The guy actually blackmailed a customer to remove his negative review or he wouldn't get his refund. He bit the bullet and refused to do it and I applaud him for doing so. Some people have morals and ethics, the maker of FretMaestro not so much. Also, when the people in the comments section brought up the fact about fretboards being inconsistent, he made a new video calling them all naysayers and addressing a bunch of other issues that the commentors weren't even talking about. It all seems a little shady to me so no thanks, I'll stay away. Besides, the tools I already have work just fine, and most of them were cheaper than FretMaestro.
Its simple. The device will not do what it's supposed to. The entire point of leveling frets is because they were somehow not level before. An old fingerboard is not an appropriate gauge for fret height.
@@EbonyPopeWhich completely goes against the tools purpose, since that requires a refret job. Anyway, it would be stupid not to straighten the neck and check the fretboard to begin with if the idea is to level all frets.
@@EbonyPope yep. I even unscallop my scalloped fretboard before I level the board. Then, I level the frets. I use an epoxy/jello mix to completely cover the frets and board, and then I break out my bench grinder. It's quite a process. My results have been atrocious, but I do it like that.
I had to return my fret Kisser. I wanted to to work. It certainly could work... But my specific unit had the grit surfaces recessed a little too far. Enough so that it would not file frets that are clearly high according to my SM Fret Rocker. However, there's no innate flaw in the Fret Kisser, and Stew Mac refunded my purchase even though I had missed the window by a week (I bought via Amazon)
Exactly what I thought when I first saw his video. I would never assume a fretboard was straight and level to the degree needed for the requisite accuracy. I'm a retired aerospace mech engr.
I commented on the guy's videos, then he responded very defensively, and finally he removed my posts. Even if the Fret Maestro did work (which is unlikely), the well-established tools and methods work perfectly well, so the new tool is irrelevant.
Wow, I'm glad I stumbled on this video and the comments. I was " " this close to buying the Fret Maestro. The guy seemed a little odd, but I was taken in by his explanation. I hadn't considered the variations in the fretboard. I'll stick with the trad fret leveling method, but add a Stew Mac Fret Kisser. Thanks!
Thank you for this. I only do repair. I thought the exact same thing when I saw their promo video. Oh well, back to the old leveling beam, and radius block. And, of course the fret rocker.😂😂
I don't see how this thing could do a whole neck coherently, it seems to treat each fret in isolation without regard to the height of the others. Do I have that wrong?
Yea, little bit wrong. This thing could do a hole neck coherently, but only if neck 100% already dead straight. And all frets must be treated with same height as the lowest one on the fretboard. One same height for all frets. Only in this case this is achievable.
@@Arwndr I guess if I ever wake up in that mythical world where a neck is that dead straight and humidity and all the properties of wood don't exist, I will order one of these
@@pipelineaudio Your question was definitely not about ordering one this things. You get correct answer for it. If you can't make dead straight neck and have a deal with humidity, that is your world and skills. No one can't help you with that if you don't want to do nothing with that. 🤷 I don't buy this thing too... But, because of another reason. Definitely over priced, and very suspicious quality.
If the inventor ignored the critics and simply did his job instead of lashing out and killing all the bad press, I might cut the guy some slack. But his behavior speaks volumes about the kind of person he is. "They laughed at Edison and the Wright Brothers. They also laughed at Bozo the Clown." -Carl Sagan
@@thedevilinthecircuit1414 Edison laughed at Tesla when he asked Edison for the $50,000.00 he was promised to improve his DC motors and machines. Edison laughed and said you don't understand our American humor.
Simple - The fretboard isn't always known variable, and the stings need a parallel surface to play against. The frets need to be points on the same plane to work properly. That tool can't guarantee that kind of accuracy if the measurement is from the fretboard. I really wouldn't work on a scalloped fretboard, or one with heavy wear from fingernails.
Great insight Chris, I suspected that as a setup tool it would be worthless as doesn't set frets relative to one another, it sets them relative to the fretboard.
That is exactly the point, the frets are leveled in relation to the other frets, it takes out the discrepancies in the board as the board is rarely perfect. Also, having the radius built into the tool is a solution to problem that doesn't exist. If you are using a flat or straight crowning file and are not following the radius of the fret, you are no longer on the fret. Please do your research people before buying this tool, a basic understanding of the fret leveling procedure will save you some money.
If all buildings were built on perfectly level ground, the ground could be used as a reference to build them straight, but everyone knows that's not the case. Both my guitar and bass necks are far from straigth, so off course this product which uses the soundboard as a levelling referance would not make the frets flush with each other.
the Fret Maestro relies on the false premise that most guitar fretboards are perfectly flat. it's the top of the frets that matter so that should be the reference, which is exactly what a standard leveling beam achieves simply and elegantly and much cheaper and also easily caters for a compound (conical) radius and fret fall away, which the Fret Maestro doesn't. even if the fretboard was perfectly flat how would this even be useful for new builds unless the frets weren't seated properly onto the fretboard, and then you have a different problem. i'm sure the dimensional tolerance of new frets are higher than that of the Fret Maestro.
A new product/service/business gets one chance to make a good impression upon launch. The product and/or service must exist, be available, and do what is advertised. The vendor must be candid/honest in all respects, cater to the customer, and maintain a level of professionalism as expected in the marketplace. Failure of any one of these essential traits may doom the product/service/business. This is the real world.
When I commented under 2 of the Fret Maestro videos the fact that experienced luthiers/techs know fretboards are rarely perfectly level, the SixStringer guy completely denied it & insisted this well known fact is completely false - that's all the confirmation I need to write off his product
If someone is able to build a guitar, leveling and crowning the frets should be pretty easy for them without a bunch of expensive tools. Something like the Z file does speed up crowning a bit but not necessary either. Not too long ago, I saw on a video a highly regarded luthier re-fret an expensive vintage guitar. He used a 24" level you can buy at a home center with adhesive sandpaper to level the frets. It worked just fine.
I have a first edition of Guitarmaking: Tradition and Technology by William Cumpiano and Jonathan Natelson. They suggested using a 14" long machinists file for leveling frets!
@@HighlineGuitarsyeah ... I guess that could kind of work.. however Files aren't true... they can warp and bow during the hardening process.. one side is usually convex while the other is concave.... not to mention that a lot of new files are just a little too sharp , if that makes any sense .. I have a tool I made from a file that works well simply because it's rather dull ... kind of like a nutt file is ... if you can grasp my thought here ..
After 20 years of using normal crowning files for my guitars, I took the plunge and splashed out on a Z file from Stewmac. While bloody expensive, I wish I had done it sooner. Yes not necessary and traditional tool work too but so much quicker and makes short work re-crowning frets.
I could see the use for that product but not going to deal with a company that has no luthier reviews (they would be the first one to want any tool that can make tasks easier), and that company has their entity status revoked. Also suspecious that there is only one review on YT that doesn’t even show the process.
I don't even need to test it to know it's not worth it. It's pretty clear, fretboards cannot be considered level to that accuracy, even with sanding. Leveling frets is a job with such minute details and low tolerances that you really need to take your time, or use a plek. The most boring part is actually taping the fretboard, and I cringe everytime I see someone not doing it. I learned the hard way. I once droped a very small metal tool on a beautiful rosewood that it's now dinged for life. Also, I have a nice one that has metal dust in the pores and will have for life. Oils only drove it deeper. Just take your time and do it correctly. Especially if your being paid and trusted w/ someone else's instrument.
i think, it might be a good tool, but there are some changes i'd make that would turn it into a similar but different tool. on a near perfect fretboard, a longer tool and instead of using a full length file(which seems it'd be hard to make), a concave carbide cutter... the overall concept is fantastic. maybe if it bridged several frets instead of resting on the wood it'd even them out better and be good on worn out fretboards. with the carbide cutter it'd be something near anyone could make with a bit of plastic sheet.
