Hi Billy,

I've been repairing vintage Fenders for about fifty years now, so let me see if there's anything I can help you with, regarding your problems with intonation.

Firstly, lets assume that the fret spacings are accurate, because there's nothing you can do if they're not. Secondly, let's also assume that you know about the best way to adjust the string length at the saddle - ask me if you're not sure. Now for the things which are often missed - fret type, string gauge and string height.

The height of the fret is important, because as you press the string down it will bend between the frets, stretching the string and affecting the pitch. We actually use this for certain vibrato effects. The lowest frets I've found are on 70s Fenders with the maple neck and hard polish. These low profile frets are very fast to play on, but hard to bend if you're playing lead, because the string tends to slip under your finger. The highest frets are probably jumbo frets, though some vintage frets can also be quite proud. These are easy to bend, but if you're playing chords up the neck with light gauge strings, they can be a bit pitchy. String gauge matters, because the heavier strings won't bend as much between the frets, so if you're playing chords up the neck I suggest avoiding anything under 10/46 gauge. Lighter gauge strings are fine for lead, where you can control the pitch of individual notes better.

The set-up is also very important. If the strings are well clear of the fretboard, the they have to stretch more when the string is depressed. A low set-up is always faster to play and better for pitch, but not all guitars can be set-up this way for various reasons, usually connected with bad manufacture, but also because the guitarist likes to play hard. My guitars have an action of about a millimetre at the octave fret with no buzz anywhere!

Finally, how hard you play will affect things. The harder you hit the string the more it bends and the more it stretches, raising the pitch. You can watch this happen in real time if you have a good guitar tuner - as the sound dies away the pitch falls again. We're talking a few cents, but there it is.

I could write a book on this subject, but I hope at least some of this makes sense and helps sort out your problems.

Cheers,
ROG.

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