Washburn Ox Series Strat - Partial Refret

Sometimes it's better not to mess with your guitar. As the story goes, someone tried to lower the action on this Washburn Ox Series Strat by deepening the nut slots. And went a bit too low. So low that the open strings started to buzz badly. Well, let's go and file the first fret. Ah, much better --- but now the second fret is buzzing, let's file that too. Oooh, now them first two frets have stopped buzzing; but the third is acting up. What the heck, I'm gonna file that pesky third fret now. Uh-oh, now the fourth fret is buzzing like crazy. And I've scratched that lovely fretboard too! What am I to do?

I'm glad someone stopped the guy at the third fret. Lord knows what would have happened had he continued on his well-intentioned; but doomed odyssey. Those three fret tops were ragged, and the guitar was unplayable; for sure. The most practical remedy would be to replace the first three frets, level; and re-crown them. This is what those in the business call a "partial refret." And yes, something had to be done about those deep fretboard scratches.

As luck would have it, I had on hand matching fretwire, as far as width is concerned; that is. So I pulled the first three frets, prepped that section of the fretboard; and installed new ones. Truing and prepping the fretboard took care of those deep scratches -- talk about killing two birds with one stone! The fret tangs were cut with a StewMac Fret Tang Nipper, and tidied up with a file. I know, some people are able to get an ultra-clean cut with just nippers; but I'm not one of them.

Meanwhile, the trashed nut was removed. Maybe I could re-cut the slots and raise the nut a bit; that would save the owner some money. So tap tap I go with my wooden block, and the nut comes off all right; leaving chunks stuck fast to the nut slot bottom. Seems like someone had used super glue to glue in the original nut. Well, so much for saving a few bucks. Now I'd have to install a new nut anyway.

That issue being settled, I proceeded to cut the frets to length and reshape the ends with my trusty tiny triangular and square-shaped Japanese files. Seems like I can't find them anywhere in Kuantan nowadays. I have two sets; the last one being found (and bought immediately) at a hardware store in Air Puteh a few years ago. That store doesn't have them in stock any more. If anyone knows where I can get my hands on another set, do give me a holler; thank you very much.

During the course of this partial refret job, the fretboard needed to be straightened a couple times by adjusting the truss rod. The truss rod on the Washburn Ox Series Strat is rather interesting because it features a "spoke wheel" truss rod nut. Nothing could be easier, I tell you. Just insert a suitable tool into one of the exposed holes (I used an Allen key) and turn left (loosen) or right (tighten) as needed.

Leveling was done with sanding beams and successively finer grades of abrasive paper. Next came fret re-crowning, scratch removal and polishing --- you know the drill. And then, it was time to fit a new nut. Turns out the Washburn nut was basically the type you'd put on a typical acoustic or electric LP-style; only taller and slightly narrower. After removing remnants of the old nut and leveling the bottom of the nut slot, an LP-style nut was installed.

By carefully aligning the new nut using "stunt" low and high E strings, I was able to ascertain the correct lateral position. A little bit was jutting out on either side of the nut slot, as expected. This was taken care of using files, sandpaper; and 3M Flexible Polishing Papers. As for nut height, well; it was way too low. Fixed the lack of height by gluing four slivers of teakwood veneer to the bottom of the nut slot. Wood glue was used, by the way. Once the nut was glued on and the glue had cured, everything was fine and dandy. Nut slot radius was not a problem, as it was already 12"; which matched the fretboard radius perfectly.

Now that everything was as it should be, all the frets were polished as there was a noticeable "shine factor" difference between the original frets and replacements; and I didn't want them to stick out like a sore thumb. Subsequently, the whole fretboard was treated to a generous dose of lemon oil. Yes, the fretboard was dry; so dry that three applications of oil were soaked up in no time at all.

Finally, the guitar was strung with Ernie Ball Super Slinkys (009-042), tuned and set up. The owner just picked up his Washburn Ox Series Strat earlier tonight, and exclaimed that it had lower action and was more playable than even his go-to Squier Strat. I'll take that as a compliment. Thanks for dropping by; and I'll see you again real soon :)

Note: Fender®, Stratocaster®, Strat®, Telecaster®, Tele®, P Bass®, Precision Bass®, and the distinctive headstock designs of these guitars are registered trademarks of Fender Musical Instruments Corporation.