I bought a Fret Kisser from StewMac. It's expensive esp. post to the UK, but works really well. Essentially, it's a fret rocker with a flush middle portion of each edge having a diamond cutting surface , so that once the cutting portion above the middle fret grinds down to the same level as the other two frets, it can't grind any further. It only grinds the areas that need grinding. Also, StewMac replace worn tools for life, so you only have to purchase once. Works on stainless steel.
@@Broken-Silencer yah, that would flatten the top of the frets, but a decent idea. maybe if there were a rounded or vee shaped cutter it'd be better, but i can see trying to get it lined up right as a chore.
@@Broken-Silencer yes, if you have just a few slightly high frets then a fret kisser is they way to go. In a pinch or on the cheap you can also make one using a regular fret rocker and some strips of sand paper (320 grit or so) taped to the rocker. put the strips on the outside with grit towards the rocker, and a strip in the middle with grit to the outside. that way it remains level but only grinds the middle fret until it is level.
@@felderup fret leveling is done in two steps. first level them (which flattens the crown), then crown them, which restores the crown shape, but you don't round it off completely. you keep a narrow flat spot. the flatness is more important than having a perfect crown shape.
Chris thank you for sharing your opinion on Maestro. Recently I have bought a tool by Hosco, called Ultimate Fret Crown Optimizer (aka UFO). It is quite a unique approach to fret crowning and makes sense on paper, but I don't have enough experience to compare it to other tools. Also, there is not much info on the internet about this tool. I would like to know your opinion on Hosco UFO if you can find the opportunity
yeh I'd like to see the science in operation, intially, it looks pretty pointless, why take off extra side material that has no effect, but so long as it doesn't take any material off the top of the frets it should work the same as a typical recrowning file
@@kaz0271 It works but one cannot be sure if they are doing the right thing. There is not a manual or detailed info on Hosco website for finding the right gauge for your fret size. What is a "fret radius", I have never heard or read such a classification, thus many people confuse it with fretboard radius. To cut it short I have managed to understand crowning wtih that tool but it was like walking in the dark
I have same thoughts as yours in this video. And same reason stop me from purchase - the Price... Way over priced for this specific task in fretting process. Thanks for your videos! ✨🌿☀️
I will say this : Stewmac already has a proven spot fret leveling tool... and it works off of the adjoining frets above and below the high fret ... I personally would be more inclined to buy that tool .. because it seems to work well on a single area of a fret.. for instance let's say your 10th fret is fine .. except when you put your rocker up around where the A string string rides.... you just put this against the A string and work it back and forth until you can feel it's no longer filing.. I would think this would fit your needs better than that fret maestro tool , in this case .. and you're only leveling exactly where needed.... However, if the whole fret is high ... well ,time to get the leveling beam out. Just a thought
Thanks, Chris. I was curious about this device, and considered buying it, but there was something about it that didn't jibe. It's not the fret, it's the fretboard. And I was suspicious, well, convinced actually, that this thing might just reproduce inconsistencies of the board instead of creating uniformity along the crowns.
I did purchase one and the reverb seller site was a mess, the product is what I would call very unpolished, I’ve been wary of even trying it based on what it seems. I plan on trying it on a cheaper guitar to see how it goes. I wanted to try Music Nomad’s Z file, that tool seems legitimate and they are always out of inventory for it. That tool I definitely would try. I’ll try to remember to come back and comment or upload a video one day. The seller Six string also immediately began asking for 5 star reviews without even first finding out what I thought. That just sort of shows you the overall interaction with the manufacturer and seller, and me being leery of using it.
I find the Fret Maestro interesting as well. There are several applications for it which it works perfectly. Yeah it might not work for old abused guitars with messed up fretboards, but for someone like me who mods and sets up mostly new guitars, assembles kits and partscasters, or builds complete guitars from scratch this could be great. Not all guitar work is guitar repair or vintage restoration. My question is if you're doing something like a refret on an older instrument, aren't you going to at least do some light radius sanding to even out any surface irregularities? Doing fretwork on a dented, pitted, bent, or twisted fretboard or neck seems like a mistake at best and laziness at worst.
I saw the videos when they came out and it just made no sense to me. I feel sorry for people who buy one thinking it's going to be a magic bullet because they're just going to feel ripped off.
I actually invested in 3 of these in 3 different radii. In my case, I had already leveled the frets, and was looking for something better than a regular crowning file. I was less than impressed. I ended up removing the file from the Maestro and just using it to crown the frets. I still didn't get a good hemispherical crown. I might still use the other tools in the future, but only the files themselves. I found the actual Fret Maestro next to useless.
Thanks, thought it might have some use for crowning at least, but seems that they forgot to adress the difference in fret widths too. Could have been nice with a video showing the issues too though.
I was very surprised to receive an immediate and slightly indignant reply after posting that I thought saying “no experience needed” was a bad idea. Our conversation continued and the tone was a bit bizarre, along the lines of “how do you know?” Just my intuition that my Mom might struggle with such a job, which somehow offended him. Quite odd.
I love this. I'm gonna review guitars I don't have. I'll start with Highline. "Had to set the action 5mm high. It's like they never leveled the frets" Just kidding, man. I really like your builds. Keep up the good work!
@@HighlineGuitars why do think I was so adamant that you use Brazilian Rosewood for the board?? You were all like "no no that's illegal", and I'm like "no no that's necessary!". I knew playing guitar was a bad idea. I shoulda played the f'n drums...
Chris: Thank you for your thoughts. As you said, Fret Maestro seems to be a building/total repair (rebuild) tool, not a loose fret/worn fret tool. I hope that you can get your hands on one to review. Maybe the hysteria will pass if a solid third-party person, like yourself, can provide judgment.
So far multiple solid third parties have weighed in, mostly to the tune of negative opinions or "useful for spot cleanups but not for claimed purpose" and still we have the maker making fake accounts to spam glowing testimonials. Testimonials so glowing they're obviously fake PR. Frankly, the owner is such a blatant jerk that the product deserves to fail just to humble the blowhard- but given how half-assed said product is, I've no fear that we'll get there eventually.
Understood, great explanation, only works effectively as circumference or vice versa for the tool, bottom line is the neck and tool have to be "absolute" in circumference.
I can't speak for other users experience. I bought them. I have done 3 necks with them. They do work and the argument that the fret board has to be perfect is not truthful. Where people fail with this tool is that they are not taking the fret down to 0 tolerance. If you want this to give you perfect frets then you have to have the neck perfectly flat just like you would for a regular fret level and use a fret rocker. If you have any rock then you haven't reached 0 tolerance its that simple. You can't rely on the tool to indicate your at 0. You have to work the tool at various angles and directions to get to 0 tolerance, especially if your leveling a neck that had a previous hand worked fret job because I guarantee those frets are not perfectly uniform . It will not go any farther than what you set it so in that sense its very safe in preserving fret material. Depending on how much material you have to take off it can take a lot of filing. More than I think people realize and the reason people think it doesn't work. They just give up too early. That being said the way the creator is marketing it is not helping the case. Its not a tool that I think can replace all the other fret leveling tools. I did a really bad china made neck and it took forever to get to 0 tolerance because I had to take off substantial amounts of material to get all the frets equal to the lowest one. The better way to use this tool in this instance is use a beam first to make short work of the highest frets then come back with the tool to finish leveling and crowning. It makes wonderful uniform crowns by the way. A lot better than I can make with the stew mac z file. The only caveat being that really tall jumbo frets can develop a ridge or shoulder but those can be quickly touched up with a z file. I'm happy with them and will continue to use them along side my other tools. I think they will work nicely just for touching up a few high frets also but I would still do it strings off with a flat neck and a fret rocker. Also imperfections in the neck board have to be dramatic to adversely influence how this tool works. Any imperfections I have come across so far were a non issue and tool worked just fine. By the way all 3 necks came out great and play beautifully. This was just my experience.
