Fret Buzz - loose Frets

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I

ian

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Hi Guys,

OK, I reckon it gets boring when people keep posting updates saying how wonderful their new Tokai is, but this may be of mild interest - the LS60 arrived yesterday (see ?Solid Bodies??), and it?s beautifully made and sounds excellent etc. etc., except for an alarming fret buzz of truly World Record proportion on the low E at 10th. :eek: !

After some entirely fruitless adjustment to action & intonation, I took the Git to Chas Chandler in Hampton Wick (outskirts of London/Surrey), where we found that the 11th fret was/is loose & lifting away on the bass side (maybe other frets too).

It?s a fairly easy fix & I?ll get it done as part of a pro set-up, but the seller couldn?t possibly have missed this (& also suspiciously included a spare bridge, for some unknown reason :roll: ).

Ian.
 
Hi Barry,

No, it was ?JapanOldGuitar?, a perfectly pleasant chap named Hiro. But if he couldn?t hear this then he was more than deaf! Still, it?s probably forced me into a useful set-up (never fancy messing with truss-rods or filing frets myself), :lol:!

Otherwise the guitar is beautiful. Fit & finish is perfect. Tone is woody & resonant with plenty of raw bark (eh?, I mean doggy type bark, not tree bark :-? ), and lots of snarling bite on Treble setting. But this with action & intonation all over the shop, so better assessment after Chandlers fix & set-up.

Yes, 2-piece top with neat centre join. Looks like 1-piece back, but microscopic examination hints at a centre line, so probably 2-piece. Lovely colour;- sort of deep Gales honey fading to Cherry Blossom Ox-blood :-? .

Ian.
 
:D He has returned to service instruments? :lol: That was a one great bassist! and Thanks for the Exp! :wink: TG
 
Hi Paladin,

Quote ?That's not *the* chas chandler is it?? Ha?, no apparently not, because ?The? Chas Chandler of Animals & Hendrix connections died in 1996 ? I?m sure you guys all knew that, but I just had to look it up, :lol: LoL!. However, a guy called Charlie Chandler (?Chas Chandler?), has apparently owned these two local guitar shops under that name for decades. Years ago somebody told me it WAS the same Chas Chandler, but I never really thought much more about it. So I guess it?s just a name coincidence (unless ?the? guy once owned these shops :eek: ?).

Ian.

ps: they have a website so you can check them out:- "Chandler Guitar Experience Hampton Wick".
 
Never knew he was dead!

Maybe it helps this charlie chap get business through name association. :wink:

Which, I might add, there is nothing wrong with. 8)
 
Hi Paladin,

Quote ?Never knew he was dead!? Ha,??..well I must admit I hardly even knew who he was (but truly no disrespect to the guy, because I?m hopeless on ?important? people). Yes, those shops are a bit confusing (well they confused me). But just to explain;- there?s a decent sized shop at Kew (just around the corner from Kew Gardens) where they sell the usual mix of new & used Gits & Amps, and they claim to do work for Brian May & other famous people etc. etc. (& that shop has been there for donkeys years). And then there's a 2nd branch in Hampton Wick (tiny village ?hamlet? next to Kingston Bridge) where they restore, repair & sell top-end vintage gear (eg 1955 Strat, ?20K, that sort of thing). Really I?m not even sure of the connection between the two places, but I bet Barry knows all the Ins & Outs?. If it weren?t for the loose fret I?d normally never bother with a guitar tech or pro set-up (never needed any of that in the past), so I don?t really know what to expect (judging from comments on the Les Paul Forum it seems I may end up with it totally ?screwed up? by experts) ? part of the fix is to re-cut the nut, but it seems fine to me - I need the frets fixed, but I may end up regreting the rest of it, C'est La Vie :-? .

All the best,

Ian.
 
There are some real idiots out there claiming to be techs, but there are some real gems too. If you have someone you trust then there should be no problem, but I can see why you'd be concerned. I've been known to travel from Cardiff to Leamington Spa on daytrips to take my beauties to see the tech I know there. He's never let me down and always goes out of his way to make the guitar the best it can possibly be. He's helped me out with careers advice too. :lol: Great chap.

If the nut is too low the fix would be essential but if it it's made of plastic then having a new one re-cut from bone is one of the best upgrades you can make anyway.
 
Hi Paladin,

Thanks for the reassurance. Well, the guy in their workshop seemed really good (& sensible), so I think it will be OK (famous last words :eek: !). He reckons the nut is a bit high. I guess it?s plastic ? it?s whatever Tokai put on an 82 LS60.

All the best,

Ian.
 
Just to let you know how this turned out ? I emailed the seller (ie Hiro at ?Japanoldguitar?) and politely pointed out that I would have to pay ?45 ($70) to fix the fret problem, and he replied very courteously apologising & offering to pay half the bill :eek: !!

Well he was so nice about it that I emailed him back saying ?no, too generous mate, no need to return any money, I?ll pay for the frets, no problem, but maybe just do me some small favour in the future, maybe find me a nice old hard case at a decent price or something?.

Anyway, point is, since many guys here also buy on eBay, I just thought it fair to state publicly how helpful & honest this guy Hiro is at ?Japanaoldguitar? ? top marks 8) .

Ian.
 
thats nice because there is no shortage of sellers here that are less than honest. I really have to ask a lot of questions and get pics before the buy. Keeps me on my toes and I`ve learned a lot by dealing with these folks and I must say many of my purchases have been happy ones. Some guitars were returned and it wasn`t always easy getting a refund. Nice to have a Japanese wife who can get in there and mix it up with the natives.
 
Apologies for another update, but:- Hiro at Japanoldguitar just emailed me to say ?thanks? (see above), and he kindly included the Les Paul pages from the 1981 Tokai catalogue. Can?t see an 81 Cat in the registry, so maybe Ned (or whoever) might like eyeball it and see if you think it adds anything new ? shows the 8 models from LS50 to LS200, and also seems to focus on H-stock angle, Frets, and Pups/Bridge.

Ned:- email me or post here to say if you want me to mail you with the LP pages?

Ian.

Ps:- maybe Hiro should be ?Hero?!
 

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