You may have seen my £20 archtop in the guitar section. I am thinking of trying a DIY repair job on the fret board. It has a few problems really, the action is very high and the height of the original pickup means if I lower the bridge the strings touch it. The fret board is also concave, as in each fret has a slight curve towards the centre. All my other guitars seem to curve convex which is much more comfortable. The neck also has a slight forward bow, I thought it had a truss rod as it has a cover on the headstock but looking behind it I can only see what looks like a flat square plate.
So anyway...would this be a solution?
Remove the current fret wire, plane the fret board flat and glue on top a new fretbboard?
Im thinking this would straighten the neck, fix the concave bevel and raise the fretboard allowing for a lower action. I know this is really luthier terrirory but its cheap guitar and would never be anything other. I would dread to think of the cost for the work and am pretty sure I couldnt afford it. At the same time I dont want to ruin it as its lovely.
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Studio: https://www.voltperoctave.com
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Me: https://www.jamesrichmond.com
Studio: https://www.voltperoctave.com
Music: https://www.euclideancircuits.com
Me: https://www.jamesrichmond.com
Its not really a DIY job, but you have very little to lose by trying... Other than more time and money
If you can remove the neck you can do a reset fairly easily. Have a look around the back of the neck join, are there any signs of separation at the heel? If so its easy, if not it gets a bit harder but still possible.
The fretboard can be ironed off and replaced. I normally add extra reinforcement at this stage, but it sounds like yours has a steel bar anyway. Obviously once this is done you are into fret and nut work territory, its the time to decide if you invest in some tools, pay someone to do it, or go a bit more guerrilla on it.
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