@@JoeBaermann If the fret width is wider than the mold of the file it may be an issue. As I mentioned with the Jumbo frets I did see some shouldering of the fret that I had to dress. Shallow frets would suffer the same issue because the gauge that holds the file sets the height of fret and the diamond grit of the file does not extend down in to the sides of the gauge if that makes sense. You would still get the ridge. I can't speak about scalloped necks as I have never done one. I tend to think that it would be less of an issue because you will be able to manipulate the file rolling side to side because their is less fret material in the way. Just spit balling on that though.
@@jsting100 Thank you. I think the tool won’t work as intended when the board is scalloped, no shoulders on the sides of the frets to guide against. Have to mark and watch, but is it better than a good diamond crowning file at that point, since it seems easier to see what happens when working with a file that doesn’t cover the sides of the frets that much?
@@JoeBaermann I think your right with not being able to set the depth of the gauge without there being some fret board material available to serve as the guide. As I said I've never even played or leveled a scalloped neck so I can't speak with any experience regarding that type of neck. As far as a crowning file only I think it absolutely would still work. As you said mark it up and watch just as would any other crowning tool.
My point is that I can't review products I don't have. This video was directed at several specific individuals and it accomplished it's mission perfectly.
If you keep this up you'll have a fight from Chris. He never backs down from a fight. However, I did win a fight with him using his own words. It was hugely fun! (I'm sure Chris remembers that.)(I hope he comments and we can spar!)
Would you like my set? i found it to work twice and i had one botched neck, so its perhaps not working in my shop i dont see myself recieving any refund at this point and id love more info out there
Thanks for the thoughts. Like you, I’ve only seen the tool online although I had the same conclusion, as long as the fretboard’s perfect it might work well enough. However, given the owner’s attitude towards anyone who doesn’t say it’s the greatest thing ever I’d still think twice about spending my money there even if it was genuinely the greatest thing ever.
I’d sure recommend you not dedicating much time, effort, or funds on the Maestro product. I’ve been waiting some months to see any forward movement in the manufacturer’s progress. Not one single thing appears to have changed since I started checking into the tool and/of its maker. I am of the well considered opinion that the primary spokesperson for the Maestro product is either unable to finish construction, or has realized a flaw in the product, or quite possibly there is no product. The bottom line is obvious. The man speaks of a fascinating perspective on fret work. We see enough of “a product” to be captivated by the possibilities. Some have sent their payment in to this gentleman. Whoever gets this tool will be showing off in a TH-cam video and rightly so. However I can not find one credible individual who has it. To be candid, the one or two people claiming to have one, don’t seem to be talking about it much at all. When you stick your head out the window to hear the celebratory whooping of somebody who finally got their Maestro order delivered, you will hear nothing but crickets. You seem like a good guy. I’m telling you and anybody else who asks. It’s too expensive to risk being among the several gamblers willing to take chance on losing their money. Wait until you see a lot of signs that the Maestro has been delivered to a lot of people. Because you ain’t seeing or hearing squat so far. It’s real tempting to gamble on a new item, but it makes no sense to buy squat. Take care. Stay smart. Keep your cool.
As quick as I discovered the fret maestro (an hour ago) Ive noticed no one seems to have one. This is a game changer product if actually real but I checked the site and every option of it’s hefty price tag says it’s sold out but with the internet being what it is these days TH-cam should be blowing up with reviews…but it’s not
I left a critical comment on one of his video and believe me he is a deeply unpleasant man. Snake oil for Newbs would sum up my opinion. I can imagine being inexperienced and falling for his assertion that levelling beams "bulkdoze " the radius with flat centre. I suggested he was wrong and an experienced luth or tech follows an imaginary section of cone and contours the levelling action thus preserving radius. I even pointed out how humps in the neck due to compression and use of green wood in cheap guitars made the neck a useless guide for judging fret height. His lengthy reply was a hectoring lecture aimed at undermining proven techniques and instilling fears and doubts. I was going to reply "if you'd been sitting on your mothers shoulders you wouldn't have been fit to kiss Frank Ford's arse" but the world is Febrile enough so I ignored him
It would seem that whether you use a Fret Maestro or the conventional method of leveling frets .... knowing that the neck and fretboard are perfectly straight would be the best place to start. That may be a good video for you to do in the future: How to assess a guitar neck for straightness and levelness. It seems that the old-fashioned "eyeball method" is the one that most Repair Techs use ... but when you are looking for perfection, that's probably not good enough ... especially for the DIY Repair Tech.
Straight and flat are not quite the same thing. the Fret Maestro doesn't require the neck to be straight, (so you don't have to adjust the truss rod) but it assumes the fretboard has a high tolerance of flatness when straight. with a leveling beam of course the neck must be adjusted to be straight but that's easily achieved with a notched straight edge. If you're looking for perfection then your best reference is a straight edge, which is a lot easier to verify and maintain (ie. leveling beam). With Fret Maestro you have over 20 chances (each fret) for errors to creep in. any bump or build up of filings, or variation in pressure applied will introduce errors, and even if you check with a notched straight edge for relative straightness you can't be sure there aren't any variances at the frets themselves.
To be more specific, you SHOULD make sure the neck (fretboard) is straight/flat, but if you didn't, and the frets had enough meat on them, you could get them perfect with a leveling beam, with respect to each other, even if the neck had a bow in either direction, was twisted or looked like a potato chip! You would just have some frets that were taller than others. The tops of the frets could be perfect after using a leveling beam, but would be unplayable if you used the fret maestro. Bazinga!
I will not use it. I've seen the videos, and I can very easily imagine myself using it. But the price man ! The price is a no no no... I will stay with my "old school" tools... What I miss is different files shapes according to the different fret models. When new they have a shape, but after a leveling it's very difficult to do something else than putting your file radius and shape. A set of 3 different shape diamond files would be all I need
This video is a perfect example of why a script is so important. This guy said the same things over and over and over again. Talk about taking an hour to make minute rice...
The guy has 105 reviews on Reverb with a 5-star rating (for both the fret maestro and his picks). Faulty or not, I think those who portray him as a conman or some kind of bad player should be a little more balanced and less emotional in their criticism.
A bunch of 5 star ratings really mean nothing, Amazon is replete with products with 5 star ratings that are complete junk. I was even offered a discount on a product for giving a high rating.
If the inventor ignored the critics and simply did his job instead of lashing out and killing all the bad press, I might agree with you. But his behavior speaks volumes about the kind of person he is. "They laughed at Edison and the Wright Brothers. They also laughed at Bozo the Clown." -Carl Sagan
Chris, thanks for taking the time to make this video. Based on info similar to what you cite, I had come to the same conclusion as to this tool’s likely strengths and weaknesses. As an amateur I appreciate you sharing your opinions as a professional.
all depends on the use case. if you knew more about wood and engineering outside your specialty, you'd be able to know your use case instead of guesing. and patent? ok, expert...
I think there is room for improvement in how leveling is done.....but that device isn't it. It's a good thing it's expensive because I can see a lot of desperate players ruining their guitars with it if it was like $40.
Agree with your thoughts on the tool. I think it’s probably a good tool for what it can do. I would only invest in such a tool if I were working on many guitars for other people. It’s not worth the investment for just one’s own use, either repairing or for new builds. It’s just not that much of a hassle to work by hand to spot level those very few times it’s necessary.
