Question JP6 BFR fret question

[fjk1138]

Greetings,

On my JP6 BFR, I notice that when looking at the edges of the frets (in other words, the side edge where the fret marker dots are), some frets are totally invisible and others are fairly visible. I can also feel some more so than others.

Is this normal, or do I need to be concerned?

No frets are coming off the fret board, or any other problems that I can see, and the guitar otherwise plays and looks great.

Thanks.

 

[morsecode]

It sounds like fret sprout to me which is a pretty common occurrence usually due to having your guitar exposed drier conditions and the wood, likely the ebony on the fretboard, to shrink. Winters can create havoc where I live. Try getting a room humidifier if you keep your guitar in the open or store it your case when not playing with a case humidifier. Give some time though for the wood to expand and you should notice some improvement.

 

[BrickGlass]

Had the same problem with my koa JP6. I just put a humidifier in the case and made sure I kept the humidifier nice and moist. I also used the Ernie Ball fretboard conditioning wipes and got some moisture back in the neck that way and both of these things helped a lot. It is a pretty common problem here in Utah with it being a pretty dry climate with not much humidity in the air here. You do have to give it some time to work though, as morsecode said. Not an overnight fix, but it did work for me. A couple frets stick out still, but just a smidge and it isn't enough to bother me when playing. It was at first though. The improvement was significant.

I also wonder if it can be from the guitar getting shipped around when getting delivered. I ordered mine in the early spring last year and it got here last August. So it was on a UPS truck going from San Luis Obispo to Dubaldo Music in Connecticut, and then to Utah in August. Hotter than all hell in the back of a UPS truck in August I'm sure. 10 days or so of sitting in the scorching summer heat, in the back of a truck no less, just can't be good for the fretboard of an axe. And then it gets off the truck to arrive in the desert landscape of Utah. Just a theory.

 

[TheShreddinHand]

What case humidifier are you guys using?

-Eric

 

[BrickGlass]

What case humidifier are you guys using?

-Eric

The Planet Waves one, the Dampit one, or even the Herco ones can work just fine. The Herco ones actually are pretty good to be honest and they are way cheap. The PW and Dampit ones are built to go inside the sound hole of an acoustic typically, but they can just be placed in the case. I always just lay the case flat on the ground and set the humidifier inside of the case, then if I need to lug the case around I'll make sure to take the humidifier out, or put it in the compartment so as not to ding the guitar up with a rogue humidifier. The humidifier's don't seem to work when they are inside the compartment of a BFR style case. Doesn't seem like the moisture can really escape the compartment when it is all buttoned up so that is why I'll just set it inside the case, out in the open. Some guitar cases have a compartment that has a hole in it so you can lift up on the compartment and those ones are awesome to just throw a humidifier in the compartment.

I used a couple of the Herco ones on my koa JP that had the fret sprout going on and just made sure to keep soaking them every other day or so. Usually only need to soak them every other week about, but I was pissed about the fret sprout and wanted it gone quick. It worked so I have no complaints, but it did take a few weeks.

 

[TheShreddinHand]

The Planet Waves one, the Dampit one, or even the Herco ones can work just fine. The Herco ones actually are pretty good to be honest and they are way cheap. The PW and Dampit ones are built to go inside the sound hole of an acoustic typically, but they can just be placed in the case. I always just lay the case flat on the ground and set the humidifier inside of the case, then if I need to lug the case around I'll make sure to take the humidifier out, or put it in the compartment so as not to ding the guitar up with a rogue humidifier. The humidifier's don't seem to work when they are inside the compartment of a BFR style case. Doesn't seem like the moisture can really escape the compartment when it is all buttoned up so that is why I'll just set it inside the case, out in the open. Some guitar cases have a compartment that has a hole in it so you can lift up on the compartment and those ones are awesome to just throw a humidifier in the compartment.

I used a couple of the Herco ones on my koa JP that had the fret sprout going on and just made sure to keep soaking them every other day or so. Usually only need to soak them every other week about, but I was pissed about the fret sprout and wanted it gone quick. It worked so I have no complaints, but it did take a few weeks.

Great, thanks for the info!!

-Eric

 

[Lou]

Case humidifier on the cheap:
Ziploc or similar sandwich bag
Scissors
Kitchen sponge

1. Roll up bag
2. With scissors make lots of small cuts in sandwich bag
3. Wet sponge so it's moderately damp - not dripping
4. Place sponge in bag
5. Place bag in case (more than one bag if you like - I've been using one and my JP's have been fine.)
6. Bob's your Uncle
7. Dampen sponge every few weeks.
Video for the directionally challenged:
YouTube - Guitar Case Humidifier - Build Your Own - Inexpensive