Bass : Converting to Fretless

mirv

I'm thinking of converting my el cheapo bass to a fretless one, and I think I'm just gonna pull out the frets. It has a rosewood fingerboard, so I think it'll be alright. I realise I'll lose a lot of sustain, but I dont mind tbh it's just a project.

Tips? Suggestions?

feylya

I saw a page that did the exact same thing a while ago but I can't find it now. However, from memory, here's some things to remember

Heat the frets with a solder iron before you try and take them out. Melts any glue that they were held in with

Use the right tools for taking the frets out. A sharpened pair of pliers used for removing nails should be used.

Leave the fret gaps. That'll help you play the right notes and will help you undo the unfretting if you want.

Check out Project Guitar for more advice.

nesthead

ye what feylya said is pretty much it... heat frets with souldering iron etc..

if u want to fill in the gaps, get some sawdust and some glue (PVA i think, not sure) and fill in the gaps with that, then do a light sanding with light sand paper and revarnish/recoat it with whatever stuff they put on guitar necks.

Or you could do it the Jaco Pastorius way and just hit them out with a chisel

feylya

If it's a rosewood or ebony fretboard, no finish should be applied!!! Just to make sure you don't bollox it up

Giblet

Jaco used epoxy.

mirv

Pulled the frets outs, it plays alright but the nut is a bit high atm as it's cut for the fingerboard + the fret height. I'm going to fill in the fret holes with sawdust but possibly leave it a different colour for the purposes of a guide for notes.

Will I post pics?

feylya

Leaving it a different colour is a good idea. Also, photos are definately a good idea.

mirv

Will post some in the morning. I'll shave off some of the nut too as its too hard to play lower notes because of the high nut action as there's no frets. Slides and slurs sound way cool, but I have to train myself to use more than two fingers for fretting as I need to build up accuracy.