6 Best Guitars With Stainless Steel Frets

Few of the brands that manufacture guitars with stainless steel frets are Ibanez, Suhr and Schecter. Other than these, higher end Jackson guitars, Charvel, Conklin and Kiesel also have these guitars. Some of the original EVH Wolfgang guitars also have guitars with stainless steel frets. Some specific guitars are,
1. Suhr Modern Plus
2. Suhr Standard Plus
3. Balageur Hyperion Select Offset Guitar

Fender does use stainless steel frets but on very few models. The Eric Johnson model uses stainless steel frets. Fender also owns the Van Halen brand and his signature models use stainless steel frets. But for the most part they don’t. here are a few reasons why,
1. Nickel silver is the conventional material for Fender guitar frets.
2. Nickel silver frets are responsible for the tone of sound that fender goes for.

Stainless steel frets have their pros and cons.
Pros
1. They have a longer fret life
2. They retain shine for a longer period of time
3. Better response
4. They have smoother bends
5. Easier and smoother vibrato
6. Have a brighter attack
Cons
1. Needs more care during installation
2. More expensive

It is a little bit difficult to tell if there is a big difference in tone between the standard nickel silver frets and the stainless steel frets. Stainless steel frets are harder than the nickel alloy used for regular frets so the tone does sound a little bit brighter. There might also be an extra definition in the high frequencies. Overall there is not a big discernible difference in the tone.

Stainless steel frets wear down much slowly than nickel silver frets. The length and durability of stainless steel frets will depend on the following,
1. If the finish isn’t great and the effort put in is cheap, your frets won’t last too long
2. If they are not installed properly on the fretboard, they won’t last very long.

There are mainly two types of stainless steel. The 300 series is non magnetic and most of the 400 series are magnetic. This can be a test. The nickel silver frets are barely ferritic and they hardly attract magnets. When it comes to looks, stainless steel frets are brighter and shinier than nickel silver frets. Stainless steel frets also tend to have a brighter ping when played.

Stainless steel frets last considerably longer and are more durable than other standard frets. The cost of refretting depends on a number of factors. Installing stainless steel frets can be a time consuming job since it involves a more difficult process. You need more expensive tools to finish them properly. Typically it can cost from 25 to 40 dollars per fret.

Stainless steel frets can sound different in these following ways,
1. Stronger initial attack
2. Higher gain
3. Brighter zingier tone
4. Smoother vibrato
5. More pick attack sensitivity
Obviously not all the differences are visible. It does depend on the quality and finish of the stainless steel frets.

PRS typically does not use stainless steel frets. They use very hard nickel frets on their guitars which compare in quality to stainless steel frets. Stainless steel frets tend to have a brighter tone which some people may not like. Plus stainless steel frets require a lot of work and expensive tools.