There are many modifications and upgrades to improve the performance, playability and tone of your guitar.
From simple jobs that make a big difference right up to complete overhauls including finish, Fretco have the parts, tools and advice to help you enhance and add value to your instrument.
You may be surprised that with only a little time and effort, your favourite guitar may not need replacing with a better one after all!
Many well known (and well made) brands of guitar straight off the shop floor can still be significantly improved with just a few small parts and the right set of pickups.
We have some suggestions for you on this page, however the range of options is so large we couldn’t possibly list them all.
Talk to us about your specific needs.
Note: Prices are in Australian dollars (AUD) and include GST
Note: Set ups and alterations to suit customer requests are not covered under warranty
Hardware
Nuts
A good nut can affect the guitar’s action, tuning and tone. Installing a Graph Tech graphite or bone nut will allow the string to travel more easily through the slot – you will hear and feel the difference!
| Graph Tech GT74 | ‘6 string electric’ pre slotted. Ring for advice to make sure you are getting the right nut for your guitar. Many times the nut will need to be made from a blank to achieve a true fit. | $15.95 |
| Graph Tech GT66 | Acoustic 1 11/16″ pre slotted. | $12.95 |
| Graph Tech GT22 | Unslotted blank. | $12.95 |
Installation Costs
| New Nut (bone, graphite, composite) | (a) 6 String & Bass (b) 12 String (c) Brass for Bass & Guitar | $75 $125 P.O.A |
Bridges and Saddles
Graph Tech offer a range of bridge and acoustic saddles in steel, graphite and man made ivory. ‘String Saver’ saddles have added teflon which lubricates the string motion, reducing breakage and even allowing more mid range depth in the tone. The increased freedom of movement of the string can also offer better sustain and tuning stability.
| Graph Tech GT800 | String Saver High Performance saddles – 6 pieces. If you work hard and play hard, these saddles may well save you money! | $69 |
| Graph Tech GT910W | Tusq acoustic saddle blank. Tusq saddles are designed to transfer frequencies more efficiently from the string to the guitar body, achieving a livelier sound. | $12.95 |
| Fender Vintage Saddles | Vintage pressed metal saddles with ‘Fender’ stamped into each. | $55 |
| Am Series Strat Trem Assembly | If you don’t have an American Series Strat but want that smooth tremolo action, install an American Series Trem Assembly – they look great too! | $160 |
| Gotoh GE1996TC | If you really like to wail, install a Gotoh Licensed Floyd Rose Trem Unit to give both up and down trem arm movement and more stability with the locking nut assembly. Lock Nut included.! | $299 |
Installation Costs
| New Saddle (Acoustic) | (a) Straight (b) Compensated | $60 $125 |
| New Bridge Saddles | from $90 – the setup price for that instr. | |
| Install Vintage Trem System | $125 plus $100 setup | |
| Install Floyd Rose Tremolo (guitar with existing tremolo cavity) | $325 add $60 for under route, plus $100 setup |
Machine Heads
Machine heads can improve tuning stability and ease and increments of tuning (handy on stage). Auto Trim / Locking machine heads can trim your string end for you, saving time on a restring – also a handy feature when playing live. They can look great too.
| Gotoh G28 | Even an inexpensive set of Gotoh machine heads made in Japan can be a significant improvement on the made-to-budget generic sets that came with many guitars. What about deluxe chrome with round vintage style buttons? | $49 |
| Gotoh G387 L / R | Individual deluxe chrome machine heads with die-cast housing, ideal for making units for 7 string guitars or single replacements. | $9.95 each |
| Grover GRO104 | Rotomatic with 1 to 18 gear ratio for finer tuning and stability. | $119 for nickel |
| Grover G40G | Deluxe machine heads with 1 to 18 gear ratio for finer tuning and stability. “Coffee Swirl’ buttons. | $159 for gold |
| Schaller M6A | Chrome, Gold | starts at $9 for chrome |
| Schaller Locking Machine Heads | Chrome, Black Chrome, Nickel, Gold | starts at $139 for nickel |
Installation Costs
| Fit Machine Heads | from $60 |
Vintage Parts
Heirloom vintage parts: New pre-aged parts to authenticity to your favourite classic guitar!
| Vintage Tele Style Bridge | $110 | |
| Vintage Tuners (6 in line) | $175 | |
| Vintage Strat Style Saddles | $60 | |
| Vintage Strat Style Bridge (Includes Trem arm, Claw, Springs and Strap buttons) | Set $295 |
Installation Costs
| See the cost to install that part in the repairs page |
Electrical – Pickups, Pots, Wiring Mods….
Pickups: You don’t have to buy a new flashy paint job to get a guitar that sounds hot too. Installing great pickups will breath new life into the tone you have – you may be surprised how good your guitar can sound!
There are a huge range of options – here are a few suggestions. Ring and talk to us – we can advise you on which pickups will really give you the right tone in the style you play………..
| Electric Seymour Duncan | Hot Rails, Jeff Becks’, Alnico Pro’s and more………… | |
| Electric Gibson | Classic 57’s, P90’s, Burst Buckers and more………… | |
| Electric Fender | Custom Shop Strat and Tele Noiseless and more………… | |
| Electric Dimarzio | Tone Zone, Virtual Vintage, Classic PAF’s and more………… | |
| Electric EMG | 81/85 Sets, P & J Sets, Single Coil SA Series and more………… | |
| Acoustic Element Active Undersaddle Pickup | Discrete Class A endpin jack preamp, soundhole mounted volume control, 1000 hours battery life | $299 |
Installation Costs
| Install Pickups | (a) Acoustic (b) Electric | from $125 from $60 |
| Install Switches, Pots etc. | (a) Solid body (b) Semi-acoustic | from $60 from $75 |
| Install Humbucker | When routing is required | from: $90 |
| Install Acoustic Pickup | (a) Under saddle piezo (b) AP5 | $125 $200 |
| Install Pickup/Preamp Assy. | (a) Under saddle piezo style | from: $180 |
Scratch Plates
Guitars should look good too. Set your instrument apart from others by fitting a different scratch plate. There are a huge range of options to help you look unique. We can even make one up for you from scratch – maybe you have a unique design or instrument?
| Natural wood look, clear plastic, a myriad of pearl colours, 2 ply, 3 ply, all the usual suspects, custom made shapes – it’s a big choice! Come in to see our range……. | starting from $25 |
Installation Costs
| Installation costs | starting from $30 |
Wiring Mods
Stay tuned – there are many interesting options you can utilize regarding pots, pickups and switches that can allow you greater tonal variety and help you own an instrument that’s unique. We will be outlining some of these very soon – in the meantime, ring and talk to a repairer about your choices.
Do you play banjo? How about double bass? A resonator?
We know you know we sell a lot of stuff for electric and acoustic guitars and basses, but did you know we stock parts and tools for their stringed cousins too – banjos, double basses, resonators and more?
At Fretco you can get a new banjo head, machine heads, bridges including the Grover compensated bridge, nuts, strings and cases! We’ve also got genuine goat’s vellum for restoring vintage banjos….
We have pickups for double bass, including the highly recommended Schaller Double Bass Magnetic Pickup to deliver good string to string balance, minimal feedback and a warm tone…
For you blues hounds we have pickups for resonators – including the outstanding K & K range, and tons of resonator parts including cones, spider and biscuit bridges….
