Getting Plek'd

[2112]

I had the good fortune of getting in touch with a local tech who recently installed a Plek machine; having heard of them but not knowing much, I decided to check it out and have one of my guitars Plek'd. Here's a video with the preliminary findings. I'm picking it up in a week to see the finished product so part two will follow. All the guitars on the backing track are AX8 too

 

[bradlake]

SO COOL. Several of my higher end guitars came PLEKd upon purchase, and they are easily the most stable of my collection..but never saw the beast of a machine in action...thanks again for sharing, you, Leon, are on an incredible roll and your influence seems to be catching on worldwide. Good on ya.

 

[Jeries]

I didn't know what the hell that was... but upon googling to figure it out I found this amazing quote- also-

"New Gibson guitars have a reputation for dialed-in, off-the-shelf playability. To fine-tune and assure that highly desirably quality, Gibson has invested in state-of-the-art fret-dressing PLEK machines. The first two arrived at the Gibson Custom Shop in 2006, but as of this year every instrument built by both Gibson USA and the Custom Shop will benefit from the PLEKing process."

 

[Sine]

Friedman guitars are plek'd from factory.

 

[bradlake]

Friedman guitars are plek'd from factory.

As are Suhrs, and I believe Tom Andersons.....

 

[merlin17]

I have several PLEK'd guitars (two Suhrs and one Morgaine), but I found that skilled luthiers can get the same quality by hand (which is no argument against PLEK).

 

[barhrecords]

I had my 72' strat Pleked and refretted by Joe Glaser in Nashville.

It completely transformed the guitar. Incredible. It's a great way to take a non-desirable year strat and turn it into a dream guitar.

 

[MSS]

So cool! Thanks for posting this!

 

[Geezerjohn]

My 2 Shurs are Pleked. Play like buttahhh. Word of caution. Don't use words like "pleked" in mixed company.

 

[Rex]

I had my 72' strat Pleked and refretted by Joe Glaser in Nashville.

It completely transformed the guitar. Incredible. It's a great way to take a non-desirable year strat and turn it into a dream guitar.

It’s a great way to take a guitar with fret issues and turn it into a great player, regardless of whether it was made in a “desirable” year.

 

[stevorc321]

Awesome Leon - was that MP guitars (don't imagine it's Music Park?) - very interested in the outcome as I'm down Margs/Busso way

 

[2112]

Awesome Leon - was that MP guitars (don't imagine it's Music Park?) - very interested in the outcome as I'm down Margs/Busso way

MT Guitars, running out of a workshop in Mullaloo. Well worth a visit!

 

[moshwitz]

Sup?

I had my 72' strat Pleked and refretted by Joe Glaser in Nashville.

It completely transformed the guitar. Incredible. It's a great way to take a non-desirable year strat and turn it into a dream guitar.

I'm in North Al. and have been wanting to visit Joe's Shop to get some of my guitars Plek'd could you tell me about how long did it take to get your guitars done? like did you drop them off,, I'm sure his shop is pretty busy and there is some amount of turnaround time, and I'll probably have to leave them and drive back up. also.. if you don't mind how much was it at his shop?

Thanks
MOSHON
DAVE

 

[barhrecords]

Sup?


I'm in North Al. and have been wanting to visit Joe's Shop to get some of my guitars Plek'd could you tell me about how long did it take to get your guitars done? like did you drop them off,, I'm sure his shop is pretty busy and there is some amount of turnaround time, and I'll probably have to leave them and drive back up. also.. if you don't mind how much was it at his shop?

Thanks
MOSHON
DAVE

Hey Dave,

Yeah I dropped of the guitar for sure. It was 3-4 years ago when I had it pleked and refretted. I don't remember the exact price but I do remember it being not shocking lol.

Turn around time would depend on their workload but they have never been a shop to hold an instrument forever (as some do).

I use Joe's shop a lot and I find their prices to be great. Very reasonable for the average amateur musician.

The workmanship is top shelf.

 

[steadystate]

Fixed.

I have several PLEK'd guitars (two Suhrs and one Morgaine), but I found that skilled luthiers can get superior quality by hand (which is no argument against PLEK).

I'm really only comparing a poor fret job PLEKed to extreme, to a great fret job that would barely be touched by the machine.

It seems like a great indicator of a good/poor fret job on newly pressed frets.

 

[steadystate]

"New Gibson guitars have a reputation for dialed-in, off-the-shelf playability. To fine-tune and assure that highly desirably quality, Gibson has invested in state-of-the-art fret-dressing PLEK machines. The first two arrived at the Gibson Custom Shop in 2006, but as of this year every instrument built by both Gibson USA and the Custom Shop will benefit from the PLEKing process."

Based on the fretwork I've seen from Gibson lately, PLEK is a good idea for them. I've seen new Les Pauls with what looks like half of the fret material ground away. Grinding down a crappy fretboard/fret job seems to be par for the course these days.

Nothing against PLEK. I applaud the engineering skills needed to create it. It can even-out worn frets and fine tune a good fret job. But a perfect fret job should come out of the machine untouched. I hate to see companies using it on brand new guitars in place of a proper fret job.

I'd love to have my guitar analyzed by one. If they can tell me exactly how much material would be removed in advance, then I totally see its value.

 

[merlin17]

Fixed.



I'm really only comparing a poor fret job PLEKed to extreme, to a great fret job that would barely be touched by the machine.

It seems like a great indicator of a good/poor fret job on newly pressed frets.

Why is my quote altered from what I really wrote?

 

[Rex]

Based on the fretwork I've seen from Gibson lately, Plek is a good idea for them.

+1.

I've seen new Les Pauls with what looks like half of the fret material ground away. Grinding down a crappy fretboard/fret job seems to be par for the course these days.

Sometimes, grinding away too much metal is the result of poor fret leveling and dressing. A Plek can help with that—if the tech running the machine knows what he's doing. But sometimes, it's the unavoidable result of an uneven fingerboard. The Plek can still produce true fretwork, but it'll have to take off a lot of metal in the process.

I'd love to have my guitar analyzed by one. If they can tell me exactly how much material would be removed in advance, then I totally see its value.

A good luthier will evaluate your neck and give you a good idea of how much material will have to be removed. There's not much value in knowing exactly how much will be removed, but a good luthier will tell you whether you'd be better off going with a total refret, and whether your fingerboard needs planing before the new frets go in.

 

[unix-guy]

I have several PLEK'd guitars (two Suhrs and one Morgaine), but I found that skilled luthiers can get the same quality by hand (which is no argument against PLEK).

I would honestly be surprised by that. The level of accuracy and consistency possible by a PLEK machine seems far beyond the level a luthier could achieve across every single fret.

It might seemingly be comparable, and maybe from a guitarist's perspective that is good enough... But I think if measured you would find the PLEK'd frets to be much more precise.

Edit: I should note that I've had one guitar done by well known luthier to the stars Gary Brawer... And it's very nice

 

[Muad'zin]

I never even heard of PLEK before coming across this thread.