The bloke who sells them is soooo sure of himself it’s untrue. Up his own arse is what we would say in the UK. I was slightly critical about something to do with it and the answer I got back was full of sarcasm and hate I just thought to myself that this bloke is the last person in the world I’d wanna give some of my money to. Way too overpriced, stay away!
It seems like more of a crowning file than some complete fret leveling and crowning solution. The idea of building radius into it just seemed ridiculous to me when the radius is in the fret board and the frets once they are installed.
Chris, your insights are valuable, but it's unfortunate that no experienced luthiers have tested and demonstrated the 'Fret Maestro' tool yet. Without real-world trials, it's hard to determine its effectiveness. Hopefully, we'll see more thorough evaluations soon. 🎸
Talking about I don't do patrion or members, just go to my links below..I thought finally someone who does this out of the good of his heart. Thought, I will go and check these links out .maybe wanna support this kind guy...first I saw, hoody for over 50£ a pop????wtf...then vids for members only...yes..ok one of those guys, same as all the rest of the c..py bunch...no thanks.. you won't get a view of me and definitely not a subscription or thumbs up....if anything 👎🏻
@@timothyfles-v8g Sorry you feel that way but I got mouths to feed and a mortgage to pay. Also, when a family member develops a serious heart condition, things change. Here in America, healthcare is extremely expensive.
Everything that I've seen in hand that was disgustingly stolen from the original company has never been as good usually not even close to tolerance sloppy fitting parts loose threads poorly fitting components so in my experience the knock off never seems to work correctly unless modified, then whats the point.like everyone i am waiting to hear back from the community of luthiers on the results of this tool 🔧 😮it does look promising but sometimes the old way is the best way ,but maybe with time and input from everyone we can see the results, i would like to see this invention in live action. It does seem like a great idea. Just make sure everything is perfectly straight, like dial indicator straight to perfect on your fretboard and this thing could be a valuable tool depending on what your working with,it is definitely true many practicing guitarist doing there own repairs and maintenance have accidentally sanded off to much material by mistake 😬 😳 😅 35 years ago i was that 18 year old that knew everything and made that mistake 😮😊but hands on is how we learn ,i am hoping in the future this company will loan you there tool to perform a fret level and re crown on your channel ❤keep building musical art brother.i have always liked the little brick and mortar guitar builders products to the huge companies products 😍 sometimes in my experience even expensive guitars 🎸 need to be reworked which is horrible for the money they charge nicely aged wood seems to sound just fine to me and sometimes costs thousands less 😊
One thing is clear, the FM thing has the world record of luthiers making videos about a tool without having actually used it. Click bait, effective as you mention in a comment, but pure click bait
Clickbait is when the content falls short of what the headline implies. Not the case here. The Highline Guitars guy seems practical and straightforward.
Ok I understand, but if I see a pro luthier 17 min video titled ‘my thoughts on X tool’ I assume the pro guy actually tests it… and that’s what happened, I thought ‘finally a pro level test of the thing’ and that’s why I clicked on the link. Great channel , great videos, misleading title this time IMO. Hope you get one sent to you and actually give it a go and share the experience here, this must be the hottest topic in years in the guitar tools community!
If all building were built on perfectly level ground, the ground could be used as a reference to build them straight, but everyone knows that's not the case. Both my guitar and bass necks are far from straigth so off course this product which uses the soundboard as a levelling referance would not make the frets flush with each other.
After watching the demo video I think this tool seems to be useful only for leveling a few frets after they just have been installed and it can work only if the fretboard itself is perfectly made. But it can't work with the compound radius fretboards, because each fret has its own radius value there and this tool fits only a few radius values. It also can't work for levelling the weared frets , because you can't measure the weared spots of the frets and be sure the fretboard has no bumps or lower spots. This tool could be a pretty good fret crowning file, if they produced a less expensive 'light' version without height adjustment option. However, after watching the other videos about this tool and its builder I think the way this guy treats his customers is absolutely unacceptable, so I wouldn't deal with him anyway.
@@MrNocaster oh that’s funny. I have never called on businesses for collaboration opportunities. They usually call me and I always decline in favor of purchasing the products myself. I almost ordered one, but was put off by the negative reviews.
Unless the guy is trying to license it to stewmac, id say its most likely an expensive dud. No videos demoing it, no satisfaction guarantee. The dudes demeanor comes off as negative. Also I don't think its a good idea, id rather level off the entirety of the frets, not the fretboard, would be too inconsistent
Hi Chris as a man making a living from building guitars. Sometimes you have to buy a product to try yourself. I think in my opinion and it is only my opinion, the video was pointless. Thanks for the interesting content but for me this fell flat. Best wishes
Yeah, he never held it let alone used it... but he figured heck, why not do an assassination video and ride on the coat tails for a tool he never used, get record views and he can sell more t-shirts. Yeah, what a guy.@@UTubeHandlesSuck
@@SixStringers I was going to respond by requesting a sample for evaluation, but since the majority of comments on this video are critical of your product in a very negative way, I don’t see the point. If your product is as good as you claim, the Chinese will knock it off for half the price or Stewmac will come out with something similar at around same price but with a lifetime warranty. Maybe then I’ll be tempted to give it a try. However, given the negativity of the comments for this video and the negative reviews I’ve seen here on TH-cam, I doubt the Chinese or Stewmac will waste their time and resources.
Thanks for the thoughts. Like you, I’ve only seen the tool online although I had the same conclusion, as long as the fretboard’s perfect it might work well enough. However, given the owner’s attitude towards anyone who doesn’t say it’s the greatest thing ever I’d still think twice about spending my money there even if it was genuinely the greatest thing ever.
The guy actually blackmailed a customer to remove his negative review or he wouldn't get his refund. He bit the bullet and refused to do it and I applaud him for doing so. Some people have morals and ethics, the maker of FretMaestro not so much. Also, when the people in the comments section brought up the fact about fretboards being inconsistent, he made a new video calling them all naysayers and addressing a bunch of other issues that the commentors weren't even talking about. It all seems a little shady to me so no thanks, I'll stay away. Besides, the tools I already have work just fine, and most of them were cheaper than FretMaestro.
I'd have removed it and reposted it once I got a refund 😂
@@studowling Not just that, but he’s been deleting/reporting any negative comments on his videos.
Its simple. The device will not do what it's supposed to. The entire point of leveling frets is because they were somehow not level before. An old fingerboard is not an appropriate gauge for fret height.
That is why you should level the fretboard first. Then you have a reliable guide.
@@EbonyPopeWhich completely goes against the tools purpose, since that requires a refret job.
Anyway, it would be stupid not to straighten the neck and check the fretboard to begin with if the idea is to level all frets.
@@EbonyPope yep. I even unscallop my scalloped fretboard before I level the board. Then, I level the frets. I use an epoxy/jello mix to completely cover the frets and board, and then I break out my bench grinder.
It's quite a process.
My results have been atrocious, but I do it like that.
The StewMac fret kisser has been my best fret tool.
I had to return my fret Kisser. I wanted to to work. It certainly could work... But my specific unit had the grit surfaces recessed a little too far. Enough so that it would not file frets that are clearly high according to my SM Fret Rocker.
However, there's no innate flaw in the Fret Kisser, and Stew Mac refunded my purchase even though I had missed the window by a week (I bought via Amazon)
Exactly what I thought when I first saw his video. I would never assume a fretboard was straight and level to the degree needed for the requisite accuracy. I'm a retired aerospace mech engr.
Your fears seem valid. the fretboard must be spot on for it to work accurately which is a pity as at first sight it looks very good.
