Will bigger/taller frets help with sticky board?

chris_john

flying_pie said:

Is this a constant problem or does it go away for a short time with new strings? 

I'm a sweaty player and find that when my strings are a bit gunky then it gets really sticky and I can't play solos well at all (relative to my usual average ability). It goes away for a while when I put new strinwhengs on. 

FWIW I use medium jumbo frets.

When my hands are bone dry, it is definitely easier to play. New Strings feel very nice at first, but even then the sweat is a hindrance. 

chris_john

It could be my grip that is causing the problem. I'm a thumb over the top player, and once the excitement builds, I start gripping a little tighter - which exacerbates the sweaty mess. I'd rather not refret tbh, I really like the look of the vintage frets. 

sweepy

Maybe try the exercise of fretting the notes and gradually decrease the pressure on the fretting hand,until the notes die, it can be surprising just how little effort is actually required to fret cleanly

Alnico

My Strat has "Narrow / Tall frets and the top 4 are scalloped.
It's the reason why I love tall frets, my fingers usually stick to the board and there isn't much padding on the tips of my fingers either  so my nails hit the board before I've fretted the note on low frets.

My PRS seems to have quite tall frets but the frets on my Gretsch Streamliner and Telecaster are vintage style and it's not always easy to manage for me. 
The Gretsch at least will eventually be refretted with something tall.

I don't think I'd buy anther guitar that didn't have tall frets to be honest. 

Some can't get on with them but for me that lack of pressure needed to fret notes makes the whole phrasing thing so much easier and more fluid. Sliding up to and down from fretted notes is also way easier for me with them.

richardhomer

chris_john said:

It could be my grip that is causing the problem. I'm a thumb over the top player, and once the excitement builds, I start gripping a little tighter - which exacerbates the sweaty mess. I'd rather not refret tbh, I really like the look of the vintage frets. 

I have a very light touch with my fretting hand. I’ve owned an acoustic with very small frets for 25 years which has never had a fret dress - in spite of having been played a lot.

I find I’m comfortable with pretty much any fret size; I own guitars with low vintage and tall/wide. 

It may well be worth looking at your technique.

Fez

I get this sticky problem when it's hot and humid I have a very small amount of finger ease left and am wondering what I will do when it finally runs out. I don't think it's still available. +1 for boiled linseed on rosewood boards.

zepp76

chris_john said:

flying_pie said:

Is this a constant problem or does it go away for a short time with new strings? 

I'm a sweaty player and find that when my strings are a bit gunky then it gets really sticky and I can't play solos well at all (relative to my usual average ability). It goes away for a while when I put new strinwhengs on. 

FWIW I use medium jumbo frets.

When my hands are bone dry, it is definitely easier to play. New Strings feel very nice at first, but even then the sweat is a hindrance. 

https://www.carpelotion.com/

Can be bought at Amazon, it'll save you a refret!

earwighoney

zepp76 said:

 https://www.carpelotion.com/

Can be bought at Amazon, it'll save you a refret!

Along those lines why not try an alum block? 

skunkwerx

Do you notice it moreso on the treble strings than the bass strings? 

For me its always the trebles. Even on my Ebony board with xj frets. 

Elixir polywebs really improve how the bass strings feel. But those strings are a bit marmite. 

But on the trebles with the strings being obviously thinner, the frets are like speed bumps as well as the strings themselves getting stickier. 

Alvin

   For string lube , Johnsons baby oil .   Much better than fast fret , it stays on the strings for ages .  Been using it for years it's great .     I actually use a fast fret stick to rub it on but you could just use a cloth or even just put a dab on your fingers and run them up and down the neck .  If it's a hot day i also use talc sometimes , more as a hand deodorant but i rub it in well.

  Big frets are great but one thing i always wondered , are they big enough ?  If they need levelling a lot of material might need taking off .  I am presuming that most factory/ machine installed frets are more accurately fitted than when hammered so they wouldn't need as much (if they even do it) work .   I have just fitted some  Jescar FW58118 EVO Gold  which are 1.47mm high and they are not as tall as i was expecting (must be difficult to look at a ruler ).  Apologies if i have gone a bit off topic but i was trying to say that you could have jumbos installed and then needed so much material removed to level them you could end up back where you started . 

chris_john

Updating this just in case it proves useful for somebody. I went ahead and had the guitar refretted with medium jumbo. It only cost me 200,000 Korean won (I live in Seoul at the moment), which is about 140 quid. Anyway, I'm glad I did, because it really has made a huge difference. Much easier to play fast licks and less pressure required from my hands.  

boogieman

Alvin said:

   For string lube , Johnsons baby oil .   Much better than fast fret , it stays on the strings for ages .  Been using it for years it's great .     I actually use a fast fret stick to rub it on but you could just use a cloth or even just put a dab on your fingers and run them up and down the neck .  If it's a hot day i also use talc sometimes , more as a hand deodorant but i rub it in well.

  Big frets are great but one thing i always wondered , are they big enough ?  If they need levelling a lot of material might need taking off .  I am presuming that most factory/ machine installed frets are more accurately fitted than when hammered so they wouldn't need as much (if they even do it) work .   I have just fitted some  Jescar FW58118 EVO Gold  which are 1.47mm high and they are not as tall as i was expecting (must be difficult to look at a ruler ).  Apologies if i have gone a bit off topic but i was trying to say that you could have jumbos installed and then needed so much material removed to level them you could end up back where you started . 

Doesn’t baby oil clog up the wound strings and kill the sustain?

I use WD40 on my strings. Sprayed onto an old Fastfret stick then wiped over the strings lightly, rather than squirting the stuff everywhere. Works fine for me.