How do I go about de-fretting a bass guitar?

Question

I would like a fretless bass guitar, and I am considering giving an old bass a new lease of life as a fretless instrument.

I would like to know how to go about achieving this at home, by myself, to as high a standard as possible, for as little cost as possible.

Answer 1

When converting a fretted instrument to fret less you have a couple of options if you want to DIY:

1. Modify the current fingerboard in some way. This includes purchasing a fret-puller like @ekaj suggests, pulling out all the fretwires, and filling in all the fret slots with wood putty. Unfortunately you will suffer from the issues that @Alex mentions in that the entire neck will react much differently to changes in relative humidity and temperature--so you are left with a more brittle instrument. This is probably the cheapest option, but has the most risk.

2. Purchase a new, fret-less fingerboard and install it on the old neck. This is a little more involved than the previous strategy. Start off with visiting your local luthier or find a company that sells raw fingerboards. Warmoth may do it but I haven't asked them. Describe to your supplier the specifications of the neck you want--scale length is irrelevant because we don't have any frets :D, but radius and fingerboard wood are good things to start with. Get them to send you a new fingerboard to your specifications. Once you have the new fingerboard, remove bindings if there are any on the neck, and then you can remove the old fingerboard by using a fingerboard iron or similar tool. You could perhaps achieve the same thing with a very hot hair dryer or even a clothes iron set to very low levels. Once you heat the glue up all you have to do is slide a knife in between the neck and the fingerboard to break the glue bond. Move slow, and in sections and it'll be off in no time. Glue the new one in using some hide glue and clamp it tight for 24-48 hours. This option will set you back the most in cost of tools, labor, and time spent--but it's good experience if you ever wanted to get into luthier work. All this is assuming, of course, that your bass has a fingerboard glued onto the neck. If the neck is a solid piece move on to option 3.

3. Purchase a new, fret less neck. Finally, you can save yourself a load of trouble by cruising over to Warmoth's site and purchasing a new fret less neck. They more or less sell necks that will fit any bass's profile--and if they don't have one to fit yours then can make one. The only important thing is to line up the neck correctly pocket for installation. This would be your middle of the road economic option, and my recommended one.

That's it, and good luck!

Answer 2

The frets are actually replaceable parts made from fretwire. They are sunk into slits in the fretboard wood. Ask your local guitar shop to remove the frets, or try for yourself using a pair of pliers. You can somewhat protect the fretboard by taping it during removal.

After that, you are left with a slitted fretboard. From a woodworking aspect, I would fill the slits with a wood putty, and carefully levelling the result (maybe sanding). But I would not expect the result to be perfect, because the putty will be of different hardness than the wood.

If the finish is no good, the fretboard too can be replaced, but I dont know how that works. Unslotted Fretboards are available in shops.

Fretwire looks like this: http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Fretting_supplies/Stewart-MacDonald_Fretwire.html

Unfretted fretboard looks like this: http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Bodies,_necks,_wood/Acoustic_guitar_fingerboards/Unslotted_Fingerboard_for_Guitar.html

Answer 3

If you want to do it without screwing up your bass look up a fret puller like this : http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Fretting_supplies/Pullers,_nippers,_sizing/Fret_Puller.html?actn=100101&xst=3&xsr=231 .. that one's kind of expensive but you can probably find something cheaper

I personally would find someone like a luthier or a guitar shop who could do that work without possibly cracking the fretboard or something.

Answer 4

I de-fretted my jazz bass fingerboard using a soldering iron to heat the frets, helping the wood to release them. I'd tape on either side of the fret to protect the fingerboard itself, and then gently rock the fret back and forth until it freed from the rosewood and pulled out. The operation was very successful and my fingerboard is not damaged in any way. IF you are careful and delicate, you can pull it off without trouble