I commented on the guy's videos, then he responded very defensively, and finally he removed my posts. Even if the Fret Maestro did work (which is unlikely), the well-established tools and methods work perfectly well, so the new tool is irrelevant.
Wow, I'm glad I stumbled on this video and the comments. I was " " this close to buying the Fret Maestro. The guy seemed a little odd, but I was taken in by his explanation. I hadn't considered the variations in the fretboard. I'll stick with the trad fret leveling method, but add a Stew Mac Fret Kisser. Thanks!
Thank you for this. I only do repair. I thought the exact same thing when I saw their promo video. Oh well, back to the old leveling beam, and radius block. And, of course the fret rocker.😂😂
I don't see how this thing could do a whole neck coherently, it seems to treat each fret in isolation without regard to the height of the others. Do I have that wrong?
That was my very first thought watching the SixString promos and I have seen nothing that would change that.
Yea, little bit wrong.
This thing could do a hole neck coherently, but only if neck 100% already dead straight.
And all frets must be treated with same height as the lowest one on the fretboard. One same height for all frets.
Only in this case this is achievable.
@@Arwndr I guess if I ever wake up in that mythical world where a neck is that dead straight and humidity and all the properties of wood don't exist, I will order one of these
@@pipelineaudio Your question was definitely not about ordering one this things. You get correct answer for it.
If you can't make dead straight neck and have a deal with humidity, that is your world and skills. No one can't help you with that if you don't want to do nothing with that.
🤷
I don't buy this thing too...
But, because of another reason.
Definitely over priced, and very suspicious quality.
If the inventor ignored the critics and simply did his job instead of lashing out and killing all the bad press, I might cut the guy some slack. But his behavior speaks volumes about the kind of person he is. "They laughed at Edison and the Wright Brothers. They also laughed at Bozo the Clown." -Carl Sagan
@@thedevilinthecircuit1414 Edison laughed at Tesla when he asked Edison for the $50,000.00 he was promised to improve his DC motors and machines. Edison laughed and said you don't understand our American humor.
Simple - The fretboard isn't always known variable, and the stings need a parallel surface to play against. The frets need to be points on the same plane to work properly. That tool can't guarantee that kind of accuracy if the measurement is from the fretboard. I really wouldn't work on a scalloped fretboard, or one with heavy wear from fingernails.
Great insight Chris, I suspected that as a setup tool it would be worthless as doesn't set frets relative to one another, it sets them relative to the fretboard.
That is exactly the point, the frets are leveled in relation to the other frets, it takes out the discrepancies in the board as the board is rarely perfect. Also, having the radius built into the tool is a solution to problem that doesn't exist. If you are using a flat or straight crowning file and are not following the radius of the fret, you are no longer on the fret. Please do your research people before buying this tool, a basic understanding of the fret leveling procedure will save you some money.
A very good and well thought out though process.
Thank you Chris for your perspective on this, Never thought about how it's using the fretboard as a reference point. Chris Wisdom. Respect. 😊
I bought one 8 months ago. Have never used it as I am a hobbyist and don’t get to build regularly.
Would you like to try mine?
If all buildings were built on perfectly level ground, the ground could be used as a reference to build them straight, but everyone knows that's not the case. Both my guitar and bass necks are far from straigth, so off course this product which uses the soundboard as a levelling referance would not make the frets flush with each other.
the Fret Maestro relies on the false premise that most guitar fretboards are perfectly flat. it's the top of the frets that matter so that should be the reference, which is exactly what a standard leveling beam achieves simply and elegantly and much cheaper and also easily caters for a compound (conical) radius and fret fall away, which the Fret Maestro doesn't. even if the fretboard was perfectly flat how would this even be useful for new builds unless the frets weren't seated properly onto the fretboard, and then you have a different problem. i'm sure the dimensional tolerance of new frets are higher than that of the Fret Maestro.
A new product/service/business gets one chance to make a good impression upon launch.
The product and/or service must exist, be available, and do what is advertised.
The vendor must be candid/honest in all respects, cater to the customer, and maintain a level of professionalism as expected in the marketplace.
Failure of any one of these essential traits may doom the product/service/business.
This is the real world.
When I commented under 2 of the Fret Maestro videos the fact that experienced luthiers/techs know fretboards are rarely perfectly level, the SixStringer guy completely denied it & insisted this well known fact is completely false - that's all the confirmation I need to write off his product
If someone is able to build a guitar, leveling and crowning the frets should be pretty easy for them without a bunch of expensive tools. Something like the Z file does speed up crowning a bit but not necessary either. Not too long ago, I saw on a video a highly regarded luthier re-fret an expensive vintage guitar. He used a 24" level you can buy at a home center with adhesive sandpaper to level the frets. It worked just fine.
I have a first edition of Guitarmaking: Tradition and Technology by William Cumpiano and Jonathan Natelson. They suggested using a 14" long machinists file for leveling frets!
@@HighlineGuitarsyeah ... I guess that could kind of work.. however Files aren't true... they can warp and bow during the hardening process.. one side is usually convex while the other is concave.... not to mention that a lot of new files are just a little too sharp , if that makes any sense .. I have a tool I made from a file that works well simply because it's rather dull ... kind of like a nutt file is ... if you can grasp my thought here ..
After 20 years of using normal crowning files for my guitars, I took the plunge and splashed out on a Z file from Stewmac. While bloody expensive, I wish I had done it sooner. Yes not necessary and traditional tool work too but so much quicker and makes short work re-crowning frets.
I could see the use for that product but not going to deal with a company that has no luthier reviews (they would be the first one to want any tool that can make tasks easier), and that company has their entity status revoked.
Also suspecious that there is only one review on YT that doesn’t even show the process.
I don't even need to test it to know it's not worth it. It's pretty clear, fretboards cannot be considered level to that accuracy, even with sanding. Leveling frets is a job with such minute details and low tolerances that you really need to take your time, or use a plek. The most boring part is actually taping the fretboard, and I cringe everytime I see someone not doing it. I learned the hard way. I once droped a very small metal tool on a beautiful rosewood that it's now dinged for life. Also, I have a nice one that has metal dust in the pores and will have for life. Oils only drove it deeper. Just take your time and do it correctly. Especially if your being paid and trusted w/ someone else's instrument.
There is a Stew Mac video on steaming a rosewood fretboard to bring out impressions from dings, etc.
i think, it might be a good tool, but there are some changes i'd make that would turn it into a similar but different tool. on a near perfect fretboard, a longer tool and instead of using a full length file(which seems it'd be hard to make), a concave carbide cutter... the overall concept is fantastic.
maybe if it bridged several frets instead of resting on the wood it'd even them out better and be good on worn out fretboards. with the carbide cutter it'd be something near anyone could make with a bit of plastic sheet.
I bought a Fret Kisser from StewMac. It's expensive esp. post to the UK, but works really well. Essentially, it's a fret rocker with a flush middle portion of each edge having a diamond cutting surface , so that once the cutting portion above the middle fret grinds down to the same level as the other two frets, it can't grind any further. It only grinds the areas that need grinding. Also, StewMac replace worn tools for life, so you only have to purchase once. Works on stainless steel.
@@Broken-Silencer yah, that would flatten the top of the frets, but a decent idea. maybe if there were a rounded or vee shaped cutter it'd be better, but i can see trying to get it lined up right as a chore.
@@Broken-Silencer yes, if you have just a few slightly high frets then a fret kisser is they way to go. In a pinch or on the cheap you can also make one using a regular fret rocker and some strips of sand paper (320 grit or so) taped to the rocker. put the strips on the outside with grit towards the rocker, and a strip in the middle with grit to the outside. that way it remains level but only grinds the middle fret until it is level.
