Retractable fret system for stringed instruments

Abstract

Abstract An electric bass guitar with retractable frets for the purpose of for example enabling the musician to perform dynamic slides without volume attenuation of the slide by moving the frets down into the neck of the guitar out of play. The retractable frets provide dual positions to choose from in regard to fret positions: a first, retracted position which provides frets flush with the fretboard, giving the electric bass a fretless guitar characteristic, and a second, non-retracted position which provides frets protruding out of the plane of the fretboard as in a conventional guitar; or alternatively the selection of retracting only certain desired one of the frets without interrupting the effectiveness of the remaining frets. The neck includes on its upper side a lateral, inclined slope upon which the wedge-shaped frets ride. As the frets are moved across the neck, and ride up the slope, they rise up out from the neck body and protrude above it to be in their operative disposition. Likewise when they are moved backdown the slope, they submerge down into the neck to their inoperative disposition, resulting in effectively a fretless guitar. A tension wire, bell crank system is included in the guitar neck structure which serves to effectively "lock" the frets into their raised, operative disposition under the usual playing pressure, applied to the upper surface of the frets, but which allows the frets to be snapped back into their submerged, "fretless" disposition whenever desired during play. A longitudinally extending, flexible thumb bar is included along the length of the guitar neck to which the lower ends of the moveable frets are attached. The thumb bar has sufficient give or flexibility so that pushing pressure applied on the bar adjacent to fret will move only that fret up into its operative, raised disposition when desired during play.

Inventors

• 👤 Martin J. Mouton

Bibliographic Details