Alnus Rubra
Loving nature’s wonders
That’s a dealer issue. Contact them for a return/refund.
You should not have to pay a luthier to fix this.
Fret sprout on SE SAS yet?? Anyone...
- Thread starter Russ73
- Start date
That’s a dealer issue. Contact them for a return/refund.
You should not have to pay a luthier to fix this.
Black Plaid
Other Alan!
I would exchange it, that's really not ok for a guitar at that price point.
bodia
Authorities said.....best leave it.....unsolved
This
Glenn_Gertz
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I've got a SAS SE with bad fret spout just on the high E side of the fret board . It is severe . The fret board is otherwise perfect , level etc . I bought this guitar used from Sam Ash for $599 and I am convinced that the sprout issue is why I got this guitar so cheap . It is perfect in every other way. I will be keeping this guitar and performing the repairs / sanding myself . The tone of this guitar is incredible and I can't part with it . I've got an S2 Mccarty and an S2 Standard 22 and they are perfect , yet the SE SAS sounds amazing and I can't put it down . The fret sprout issue is unfortunate but I will fix it . The guitar sounds too good to send back .
Alnus Rubra
Loving nature’s wonders
Welcome Glenn, sorry to hear the issue, but glad for you that you’ve got a tone machine.
John F
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I wonder if SE in cases spend so little time in Maryland that fret sprout isn’t a problem when inspected. So many people having this problem is evidence of under-dried wood in Indonesia. This needs to be addressed at the source prior to fretting.
Glenn_Gertz
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Good point, I think you are correct . Also Ash maybe more susceptible to changes in humidity than the typical PRS Mahogany neck . Maybe PRS didn't factor in how Ash moves compared to Mahogany .
My only other complaint about the SE SAS is the wide thin neck profile . I much prefer pattern Vintage / Regular so I plan to sand the neck 1/16 narrower , roll the fret board edges and install a narrower nut like what is on my S2 Standard and Mccarty guitars . For as little $ that have in this SE SAS it should be a worthwhile project . Fingers crossed
Glenn_Gertz
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Duh... I knew that , sorry . Maybe maple necks are more prone to changes in humidity ?
d^rren
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Something I'm starting to wonder is if the tooling in the factory in Indonesia isn't quite dialled in, or has drifted out of spec in recent months.
When I was building my own guitars, I made a problem for myself early on where I was trying to cut fretboards to such tight tolerances that the fret tangs would make contact on all three sides of the fret slots. I thought it would help to transfer more of the string's energy through the fret and fretboard into the neck and body. Maybe I was right? It was all just hypothetical at that point.
But what I learned in that process is it made the frets really susceptible to tiny changes in the fretboard wood. With regular fret slotting that cuts the slots a little deeper than necessary, a little shift in humidity in the fretboard wood squeezes the frets from the sides. You might see a shift in neck relief, but the frets would largely not shift.
However… a bit of shrinking or swelling from the sides and the bottom of the fret slot, and you're squeezing the fret tang and also pushing it up from below. I had a client who had to keep getting fretwork done on the upper frets because they kept creeping up. Totally my mistake in trying to be clever and push the limits a bit, and the guitar that travelled from Toronto to California and then to Europe just couldn't settle down.
So this is purely conjecture, but I'm starting to wonder if some of the fret sprout issue we're starting to hear about is the fret slots not being cut deep enough. Maybe the fret saws are wearing out? Maybe the slotting jig is a little off? Maybe there's too much wood being sanded off the face of the fretboard after the slots are cut? It doesn't take much for the fret tangs to bottom out in the slots. And they might look good when they leave the factory, but if that wood expands or shrinks a tiny amount, it could wreak havoc across the fretboard.
But that's what my money is on. It's not like people are having necks with unfixable forward or backward bow or twisting like you'd expect from improperly dried wood. This is a fret installation issue. Either the fretwire isn't being radiused properly, or the frets aren't being installed properly, or maybe the fret slots aren't deep enough and the frets are rebounding out of the slot with humidity changes.
I don't know. But that's my current guess.
When I was building my own guitars, I made a problem for myself early on where I was trying to cut fretboards to such tight tolerances that the fret tangs would make contact on all three sides of the fret slots. I thought it would help to transfer more of the string's energy through the fret and fretboard into the neck and body. Maybe I was right? It was all just hypothetical at that point.
But what I learned in that process is it made the frets really susceptible to tiny changes in the fretboard wood. With regular fret slotting that cuts the slots a little deeper than necessary, a little shift in humidity in the fretboard wood squeezes the frets from the sides. You might see a shift in neck relief, but the frets would largely not shift.
However… a bit of shrinking or swelling from the sides and the bottom of the fret slot, and you're squeezing the fret tang and also pushing it up from below. I had a client who had to keep getting fretwork done on the upper frets because they kept creeping up. Totally my mistake in trying to be clever and push the limits a bit, and the guitar that travelled from Toronto to California and then to Europe just couldn't settle down.
So this is purely conjecture, but I'm starting to wonder if some of the fret sprout issue we're starting to hear about is the fret slots not being cut deep enough. Maybe the fret saws are wearing out? Maybe the slotting jig is a little off? Maybe there's too much wood being sanded off the face of the fretboard after the slots are cut? It doesn't take much for the fret tangs to bottom out in the slots. And they might look good when they leave the factory, but if that wood expands or shrinks a tiny amount, it could wreak havoc across the fretboard.
But that's what my money is on. It's not like people are having necks with unfixable forward or backward bow or twisting like you'd expect from improperly dried wood. This is a fret installation issue. Either the fretwire isn't being radiused properly, or the frets aren't being installed properly, or maybe the fret slots aren't deep enough and the frets are rebounding out of the slot with humidity changes.
I don't know. But that's my current guess.
John F
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I observed neck width shrinkage causing the end of the frets to overhang the fret board. I believe this is the problem others are having, not frets pushing up above the surface of the board.
deathworlder
; )
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I just wanted to update my post...
My fret sprout disappeared...
I don't know if it was the fretboard conditioner(PRS) or it just had time to acclimate to it's environment. FWIW, I live in NW Arkansas.
If it comes back, I'll hit it with my bevel file.
dogrocketp
I drank the PRS kool aid, and it was tasty!
So I took my SE SAS to my luthier yesterday to have the sprout fixed. It seems there is a gap between the bottom of the fret slots and the actual fret tang. He wants to drop fill the gap with super glue on all the frets when I can leave it. This would explain the fret sprout that’s happening so frequently. The neck will have to be removed to do this properly.
That gap is intentional. PRS fills that gap with super glue in the factory. It should have already been done.
dogrocketp
I drank the PRS kool aid, and it was tasty!
I have a lot of PRSi. This is the first one that has a gap that is NOT filled with super glue. That’s the point.
deathworlder
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Absolutely... I thought it went without saying.
In my case, the SE CE 24 Standard Satin is my first/only PRS SE without a bound fretboard...and it's rosewood. I have 3 other SEs; one with ebony and two with rosewood.
As you alluded to; it seems, most of the complaints are from maple fretboards.
Even though the fret sprout on my SE CE Standard Satin has disappeared, I get some fret-out from the 19th fret and above. When I change strings, I plan to re-level with fallaway, re-crown, re-dress and polish. To me, it's no big deal on a $500 guitar; ymmv.
