I get my HWY1 neck set up and of course it has buzzes on it (played acoustically) and the technician doesn't check the level of the frets. So I need to slightly level my frets to get rid of the buzzes. Anyone have any tips, the best crowning procedures or know a good place to get some tools (I have a Stew Mac catalog). I'm mechanically inclined and have an engineering degree so I think I can pull this off.

Stewart MacDonald is probably the best place online to get info and proper tools for, pretty much, anything guitar. There are lots of YouTube videos on the subject as well. Just search for "fret leveling".

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Calling an illegal alien an undocumented immigrant is like calling a drug dealer an undocumented pharmicist.

But stewmac's prices are absolute daylight robbery.

All you realy need is a straight edge, a flat/oil/sharpening stone, and a crowning file.

I made my own straight edge. I bought a 4ft aluminium rule. Cut it down to the length of the neck. Then placed it back on, marked either side of all frets and cut round em. You need that to get the neck straight, so you can check the frets are parallel to the board. I recommend a quater round fret file, to get those fret tops as round as possible without lowering them any more.

Heres a very incomplete overview of what i did. It doesnt go into rounding at all but gives a general idea of where your going.
http://www.fender.com/community/forums/viewtopic.php?t=20150&highlight=fret+level

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No no and no

I urgently recommend you practice on some clunkers first. In addition to all the scientific aspects, there is a lot of feel involved and at times, on the spot imagination too. Get several successes under your belt first before attemping to work on the 'real thing'.

I would not go the Stew-mac route. Their stuff is overpriced and the quality of some of it isn't the best. Besides, they will try to convince you that you urgently need every tool, book and video on the planet (that they sell) and every gimmick tool they ever came up with as a matter of dire necessity for a proper job.

I recommend Luthiers Mercantile:

http://www.lmii.com/

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You dig?

Martian.
Cheers mate i think i just got kitted out.

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No no and no

Excellent!

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You dig?

Hi cool9: regardless where you buy your tools (and you don't need many for this) one thing you can usefully buy from Stew-Mac is this book:

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Books,_plan ... _Step.html

I'm not aware of anything better on the subject. Study that hard and then, as has been wisely said, start on a cheapy before having at your American Strat.

Otherwise you may have to find yourself learning refretting, as well as levelling and crowning...

Good luck - C

In this opinion, leveling frets is a job for really competent pros, as a few bucks trying to be saved can be eaten up if there's a (beep) up.

Beware of extreme bargain hunting in eye care, auto brakes, parachutes and setup of good guitars.