What are your favorite frets for LP style guitars?

[pfrischmann]

Hi Guys,
I'm working with a builder on a LP style guitar and the question of fret size came up.

This is something I don't pay much attention to. I either like it, or I don't.
So, I thought I'd take an unofficial poll.

What size frets do you like on your LP style guitars?

Thanks in advance.

[nik]

I like 6150 frets on my guitars.

[pfrischmann]

Hi Nik,
Thanks for the response. I'm going to guess that 6105's and 6150's are going to come up a lot....

[nik]

Hi Nik,
Thanks for the response. I'm going to guess that 6105's and 6150's are going to come up a lot....

yeah, I've had guitars made with both of those as well as vintage sized frets and the 6150's just work best for me.

Good luck!

[Trebor Renkluaf]

I used to really like 6100s on my Les Pauls, but I have been digging on the 6150s on my Grosh Set Necks.

[pfrischmann]

The grosh's seem about right for me.
Didn't the original '59s have 6140's?

[Guitar Josh]

Folks, I just did a very comprehensive study and review of frets when researching what to put on my LP (a 1989 Standard). So I have some basis of knowledge :)

First, let's be clear - 6150, 6140 etc is a MODEL NUMBER, not a specification. If you look around, you'll find that 6150 for one manufacturer is not the same as 6150 for another. So make sure when you are looking around that you are going by spec and not a model number, because they are very inconsistent.

Second, almost without fail, every Gibson coming out of the factory from about 86 to 2007 had .095 x .045 frets. In fact, .095 was pretty much the outer end of the spectrum for width. I measured quite a few in the .090 range. We all know that Gibson grinds the crap out of frets, so they likely put skyscrapers on then filed them down substantially to a .045 crown.

So what you want to do is determine the specification that works for you. Width wise, anything from .088 to .095 will be fine. You really don't want 6150 frets, the classic measurement is .103 width, WAY too wide IMHO. For crown height, that's really a matter of personal preference. Fretless wonders dip below .035 for reference. Invest in a digital caliper, head over to your guitar shop and start playing and measuring. If you want what came out of Gibson's factor for 20 years, a filed fret crown height of .045 is where it's at.