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rastamypasta
Sep-11-2013, 11:08pm
So I have a Weber Gallatin F coming my way in the next month or so (with antique tobacco sunburst!!!!!) and when looking through the stats on it I noticed that the fret size is almost twice that of the Eastman 315 I play now. Does this just mean it is easier to fret? What difference will I notice? (Also I just wanted to tell someone that will appreciate the fact I am upgrading to great new mando! :grin:)

Folkmusician.com
Sep-11-2013, 11:55pm
Just based on my customers, players seem to be migrating toward larger frets. That said, there are some (a smaller percentage) that do prefer the smaller frets. I have done re-frets with both larger and smaller frets at the customer's request. It is a personal preference :)

oh... and congrats on the new mando. you can never have enough!

Tom Coletti
Sep-12-2013, 12:02am
I upgraded from a small-fret Kentucky to a large-fret Breedlove. Both had radiused fingerboards and V-shaped necks (the Breedlove is thicker), but even with light strings and low action, playing the Kentucky took a concentrated effort. The Breedlove is effortless, even with medium-gauge strings, and I've been able to more easily use my pinky on the lower notes. Overall I think that you'll really like the Weber Gallatin F. Great playability, great looks, and great tone. Congrats!

--Tom

9lbShellhamer
Sep-12-2013, 11:58am
Awesome. Congrats on the new buy.

I played a Breedlove and fell in love with the wider nut and bigger frets... I hope you like your Weber! I'm looking forward to comparing the new Kentucky KM950 to the Breedlove as I think the Weber is out of my price range.

I've also wondered if until I can upgrade mandolins if it would be worth it to refret my inexpensive KM160 with larger frets even though I wouldn't have the radiused fretboard or the wide nut...

Enjoy your new Weber.

Justus True Waldron
Sep-12-2013, 1:49pm
I was hoping somebody would start a thread like this (I suppose I could have searched for an old one, but I wasn't hoping THAT hard...).

I've got no answers but the same question. The frets on my Macica are pretty much jumbo sized, and as they are starting to wear, it's got me thinking about replacing them with some other size frets. I could probably just dress the frets and keep going seeing as they are large (which I think is one advantege of bigger frets - less wear), but lately I've played a couple mandos with smaller frets and it's got me wondering if I should try it out on mine. For me I feel like my frets are tall enough that pressing down with lots of force (as can tend to happen in the heat of the moment in a jam) can actually bend the note just slightly sharp. I also don't really feel all that secure in planting notes, as it feels more like a "hammock" than a solid plant on the fingerboard.

Now keep in mind here I'm being extremely picky - this is really fine stuff that doesn't make a huge difference in day to day playability, and most people that try my mando think it plays great - I just wonder if small frets might be the ticket for me. Am I a small fret guy?

The 4 newest Macicas I've tried, plus a kentucky I bought for someone else and played for a while have all had small frets and properly set up I found them really easy to get a super clean "plant" on every note. Is that something related to fret size or is it just in my head?

And to the OP - Enjoy the new Weber!!!

Tobin
Sep-13-2013, 7:19am
I actually have the opposite reaction, Justus. The very first mandolin I played had small frets, but each of the ones I've purchased after that had large frets. I got used to them, and now it feels weird going back to small frets because I feel like my fingers are "bottoming out" on the fingerboard, preventing me from being able to control fine pressure on the strings when I fret them. I rather like being able to fret the strings without all the extra business of my fingertips having that extra contact on the wood and feeling like I can't drive my strings harder because there's no more pressure I can put on the strings due to them being bottomed out. I am trying to use a light touch when playing slow and soft, and a firm touch when playing fast and loud. Having higher frets seems to help me with that. Yes, it's true that the strings can bend sharp with a really hard plant, but getting up close to the fret will minimize it.

So while you seem to prefer a "solid plant" on the fingerboard, I actually have come to prefer the opposite. Which just goes to show that it's a matter of personal preference, and offers one more way to personalize a mandolin to one's specific level of pickiness.

Of course, I suppose going to smaller frets would require adjusting the nut slots slightly deeper to accommodate. But going from small frets to large frets might mean replacing the nut and starting over.

UsuallyPickin
Sep-13-2013, 7:36am
I had both my mandolins refretted recently . There was not enough fret left on the F5 to dress again and the A5 had one dressing left. I was spending a week at The Swannanoa Gathering so I decided to have them both done while I was there. No waiting no transport to and from etc. The wire used by the luthier was slightly wider than what I was used to .017 .. maybe ..... I had only played one mandolin with similar wire and that not for enough time to get a feel for the difference.I was a bit nervous that I might not like it. Between the height of the wire and the width of the wire both mandolins , flat fretboard, are physically easier to play. Less "squeeze" is required now ... easier slides and hammer ons. I like it all around. R/

QCS
Sep-13-2013, 7:31pm
I went through a similar situation. Started out with an Eastman 615, great instrument. But, I had already been picking banjo for years. Banjo's have larger, fatter frets. I just could not get used to the feel of the Eastman. It played fine, but it did not feel fine to me. Ended up selling it and moving on to instruments with beefy frets. Way better feel if you ask me. I'll bet you find the new fret size an improvement over what you have been using, but that's just my opinion. Good luck with the new mandolin!

Cheryl Watson
Sep-13-2013, 7:57pm
It seems that a player needs experience with small, medium and large (banjo) frets in combination with different radiuses in order to discover what works better for him or her. Some players don't live in areas where mandolins are a-plenty and maybe neither get the chance to travel much to where there are many of them in one place.

Over the years, I have discovered that I prefer medium or large frets (I have a hard time getting fast clean notes with small frets) and a slight radius of about 16" or 14", but no more than 12". Too much of a radius and I have a hard time with bar chords, it is too hard to slide, and it just feels weird to me, for lack of a better explanation. Flat fretboards feel like they are a bit concave.

Then, some players get really picky about the crown/height of their frets and so forth...

Ed Goist
Sep-13-2013, 8:16pm
For the life of me I can't imagine anyone preferring small frets over large frets!...
That's like preferring walking up hill in a sleet storm to downhill on a cool, sunny day.

OldSausage
Sep-13-2013, 9:47pm
For the life of me I can't imagine anyone preferring small frets over large frets!...
That's like preferring walking up hill in a sleet storm to downhill on a cool, sunny day.

No it isn't. It's just some frets.

mandobassman
Sep-13-2013, 10:05pm
It may be one thing to compare one mandolin to another, with different fret sizes. There may be other factors unique to each instrument that affect playability. But the real test is re-fretting a mandolin that you have played for years and then going to larger frets.I did that back in the late 90's when I had my Kentucky KM-850 that I had played for over 10 years re-fretted with larger frets and I could not believe the difference in playability. It was night and day for me. I have not owned a mandolin with small frets since.

John Adrihan
Sep-14-2013, 7:13am
I have two instruments with contrasting setup - One with a radius and larger frets and the other with a flat board and super small frets. The one with the radius is a higher end small luthier built and the flat a higher end china made. They really do not play much diffferent from that point of view.