@@felderup fret leveling is done in two steps. first level them (which flattens the crown), then crown them, which restores the crown shape, but you don't round it off completely. you keep a narrow flat spot. the flatness is more important than having a perfect crown shape.
@@larrysteinke1839 yes, but aside from a tiny flat, it's round. a custom cutter could be made the exact shape in steel then hardened.
Chris thank you for sharing your opinion on Maestro. Recently I have bought a tool by Hosco, called Ultimate Fret Crown Optimizer (aka UFO). It is quite a unique approach to fret crowning and makes sense on paper, but I don't have enough experience to compare it to other tools. Also, there is not much info on the internet about this tool. I would like to know your opinion on Hosco UFO if you can find the opportunity
yeh I'd like to see the science in operation, intially, it looks pretty pointless, why take off extra side material that has no effect, but so long as it doesn't take any material off the top of the frets it should work the same as a typical recrowning file
I have it, it doesn't work very well at all and I think mine may be defective.
@@RGBloke because as the name suggests it is a crowning file, not a leveling file
@@kaz0271 It works but one cannot be sure if they are doing the right thing. There is not a manual or detailed info on Hosco website for finding the right gauge for your fret size. What is a "fret radius", I have never heard or read such a classification, thus many people confuse it with fretboard radius. To cut it short I have managed to understand crowning wtih that tool but it was like walking in the dark
I have same thoughts as yours in this video. And same reason stop me from purchase - the Price...
Way over priced for this specific task in fretting process.
Thanks for your videos! ✨🌿☀️
It worked great for me. 2005 SG with pitted frets. Never leveled frets before, and it came out great.
I will say this : Stewmac already has a proven spot fret leveling tool... and it works off of the adjoining frets above and below the high fret ... I personally would be more inclined to buy that tool .. because it seems to work well on a single area of a fret.. for instance let's say your 10th fret is fine .. except when you put your rocker up around where the A string string rides.... you just put this against the A string and work it back and forth until you can feel it's no longer filing..
I would think this would fit your needs better than that fret maestro tool , in this case .. and you're only leveling exactly where needed....
However, if the whole fret is high ... well ,time to get the leveling beam out.
Just a thought
Thanks. I don’t see how it would be any better than sending with a block that has the correct radius.
Thanks, Chris. I was curious about this device, and considered buying it, but there was something about it that didn't jibe. It's not the fret, it's the fretboard. And I was suspicious, well, convinced actually, that this thing might just reproduce inconsistencies of the board instead of creating uniformity along the crowns.
I have an old Bondo file and a straight edge that I use. I like em!
I did purchase one and the reverb seller site was a mess, the product is what I would call very unpolished, I’ve been wary of even trying it based on what it seems.
I plan on trying it on a cheaper guitar to see how it goes. I wanted to try Music Nomad’s Z file, that tool seems legitimate and they are always out of inventory for it. That tool I definitely would try.
I’ll try to remember to come back and comment or upload a video one day.
The seller Six string also immediately began asking for 5 star reviews without even first finding out what I thought.
That just sort of shows you the overall interaction with the manufacturer and seller, and me being leery of using it.
Hi Chris. I would like to see you reviewing that tool to level the frets with the strings on.
I find the Fret Maestro interesting as well. There are several applications for it which it works perfectly.
Yeah it might not work for old abused guitars with messed up fretboards, but for someone like me who mods and sets up mostly new guitars, assembles kits and partscasters, or builds complete guitars from scratch this could be great.
Not all guitar work is guitar repair or vintage restoration.
My question is if you're doing something like a refret on an older instrument, aren't you going to at least do some light radius sanding to even out any surface irregularities? Doing fretwork on a dented, pitted, bent, or twisted fretboard or neck seems like a mistake at best and laziness at worst.
I saw the videos when they came out and it just made no sense to me. I feel sorry for people who buy one thinking it's going to be a magic bullet because they're just going to feel ripped off.
They didn't make sense? I thought they were brutally clear.
How can it be brutally clear when the FretMaestro guy goes off on tangents every other minute?
When something seems too good to be true it usually is.
The problem is, sometimes it is true.
I actually invested in 3 of these in 3 different radii. In my case, I had already leveled the frets, and was looking for something better than a regular crowning file. I was less than impressed. I ended up removing the file from the Maestro and just using it to crown the frets. I still didn't get a good hemispherical crown. I might still use the other tools in the future, but only the files themselves. I found the actual Fret Maestro next to useless.
Thanks, thought it might have some use for crowning at least, but seems that they forgot to adress the difference in fret widths too.
Could have been nice with a video showing the issues too though.
I think StewMac’s Fret kisser would be the ideal tool for spot leveling.
I agree and that's from experience.
I bought one recently also - using harder frets as a reference just makes sense.
You can easily make your own fret kisser.
I was very surprised to receive an immediate and slightly indignant reply after posting that I thought saying “no experience needed” was a bad idea. Our conversation continued and the tone was a bit bizarre, along the lines of “how do you know?” Just my intuition that my Mom might struggle with such a job, which somehow offended him. Quite odd.
I love this. I'm gonna review guitars I don't have. I'll start with Highline.
"Had to set the action 5mm high. It's like they never leveled the frets"
Just kidding, man. I really like your builds. Keep up the good work!
Amd allow me to play the part of the bitter luthier. "You live in the Amazon jungle!!! The humidity levels are so high, what did you expect!!!" 🤣
@@HighlineGuitars why do think I was so adamant that you use Brazilian Rosewood for the board?? You were all like "no no that's illegal", and I'm like "no no that's necessary!".
I knew playing guitar was a bad idea. I shoulda played the f'n drums...
Chris: Thank you for your thoughts. As you said, Fret Maestro seems to be a building/total repair (rebuild) tool, not a loose fret/worn fret tool. I hope that you can get your hands on one to review. Maybe the hysteria will pass if a solid third-party person, like yourself, can provide judgment.
So far multiple solid third parties have weighed in, mostly to the tune of negative opinions or "useful for spot cleanups but not for claimed purpose" and still we have the maker making fake accounts to spam glowing testimonials. Testimonials so glowing they're obviously fake PR. Frankly, the owner is such a blatant jerk that the product deserves to fail just to humble the blowhard- but given how half-assed said product is, I've no fear that we'll get there eventually.
Understood, great explanation, only works effectively as circumference or vice versa for the tool, bottom line is the neck and tool have to be "absolute" in circumference.
I can't speak for other users experience. I bought them. I have done 3 necks with them. They do work and the argument that the fret board has to be perfect is not truthful. Where people fail with this tool is that they are not taking the fret down to 0 tolerance. If you want this to give you perfect frets then you have to have the neck perfectly flat just like you would for a regular fret level and use a fret rocker. If you have any rock then you haven't reached 0 tolerance its that simple. You can't rely on the tool to indicate your at 0. You have to work the tool at various angles and directions to get to 0 tolerance, especially if your leveling a neck that had a previous hand worked fret job because I guarantee those frets are not perfectly uniform . It will not go any farther than what you set it so in that sense its very safe in preserving fret material. Depending on how much material you have to take off it can take a lot of filing. More than I think people realize and the reason people think it doesn't work. They just give up too early.
That being said the way the creator is marketing it is not helping the case. Its not a tool that I think can replace all the other fret leveling tools. I did a really bad china made neck and it took forever to get to 0 tolerance because I had to take off substantial amounts of material to get all the frets equal to the lowest one. The better way to use this tool in this instance is use a beam first to make short work of the highest frets then come back with the tool to finish leveling and crowning. It makes wonderful uniform crowns by the way. A lot better than I can make with the stew mac z file. The only caveat being that really tall jumbo frets can develop a ridge or shoulder but those can be quickly touched up with a z file. I'm happy with them and will continue to use them along side my other tools. I think they will work nicely just for touching up a few high frets also but I would still do it strings off with a flat neck and a fret rocker. Also imperfections in the neck board have to be dramatic to adversely influence how this tool works. Any imperfections I have come across so far were a non issue and tool worked just fine. By the way all 3 necks came out great and play beautifully. This was just my experience.
