What Fret Wire to use ?

[GreenMTBoy]

Will soon be getting a Fret job the luthier says the price includes your choice of Fret wire
Any clear winner for a choice ?
My first Mando fret job so be easy on me !
Thanks for sharing your opinion

[George R. Lane]

Evo Wire. Has gold tone and lasts a long time

[kurth83]

I like taller frets as a general rule, but they make a bigger difference on a guitar than they do on a mando, the main benefit is you don't have to press as hard to fret and the tradeoff is if you press too hard you can stretch the string and play slightly sharp. The intonation difference is more noticable near the nut where the frets are further apart. On a mando both of those effects are much less than on a guitar, but they are still there. The intonation issue in particular is more noticable if you switch to very light strings, but again, on a mando, it really isn't a big deal, unlike say an electric guitar with jumbo frets.

I've had two mandos refretted with taller wire for my old fingers, and no complaints.

Evo is a more durable fretwire than standard, will last longer, and they will charge a bit more for a refret but worth it.
It is also gold colored which is cool for some.

May I suggest 80/40 or 80/43, Eastman standard is low at 53/31 AFAIK, so slightly wider and taller is my suggestion. Many folks find Eastman frets to be on the low side so I am not suggesting anything radical AFAIK.

[Tom Wright]

I have identical mandolins with EVO, one with them left fairly high and the other with them milled down kind of low. The main difference is that my fingers are bit less sure of where that fret is under them if it is pretty low. Both have the .080 Jescar EVO.

I have viewed from the side and find that even my very-low-fret instrument still has the string not bottoming out between the frets, so there is no mechanical difference. It is mainly about the feel.

I chew through frets quickly, but my main axe with EVO still is nearly unworn after 3 years of daily heavy use.

Some people feel that wider frets, as are my EVO, make fretting more difficult in the high range when they are close. This is again a case of feel---the clear tone comes from avoiding letting your finger roll on top of the fret and damping the string, and the wider frets tend to force you to fret a little further up, thus risking damping. It can be fine if you work to avoid that by simply remembering to lean away.

Low, thin, normal frets will wear quickly. Go for the EVO. Pete Mallinson of Almuse told me he found their supplied stock very accurately made and high quality.

[CES]

Another vote for EVO. Or, stainless steel. Big Joe recommends that superglue be utilized as well...

[Ivan Kelsall]

I'm pretty sure that the fret wire size used by Weber is fairly standard. The EVO Gold wire in that size is :- EVO Gold FW37080,
Ivan

[Black Flag]

My old LG-3 was refretted with EVO about three years ago and still shows no signs of fret wear. EVO will be my choice in the future for my other instruments.

[GreenMTBoy]

EVO fret wire looks to be the winner

[Mandoplumb]

What is EVO frets. Is it a type of material or a certain tempering or what? Maybe should ask what does EVO stand for?

[pheffernan]

Will soon be getting a Fret job the luthier says the price includes your choice of Fret wire
Any clear winner for a choice ?

If there is no upcharge, I'd choose stainless steel (like that found on my Poe Scout) with EVO (like that on my Black A2-z) a close second.

[Ivan Kelsall]

Here's the Jescar fretwire web page :- https://www.jescar.com/product-categ...lloy/evo-gold/

It doesn't say exactly what Evo stands for,but all the info.re.their fret wire is on there,
Ivan

[Mandoplumb]

Thanks Ivan can't access that with this antique I pad but will check it out when I get back home.