Reconditioning worn pipa frets
After years of playing, my son's pipa frets have worn down, especially at the treble string location, cutting groves up to 1mm deep. I reconditionned the frets by planing them down to remove the groves, and then reshape the profile using chisels. The frets are aged bamboo, so are easy to work. Then, sand them with 400 grit sandpaper. Finally, string up and fine tune fret height to remove fret buzz.
There will be a 1mm reduction in fret height from fret #7 onwards, which can affect the playability. I'll let my son check it out. At best, the pipa can be played for a few more years before refretting. At worst, I'll have to refret the pipa now with the new frets that we've ordered dimension customised to this pipa.
Update: apart from the fretted strings becoming a little sharper due to the increased tension from the additional distance, playability is not affected. Fret replacement can be deferred.
There will be a 1mm reduction in fret height from fret #7 onwards, which can affect the playability. I'll let my son check it out. At best, the pipa can be played for a few more years before refretting. At worst, I'll have to refret the pipa now with the new frets that we've ordered dimension customised to this pipa.
Update: apart from the fretted strings becoming a little sharper due to the increased tension from the additional distance, playability is not affected. Fret replacement can be deferred.
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