,2 and a little on 3.

Can someone walk me through smoothing these out?

Is this right:
1. File the fret smooth
2. Round edges
3. Polish

How can I keep from scratching frets?
What do I use to polish?


Anything else I need to know? Tips?

[fezz parka]

Level & Dress

[niklikes6]

Fezz,

I get the first part about sanding with the level. Do you do this on all frets, then do the 11th and below last?

I'm lost on the steps.

[fezz parka]

First, all of the frets. 4 layers of tape covering the 10th fret, then repeat the procedure from the 11th fret to the 21st, or 22nd, or 2?th fret.

Reread the text and pay close attention to the photos. It's all there.

[niklikes6]

Cool- just wanted to make sure I got it. I didn't want to screw my neck up too badly.

Ok, here's the next dumb question- how much should I take off? Just until the wear is out?

[fezz parka]

Originally posted by niklikes6
...how much should I take off? Just until the wear is out?

Until the wear is out and the frets are level...The toughest part is rounding the edges. It can be done with a triangle file (with one edge ground down so you don't cut a bigass groove in your fretboard), but a crown file is the way to go. You should be able to get the right files from StewMac or Warmoth.

[photoweborama]

That answers a lot of questions for me. I now completely understand the procedure.

For me, it’s like rebuilding an engine. I know how, but I'm not going to do it...