[schwieg]

On my acoustic guitar there is fret buzz at the 12th fret and I have been told on good authority that it is due to the 13th fret being too high. I was wondering if filing on the fret would be something I should attempt myself and if so what would I use and is there any specific process to follow.

Thanks.

[Graeme! Yes, Graeme!]

If you are unsure about it then don't do it. If you file off too much you could end up with an even bigger problem and end up having to get it refretted.

If you do decide you want to attempt it then the key is to be careful. Use some sand paper first to see if that will get the job done. Take your time with it. It's quite probably just a very tiny adjustment that's needed.

If you don't feel confident enough to do it then take it to your local guitar shop or to someone who is more experienced and ask them. Even if they can't do it themselves they should be able to put you in contact with someone who can.

[dadfad]

If you are unsure about it then don't do it. If you file off too much you could end up with an even bigger problem and end up having to get it refretted.

If you do decide you want to attempt it then the key is to be careful. Use some sand paper first to see if that will get the job done. Take your time with it. It's quite probably just a very tiny adjustment that's needed.

If you don't feel confident enough to do it then take it to your local guitar shop or to someone who is more experienced and ask them. Even if they can't do it themselves they should be able to put you in contact with someone who can.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Graeme is right. And often a fingernail emery board will work too. I would suggest you drag your emery board (or extremely fine small file) long-ways down the fret toward the side of the neck in a single direction. Usually just a single string (or two) on a particular side are buzzing. This makes it less likely that you will loosen the fret further (possibly the REAL cause of the buzz) by filing back-and-forth, wiggling the fret in its slot and loosening it even more. And as Graeme said, remove only tiny amounts. Then try to "re-crown" (round off) the fret again. Protect the wood around the fret with a couple of strips of masking tape. And like he said, if you are uncomfortable doing it at all, have it done. It should be fairly inexpensive.

[schwieg]

Thanks for the advice.

I`m not sure if I will do this myself or just bring it in to be done but just for clarification, should I still file down the entire length of the fret if I am only getting dead notes along the e, b, and g strings?

[schwieg]

my uncle who is very knowledgable with guitars told me that that is th reason that it was buzzing and he would have filed down the fret himself but he didn`t have his files at the moment.

[dadfad]

Thanks for the advice.

I`m not sure if I will do this myself or just bring it in to be done but just for clarification, should I still file down the entire length of the fret if I am only getting dead notes along the e, b, and g strings?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Just pull a few thousanths of an inch or so off the "offending" side.

[schwieg]

Just thought I would let you know that I did file it myself with a fine file and it worked perfectly. Thanks for the advice.

[dadfad]

Glad we could help. (And that it worked!)