This Ibanez Blazer came in for a bunch of things. A refret, a new wiring harness, new tuners, a new nut, setup, all pretty straightforward stuff. Where things got zesty was the request to perform a 20 fret conversion *cue gasps*.
This might sound intense, but it went pretty smoothly, really. If you’ve ever scooped out the “florida” (fingerboard extension) of a mandolin, this isn’t too different.
First, I transferred the fingerboard contour up one fret, pulled the 21st fret, and began cutting. After a few moments with a chisel, I was getting somewhere. Then, all that was left was to pop out the last inlay, do a few cheeky touch up moves to hide it a little bit, and then slap the new pickguard right over the remnants of the 21st fret. Neat, huh? (And yes, I promise I did eventually put knobs on it).
To touch up the inlay void, I used some light, maple tinted epoxy putty, Artline furniture markers (these things rules and everyone should own a set), and a few different dyes on a pin head applicator. Not invisible, but not in sore thumb territory either.
You might be wondering why you would want to do this in the first place? Well, dear reader, the owner of this guitar discovered that when playing in the keys of B, C, and C#, they could unlock some previously unavailable pinch harmonics in this geographical region and therefore wanted to make it easier to pick there without bumping into the fretboard. I dig it.
Side note, I love these kinds of mods. They are not “traditional” but are completely functional and born out of a greater search for musical exploration. I can think of many modern guitar features whose roots tie back to these “mother of invention” style necessities.
If you feel like you need your own 20 fret conversion or otherwise have a guitar with just one less fret, or have any other repair needs, get in touch with me here and we can get your instruments working for you!