Slanted frets

Modern years of Rickenbacker Guitars from 1984 to the present

Moderators: rickenbrother, ajish4

User avatar
admin
Site Admin
Posts: 15123
Joined: Wed Jul 05, 2000 5:00 am
Contact:

Re: Slanted frets

Post by admin »

No Bill, we did not lose any posts here. :)
Life, as with music, often requires one to let go of the melody and listen to the rhythm

Please join the Official RickResource Forum Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/groups/379271585440277
User avatar
jingle_jangle
RRF Moderator
Posts: 22679
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 6:00 am
Contact:

Re: Slanted frets

Post by jingle_jangle »

Well, I'll be, er, dashed...
User avatar
johnhall
RIC
Posts: 3926
Joined: Tue Sep 26, 2000 11:17 am
Contact:

Re: Slanted frets

Post by johnhall »

Wow. What's the old expression: "The apple doesn't fall too far from the tree"? Or something like that.
User avatar
scoobster28
Veteran RRF member
Posts: 707
Joined: Sun Jan 28, 2001 1:16 pm

Re: Slanted frets

Post by scoobster28 »

I always thought that the slanted frets looked cool, and based on my fretting style I think that they would be great. I have never played one so I cannot confirm that, but I wish that they were optional.
blueflamerick
Advanced Member
Posts: 1943
Joined: Wed Apr 30, 2003 1:43 pm
Contact:

Re: Slanted frets

Post by blueflamerick »

I guess that I'm confusing slanted & fanned frets.
User avatar
jps
RRF Consultant
Posts: 37497
Joined: Wed Feb 12, 2003 6:00 am

Re: Slanted frets

Post by jps »

The slanted frets are all parallel to each other, but not perpendicular to the edge of the neck, whereas fanned frets change angle from each other and do fan out, with the 'perspective point' above the neck, in playing position.
User avatar
johnhall
RIC
Posts: 3926
Joined: Tue Sep 26, 2000 11:17 am
Contact:

Re: Slanted frets

Post by johnhall »

More specifically, if you continued to draw the fanned frets as lines in space, they'd all converge at one and only one point. Lines representing the string contact points for the bridge and nut also have to go through that point to work. In this way the bass strings actually have a longer scale length than the treble strings, pretty cool when you think about it.

Slanted frets (including nut and bridge) would be all parallel lines and the scale length for all strings is the same.
User avatar
jdogric12
Rick-a-holic
Posts: 10925
Joined: Thu Dec 29, 2005 6:00 am

Re: Slanted frets

Post by jdogric12 »

Very interesting indeed, but then I was sick enough to get a math degree, so no surprise there.

A follow up question... would that singular point of convergence be directly below the 12th fret?

If so...

Let's think outside the box some more... how about slanted AND fanned? A singular point of convergence NOT directly below the 12th fret?
blueflamerick
Advanced Member
Posts: 1943
Joined: Wed Apr 30, 2003 1:43 pm
Contact:

Re: Slanted frets

Post by blueflamerick »

jdogric12aolcom wrote:Very interesting indeed, but then I was sick enough to get a math degree, so no surprise there.

A follow up question... would that singular point of convergence be directly below the 12th fret?

If so...

Let's think outside the box some more... how about slanted AND fanned? A singular point of convergence NOT directly below the 12th fret?

Hold on there Stephen Hawking!
User avatar
cjj
RRF Moderator
Posts: 10931
Joined: Tue Jul 22, 2008 6:17 pm
Contact:

Re: Slanted frets

Post by cjj »

blueflamerick wrote:
jdogric12aolcom wrote:Very interesting indeed, but then I was sick enough to get a math degree, so no surprise there.

A follow up question... would that singular point of convergence be directly below the 12th fret?

If so...

Let's think outside the box some more... how about slanted AND fanned? A singular point of convergence NOT directly below the 12th fret?

Hold on there Stephen Hawking!
Nah, if he were doing the frets, they would be warped by the curvature of space-time due to the close proximity of a black hole such that the point of convergence would be directly on top of the 12th fret. But, due to the non-causal aspects of quantum entanglement, the actual convergence would happen after the frets had actually been applied, such that they wouldn't appear any different unless you happened to be inside a singularity.

Or maybe they'd just warp like this:
Torzal.jpg
I have NO idea what to do with those skinny stringed things... I'm just a bass player...
User avatar
jingle_jangle
RRF Moderator
Posts: 22679
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 6:00 am
Contact:

Re: Slanted frets

Post by jingle_jangle »

Seems like that would be a ***** to make, but comfortable to play... :wink:

Oh, wait, I'm always forgetting that CNC thingy.
User avatar
jps
RRF Consultant
Posts: 37497
Joined: Wed Feb 12, 2003 6:00 am

Re: Slanted frets

Post by jps »

jps wrote:with the 'perspective point' above the neck, in playing position.
Oops! The perspective point is below the neck! :oops:
User avatar
paologregorio
Senior Member
Posts: 6376
Joined: Wed Aug 08, 2007 12:56 pm
Contact:

Re: Slanted frets

Post by paologregorio »

I had the opportunity to play Gary Clauson's Walnut-finished, slanted fret 481 a few weeks back; fretting chords is easy on the lower frets, but as one goes further up the neck, chords become increasingly difficult to fret.

Thanks again for letting me try out your guitar Gary; it was a rare treat! :D
User avatar
jingle_jangle
RRF Moderator
Posts: 22679
Joined: Wed Dec 22, 2004 6:00 am
Contact:

Re: Slanted frets

Post by jingle_jangle »

Because of this, the hotttt pups and the lack of radius on the board, I've always viewed the 481 as primarily a lead player's guitar.

But this may change once I learn to play properly... :cry:
User avatar
IHeartRics
Member
Posts: 482
Joined: Sat Apr 12, 2008 12:17 am
Contact:

Re: Slanted frets

Post by IHeartRics »

Were any 481's made without slanted frets? The only ones I've seen had slanted frets.

As for my 480, it's not completely flat, but seems darn close. It throws some of my guitar buddies off when they first play it, but I love it.
Expect nothing and you'll never be disappointed (and I mean that in an optimistic way).
http://www.reverbnation.com/thelowlies
http://www.myspace.com/thelowlies
Post Reply

Return to “Rickenbacker Guitars: Modern Years - After 1983”