Yamaha ERG121C Makeover: Part Three

Quick Links: Part One | Part Two | Part Three

This is the third and final part of this series. It's been a challenging yet fun adventure, but it's time to wrap things up. You know, before reattaching the neck to the body, I did spend some time reconditioning the fretboard and cleaning the frets. 

The frets and rosewood fretboard were cleaned with 3M Scotch-Brite Pads, and then wiped down with naphtha (Zippo Lighter Fluid). Following this, Dunlop Formula 65 Fretboard Ultimate Lemon Oil was applied liberally to the fretboard, allowed to soak in; and the excess wiped off with a clean rag.

Fast forward to the present, and I've just restrung the guitar with 10s, tuned up; and completed a full setup. Tried out this Yamaha ERG121C straight into the clean and overdrive channels of my trusty Fender Champion 40; and am mighty pleased with the results. 

Neither a Strat or Les Paul it be, but them Seymour Duncans are certainly worth the investment. Here are two videos I uploaded to YouTube: Video One | Video Two. Do give them a listen. Thanks for dropping by, and hope to see you again real soon :)

L. Luthier GA20W Bridge Repair | Part Two

◀ Part One

As detailed in the previous post, the bottom of the bridge and soundboard contact area have already been prepped for regluing. Naturally, the next step would be to reglue the bridge. This I've done with Titebond III Ultimate Wood Glue and StewMac Soundhole Clamps. I dispensed with the lone existing rosewood bridge locating pin and replaced it with two bridge pins; one in the 1st string hole and the other in the sixth. The clamps were removed after four days, which would have given the glue sufficient time to fully cure.

After removing any dried glue squeeze-out, the immediate area around the repair was cleaned. Following this, the perimeter of the bridge was sealed with a couple coats of Tru-Oil. I needed to do this because despite using tape and a sharp scalpel to score the thick finish around the bridge before removing it, some of the finish had chipped; exposing a thin line of raw wood. Sealing these exposed areas with Tru-Oil should prevent moisture from getting into the wood; in my humble opinion.

Meanwhile, the fretboard surely needed reconditioning. The frets and fretboard were first cleaned with 3M Scotch-Brite Pads, after which a generous amount of Dunlop Formula 65 Fretboard Ultimate Lemon Oil was applied. After leaving the lemon oil on for about 15 minutes, any excess was wiped off with a clean rag; and the job was complete. The bridge was also treated with lemon oil as I thought the rosewood looked really dry.

Next on the list was restringing the guitar with a set of Alice A306-XL (010-047) and tuning up. As the relief was just where I wanted it with the instrument in standard tuning; there was no need for any truss rod adjustment. And so, after polishing the whole guitar with carnauba wax; this L. Luthier GA20W was ready to be played once more. Here's a short YouTube Video of yours truly trying out this lovely guitar.

Epiphone Les Paul Special Gets Some Love

Work done on this grimy Epiphone Les Paul Special included cleanup and polishing, hardware servicing, fretboard reconditioning, restring and setup; plus a new bone nut. The rosewood fretboard was so dry that it soaked up three applications of lemon oil!

Epiphone Accu Bass Jr Overhaul

There was lots to repair on this Precision-style bass. For starters, the grimy fretboard had separated from the neck; and the nut was broken. The bridge was so cruddy that the saddle height hex screws were frozen in place. As if that weren't enough, someone had decided to "rewire" the electronics sans solder -- a couple connections were just twisted together! In any case, as I'd have to replace the pots and output jack and rewire the innards; that issue would be taken care of.

The fretboard was reglued to the neck with Titebond III and clamped, and all was well after four days. Following this, the fretboard was subjected to a thorough reconditioning; which included a healthy dose of lemon oil right at the end. I eventually managed to remove the frozen saddle height hex screws with the help of heat/cold treatment, and a sturdy pair of pliers. After derusting, servicing and a lube job, eight new hex screws were fitted to the saddles; and the bridge reinstalled.

The high density foam pieces that sat underneath the pickup halves had lost their springiness and were virtually unusable, these were replaced with four springs. All the electronics were removed; Alpha 500K pots,0.047uF cap, and Neutrik/Rean NYS229 output jack wired in.

After installing a new nut, the neck was reattached to the body. The Epiphone Accu Bass Jr was fitted with a new set of strings, and set up to normal specs. I'm thankful I was able to help give this bass a new lease of life.