I recently purchased an Agile AL-2000 guitar. I was very happy with the tone of the guitar but it did need some minor modifications to give the feel of a custom built guitar. One problem I had was the fret ends were a bit sharp. This is usually one of the things that distinguishes a higher-end guitar from less expensive factory built ones. This is an extra time-consuming process that is usually foregone to save cost.

I'm outlining the steps I performed on my guitar. For less then $30 worth of tools from Stew-Mac and about an hours worth of time, you can make a big difference in the feel of your guitar. WARNING: If you decide to try this, be very careful with this process...it IS irreversible!

Tools used:
- Stewart-MacDonald Fret End Dressing File - Link
- Stewart-MacDonald Fret Dressing Stick - Link
- Stewart-Macdonald String Action Gauge - Link
- Sharpie Marker
- Low-Tack Blue Painters Tape
- Block Sander (Wet-Dry Sandpaper)


1) Make sure to tape the fingerboard using low-tack painters tape

Start with the sides....



Then the top...




2) Use a marker (sharpie) to measure out how far from the edge of the fret board you want to file. Remember this is an irreversible process. Make sure you don't go too far!!!




3) File Fret Ends with a Fret End Dressing File (from Stew-Mac)





4) Follow up with a Fret Dressing Stick Sander (from Stew-Mac)




5) To ensure consistent feel across the board, lightly sand with a block sander




6) Finish up with some .0000 steel wool



Again, be careful! But for a small investment in tools you can give you guitar a more comfortable feel, increasing playability. It also helps to reference a high-end guitar to see the exact shape of some well rounded fret ends. Take the time to visit a guitar shop and locate a guitar the feels "just right" in your hands and look at how the fret ends have been shaped. You will find that this fine bit of finishing work plays a big part in giving a guitar that vintage worn-in feel!

Just posted to YouTube and officially added to the gear section of the site is my review of the Agile AL-2000 Les Paul copy.



I'm really happy with the tone and feel of this guitar. The craftsmanship is impressive for the price range. Even though they are on the low-end of the price range, the wax potted ceramic humbucker pickups, actually pump out some great sounds. Not exactly a P.A.F.s or a Gibson Burstbuckers, but a decent enough set of tones to work with live or recorded.

The YouTube hosted video has a review and sound demos of each pickup position played through a Marshall AVT50 (Clean and Overdrive). I'm using my Voodoo Labs Sparkle Drive (for the overdrive) and a MXR Super Comp Compressor effects pedals through the clean channel on my amp.

I've included a more detailed review of my Agile AL-2000 on the site. You can see it here gear section of the site.

I wanted to get a quick review out of my most recent guitar acquisition an Agile AL-2000 "Les Paul" copy. I purchased it online at Rondomusic.com for US$219. Right out of the box it was in tune and quite playable. I did my own set up to fine tune the intonation and to put my preferred string gauges on in .10-.52's (Heavy top, light bottoms) My next order of business was to round the fret ends off and smooth the neck edges on the binding to give the guitar a more worn-in feel | See post.

Initial soundchecks are coming back hot! This guitar rocks. The pick-up are definitely not PAFs (Classic '57 Gibson Humbuckers) but they will do for now.

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Related Posts:

• Agile AL-2000 Video Review


• Fret End Dressing - Smoothing down a sharp fretboard for a vintage feel

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