And what about wide frets that are not tall?
Full and partly scalloped boards will probably be a challenge too?
@@JoeBaermann If the fret width is wider than the mold of the file it may be an issue. As I mentioned with the Jumbo frets I did see some shouldering of the fret that I had to dress. Shallow frets would suffer the same issue because the gauge that holds the file sets the height of fret and the diamond grit of the file does not extend down in to the sides of the gauge if that makes sense. You would still get the ridge.
I can't speak about scalloped necks as I have never done one. I tend to think that it would be less of an issue because you will be able to manipulate the file rolling side to side because their is less fret material in the way. Just spit balling on that though.
@@jsting100 Thank you.
I think the tool won’t work as intended when the board is scalloped, no shoulders on the sides of the frets to guide against.
Have to mark and watch, but is it better than a good diamond crowning file at that point, since it seems easier to see what happens when working with a file that doesn’t cover the sides of the frets that much?
@@JoeBaermann I think your right with not being able to set the depth of the gauge without there being some fret board material available to serve as the guide. As I said I've never even played or leveled a scalloped neck so I can't speak with any experience regarding that type of neck. As far as a crowning file only I think it absolutely would still work. As you said mark it up and watch just as would any other crowning tool.
"I am not saying it works, I am not saying it doesn't work." Great video man, you are really taking a stand here.
My point is that I can't review products I don't have. This video was directed at several specific individuals and it accomplished it's mission perfectly.
If you keep this up you'll have a fight from Chris. He never backs down from a fight. However, I did win a fight with him using his own words. It was hugely fun! (I'm sure Chris remembers that.)(I hope he comments and we can spar!)
Would you like my set? i found it to work twice and i had one botched neck, so its perhaps not working in my shop i dont see myself recieving any refund at this point and id love more info out there
Thanks for the thoughts. Like you, I’ve only seen the tool online although I had the same conclusion, as long as the fretboard’s perfect it might work well enough. However, given the owner’s attitude towards anyone who doesn’t say it’s the greatest thing ever I’d still think twice about spending my money there even if it was genuinely the greatest thing ever.
See you then
grandpa always said, if you don't have anything good to say just don't😏
My Grandpa always said, "If someone is trying to rip you off, tell the world." I guess that's why he died a multimillionaire.
@@HighlineGuitars I knew you couldn't say that in the video, but agreed😁
I’d sure recommend you not dedicating much time, effort, or funds on the Maestro product. I’ve been waiting some months to see any forward movement in the manufacturer’s progress. Not one single thing appears to have changed since I started checking into the tool and/of its maker. I am of the well considered opinion that the primary spokesperson for the Maestro product is either unable to finish construction, or has realized a flaw in the product, or quite possibly there is no product. The bottom line is obvious. The man speaks of a fascinating perspective on fret work. We see enough of “a product” to be captivated by the possibilities. Some have sent their payment in to this gentleman. Whoever gets this tool will be showing off in a TH-cam video and rightly so. However I can not find one credible individual who has it. To be candid, the one or two people claiming to have one, don’t seem to be talking about it much at all. When you stick your head out the window to hear the celebratory whooping of somebody who finally got their Maestro order delivered, you will hear nothing but crickets. You seem like a good guy. I’m telling you and anybody else who asks. It’s too expensive to risk being among the several gamblers willing to take chance on losing their money. Wait until you see a lot of signs that the Maestro has been delivered to a lot of people. Because you ain’t seeing or hearing squat so far. It’s real tempting to gamble on a new item, but it makes no sense to buy squat. Take care. Stay smart. Keep your cool.
As quick as I discovered the fret maestro (an hour ago) Ive noticed no one seems to have one. This is a game changer product if actually real but I checked the site and every option of it’s hefty price tag says it’s sold out but with the internet being what it is these days TH-cam should be blowing up with reviews…but it’s not
I left a critical comment on one of his video and believe me he is a deeply unpleasant man.
Snake oil for Newbs would sum up my opinion.
I can imagine being inexperienced and falling for his assertion that levelling beams "bulkdoze " the radius with flat centre.
I suggested he was wrong and an experienced luth or tech follows an imaginary section of cone and contours the levelling action thus preserving radius. I even pointed out how humps in the neck due to compression and use of green wood in cheap guitars made the neck a useless guide for judging fret height.
His lengthy reply was a hectoring lecture aimed at undermining proven techniques and instilling fears and doubts.
I was going to reply "if you'd been sitting on your mothers shoulders you wouldn't have been fit to kiss Frank Ford's arse" but the world is Febrile enough so I ignored him
It would seem that whether you use a Fret Maestro or the conventional method of leveling frets .... knowing that the neck and fretboard are perfectly straight would be the best place to start. That may be a good video for you to do in the future: How to assess a guitar neck for straightness and levelness. It seems that the old-fashioned "eyeball method" is the one that most Repair Techs use ... but when you are looking for perfection, that's probably not good enough ... especially for the DIY Repair Tech.
Straight and flat are not quite the same thing. the Fret Maestro doesn't require the neck to be straight, (so you don't have to adjust the truss rod) but it assumes the fretboard has a high tolerance of flatness when straight. with a leveling beam of course the neck must be adjusted to be straight but that's easily achieved with a notched straight edge. If you're looking for perfection then your best reference is a straight edge, which is a lot easier to verify and maintain (ie. leveling beam). With Fret Maestro you have over 20 chances (each fret) for errors to creep in. any bump or build up of filings, or variation in pressure applied will introduce errors, and even if you check with a notched straight edge for relative straightness you can't be sure there aren't any variances at the frets themselves.
To be more specific, you SHOULD make sure the neck (fretboard) is straight/flat, but if you didn't, and the frets had enough meat on them, you could get them perfect with a leveling beam, with respect to each other, even if the neck had a bow in either direction, was twisted or looked like a potato chip! You would just have some frets that were taller than others. The tops of the frets could be perfect after using a leveling beam, but would be unplayable if you used the fret maestro. Bazinga!
I will not use it.
I've seen the videos, and I can very easily imagine myself using it. But the price man ! The price is a no no no... I will stay with my "old school" tools...
What I miss is different files shapes according to the different fret models.
When new they have a shape, but after a leveling it's very difficult to do something else than putting your file radius and shape.
A set of 3 different shape diamond files would be all I need
Better ‘old school tools’ than ‘old fool tool’ 😉
This video is a perfect example of why a script is so important. This guy said the same things over and over and over again. Talk about taking an hour to make minute rice...
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6050388/
The guy has 105 reviews on Reverb with a 5-star rating (for both the fret maestro and his picks). Faulty or not, I think those who portray him as a conman or some kind of bad player should be a little more balanced and less emotional in their criticism.
A bunch of 5 star ratings really mean nothing, Amazon is replete with products with 5 star ratings that are complete junk. I was even offered a discount on a product for giving a high rating.
If the inventor ignored the critics and simply did his job instead of lashing out and killing all the bad press, I might agree with you. But his behavior speaks volumes about the kind of person he is. "They laughed at Edison and the Wright Brothers. They also laughed at Bozo the Clown." -Carl Sagan
Chris, thanks for taking the time to make this video. Based on info similar to what you cite, I had come to the same conclusion as to this tool’s likely strengths and weaknesses. As an amateur I appreciate you sharing your opinions as a professional.
I think a lot of us will come to the same conclusion.
all depends on the use case. if you knew more about wood and engineering outside your specialty, you'd be able to know your use case instead of guesing. and patent? ok, expert...
@@fatherfoxstrongpaw8968 ???
Thank you
I think there is room for improvement in how leveling is done.....but that device isn't it. It's a good thing it's expensive because I can see a lot of desperate players ruining their guitars with it if it was like $40.
Agree with your thoughts on the tool. I think it’s probably a good tool for what it can do. I would only invest in such a tool if I were working on many guitars for other people. It’s not worth the investment for just one’s own use, either repairing or for new builds. It’s just not that much of a hassle to work by hand to spot level those very few times it’s necessary.
The bloke who sells them is soooo sure of himself it’s untrue. Up his own arse is what we would say in the UK.
I was slightly critical about something to do with it and the answer I got back was full of sarcasm and hate I just thought to myself that this bloke is the last person in the world I’d wanna give some of my money to.
Way too overpriced, stay away!
It seems like more of a crowning file than some complete fret leveling and crowning solution. The idea of building radius into it just seemed ridiculous to me when the radius is in the fret board and the frets once they are installed.
Chris, your insights are valuable, but it's unfortunate that no experienced luthiers have tested and demonstrated the 'Fret Maestro' tool yet. Without real-world trials, it's hard to determine its effectiveness. Hopefully, we'll see more thorough evaluations soon. 🎸
I opened the door for that, but so far, nothing.
Talking about I don't do patrion or members, just go to my links below..I thought finally someone who does this out of the good of his heart. Thought, I will go and check these links out .maybe wanna support this kind guy...first I saw, hoody for over 50£ a pop????wtf...then vids for members only...yes..ok one of those guys, same as all the rest of the c..py bunch...no thanks.. you won't get a view of me and definitely not a subscription or thumbs up....if anything 👎🏻
@@timothyfles-v8g Sorry you feel that way but I got mouths to feed and a mortgage to pay. Also, when a family member develops a serious heart condition, things change. Here in America, healthcare is extremely expensive.
Everything that I've seen in hand that was disgustingly stolen from the original company has never been as good usually not even close to tolerance sloppy fitting parts loose threads poorly fitting components so in my experience the knock off never seems to work correctly unless modified, then whats the point.like everyone i am waiting to hear back from the community of luthiers on the results of this tool 🔧 😮it does look promising but sometimes the old way is the best way ,but maybe with time and input from everyone we can see the results, i would like to see this invention in live action. It does seem like a great idea. Just make sure everything is perfectly straight, like dial indicator straight to perfect on your fretboard and this thing could be a valuable tool depending on what your working with,it is definitely true many practicing guitarist doing there own repairs and maintenance have accidentally sanded off to much material by mistake 😬 😳 😅 35 years ago i was that 18 year old that knew everything and made that mistake 😮😊but hands on is how we learn ,i am hoping in the future this company will loan you there tool to perform a fret level and re crown on your channel ❤keep building musical art brother.i have always liked the little brick and mortar guitar builders products to the huge companies products 😍 sometimes in my experience even expensive guitars 🎸 need to be reworked which is horrible for the money they charge nicely aged wood seems to sound just fine to me and sometimes costs thousands less 😊
I bought won and it's not worth buying it looks like it was made by a high school shop class very uneven
One thing is clear, the FM thing has the world record of luthiers making videos about a tool without having actually used it. Click bait, effective as you mention in a comment, but pure click bait
Absolutely everything on the internet is clickbait.
Clickbait is when the content falls short of what the headline implies. Not the case here. The Highline Guitars guy seems practical and straightforward.
@@robertmay5091 Exactly! People often scream clickbait if they are unhappy with the content even though it is true.
Ok I understand, but if I see a pro luthier 17 min video titled ‘my thoughts on X tool’ I assume the pro guy actually tests it… and that’s what happened, I thought ‘finally a pro level test of the thing’ and that’s why I clicked on the link. Great channel , great videos, misleading title this time IMO. Hope you get one sent to you and actually give it a go and share the experience here, this must be the hottest topic in years in the guitar tools community!
@@fkitch Thoughts are not the same as test results. If you think they are, you are mistaken and that's on you.
The "Fret Maestro" is a blatand scam! It can not work...no way. How to move that radius over the other radius? Seesaw? No way.
You shouldn’t do a video on a product you really know nothing about. Buy it, use it then comment.
Thanks for sharing your opinion about how I shouldn’t share my opinion. 🤭
If all building were built on perfectly level ground, the ground could be used as a reference to build them straight, but everyone knows that's not the case. Both my guitar and bass necks are far from straigth so off course this product which uses the soundboard as a levelling referance would not make the frets flush with each other.
After watching the demo video I think this tool seems to be useful only for leveling a few frets after they just have been installed and it can work only if the fretboard itself is perfectly made. But it can't work with the compound radius fretboards, because each fret has its own radius value there and this tool fits only a few radius values. It also can't work for levelling the weared frets , because you can't measure the weared spots of the frets and be sure the fretboard has no bumps or lower spots. This tool could be a pretty good fret crowning file, if they produced a less expensive 'light' version without height adjustment option. However, after watching the other videos about this tool and its builder I think the way this guy treats his customers is absolutely unacceptable, so I wouldn't deal with him anyway.
He's at it again. Used my thumbnail and yours for his thumbnail. More hate filled talk. Blaims you for not calling him. I say call him and record it.
@@MrNocaster oh that’s funny. I have never called on businesses for collaboration opportunities. They usually call me and I always decline in favor of purchasing the products myself. I almost ordered one, but was put off by the negative reviews.
Unless the guy is trying to license it to stewmac, id say its most likely an expensive dud. No videos demoing it, no satisfaction guarantee. The dudes demeanor comes off as negative. Also I don't think its a good idea, id rather level off the entirety of the frets, not the fretboard, would be too inconsistent
And if he's trying to license it to StewMac, it's still an expensive dud.
Wow, you haven't used it? So why say anything?
@@gravfielddrive freedom of speech.
I’m sorry, but that thing is a joke and a waste of time.
Hi Chris as a man making a living from building guitars. Sometimes you have to buy a product to try yourself. I think in my opinion and it is only my opinion, the video was pointless.
Thanks for the interesting content but for me this fell flat.
Best wishes
So far, it's my number 1 video according to TH-cam Analytics.
And not one word about the product...no, nothing fishy here. 🙄
Yeah, it's called riding on coat tails in a malicious manner. Selling a lot of T-shirts are you.@@HighlineGuitars
Yeah, he never held it let alone used it... but he figured heck, why not do an assassination video and ride on the coat tails for a tool he never used, get record views and he can sell more t-shirts. Yeah, what a guy.@@UTubeHandlesSuck
@@SixStringers I was going to respond by requesting a sample for evaluation, but since the majority of comments on this video are critical of your product in a very negative way, I don’t see the point. If your product is as good as you claim, the Chinese will knock it off for half the price or Stewmac will come out with something similar at around same price but with a lifetime warranty. Maybe then I’ll be tempted to give it a try. However, given the negativity of the comments for this video and the negative reviews I’ve seen here on TH-cam, I doubt the Chinese or Stewmac will waste their time and resources.
I bought one 8 months ago. Have never used it as I am a hobbyist and don’t get to build regularly.
Would you like to try mine?
Thanks for the thoughts. Like you, I’ve only seen the tool online although I had the same conclusion, as long as the fretboard’s perfect it might work well enough. However, given the owner’s attitude towards anyone who doesn’t say it’s the greatest thing ever I’d still think twice about spending my money there even if it was genuinely the greatest thing ever.