Replacing guitar parts.

  • Thread starter Thread starter ChristopherDawn
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ChristopherDawn

ChristopherDawn

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I recently got a guitar off of ebay and noticed the plastic piece that holds the strings before going to the tuners is not flush against the neck. It looks like a pretty shabby job. I plan on taking it off, getting all the gunk off of the neck/headstock area and then putting it back on. What kind of glue should I use to reattach it?

Also, can anybody link me to some good sites about doing DIY guitar stuff? Thanks.
 
That "plastic piece" is called the nut.

It's a relatively cheap part, and it's not too difficult to fix. But if you screw up the placement and/or height of the nut, you'll probably throw off your intonation and cause a domino effect of problems on that guitar. There's a good chance that that's not even the original (or proper) nut, by the way your describing how it was re-glued.

It doesn't sound like you know enough about guitars to do it on your own.

Let a guitar tech do it.
 
Buck62 said:
It doesn't sound like you know enough about guitars to do it on your own.
Click to expand...

Only one way to learn.


Still looking for links. Thanks.
 
I agree with you CD. That's a great place to start in learning how to work on guitars.

The easiest way is to take the nut in with you. If the guitar is an inexspensive acoustic steel string, it's a fairly straight forward project. Most of them are relatively standardized in size - take off the strings, clean up the slot/shoulder CAREFULLY and reglue. Restring, have fun :)

As much as I love Guitar Center, this is when the smaller shop is probably a better place to go. Many of them will have a tech on hand... or even the sales people will know enough to get you what you need.

I'm always amazed how easy it is to work on guitars - acoustics and electrics. I do a lot of woodworking, automotive, home DIY stuff - so taking apart my guitars and tweeking/fixing them has become a natural extension.

Just take your time, plan on several evenings -
Day 1: take off the nut/clean up the spot
Day 2: go to the guitar shop and get the new nut (and strings)
Day 3: polish up the body, oil the neck, tighten the tuners bolts (there will be at least one loose), carefully glue the nut on - leave the guitar set over night - don't fiddle with it, pick it up, etc. until the next day.
Day 4: Restring and have fun!

Tension rod - again search the web. Tighten/Loosen to get the proper bow. You can use automotive spark plug feeler guages to check for proper clearance.

If it has an adjustable bridge - Set the string height/intonation: search the net for neck adjustments for your exact model/style of guitar -or- for the style of guitar that yours seems to fit (most acoustics will be similar). Sit with a beer and a GOOD electronic tuner and plan on about an hour for your first time making adjustments.

It's amazing how playable even the trashiest guitar can be set - it may not last that way if there are other problems however.

Have fun!
 
Thanks fusion for the post.

I'm still curious as to what glue to use? Any kind? I'm sure that won't work. Is there special 'guitar glue?' Haha.
 
Fret - Good idea to link to StewMac. They are an excellent supplier. I've refered to their site many times for ordering and information.

CD - I'd still look for a pre-slotted nut before you go the make your own route. If the width is correct (or darn close), the string seperation distances should be ok. What may not be correct is the depth of the nut slots.

If the overall height of the nut is to high, sand the bottom down. The key here is to get the string height correct relative to the where the nut meets the neck - if you have other guitars to compare against, you can use that as a rough estimate. Just remember to measure the distance between BOTTOM of the string and the neck when doing these sorts of measurements.

I noticed Stewmac had a glue called "Titebond". You might be able to find something similar at the hardware store (Lowe's, etc.). I would NOT use a "white"/wood glue (e.g. Elmers) or epoxy (it'll never come off!) to put the nut on.

Here's another thing that worked for me early on - I bought really cheap strings at guitar center (like 12 sets in a box) and used those after I would make any modifications. Then if I screwed things up or wasn't happy, it wouldn't be as costly of a mistake :-).

And mistakes NEVER happen ;)

Good luck!
 
Nuts are in no way standardized. In order for them to be right, they need to be custom fit to each guitar, and they are not what most people call cheap. We make nuts for about $75 plus material (which is about $10).

At any rate, you should take it to a good repair tech, as pretty much any time you buy a guitar, it is going to need a setup.

Most nuts, by the way, are either not glued on, or only just lightly tacked on. We use cyanoacrylate, just one small drop on each side of the nut (bass and treble), and that is it.

If you MUST do it yourself (which I do not advise), read Frank Ford's Website, Frets.com.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
CD

What's the make/model of the guitar we talking about anyway? That'll help decide what direction to take.
 
hey, if its expensive, i would pay ten dollars to get it done by a pro, or get a good book, like the guitar handbook or something. all nuts i have done didnt need glue but all are different. good luck!
 
I would definitely have this done by a tech if you don't even know what the piece is called.

Properly fitting the nut is important and requires that string height be measured and the nut fit accordingly... failing to so will cause the strings to bind (which will cause tuning issues), the height to be wrong (which will cause intonation issues and/or playability issues), string spacing to be off (which will cause playability and/or pickup/bridge issues)... as was said before its a domino effect.

You are seriously much better introduced to guitar tech'ing by doing something like trying to set your own intonation etc. You might not get it right, but its MUCH easier to correct the error.

Its only an alternator... its not like I'm taking apart the whole engine... now how do you glue these things on!?

Velvet Elvis
 
Fusioninspace said:
CD

What's the make/model of the guitar we talking about anyway? That'll help decide what direction to take.
Click to expand...

83 Gibson LP Studio.

I'm probably going to take it into the shop in the next week or so to have it looked at.


Velvet Elvis said:
Its only an alternator... its not like I'm taking apart the whole engine... now how do you glue these things on!?
Click to expand...

Well shit, if it's like changing an alternator then it'll be a piece of cake!
 
Hahaha... :)

Trade ya then Chris... you take care of my car, I'll take care of your guitar.

Velvet Elvis
 
Velvet Elvis said:
Hahaha... :)

Trade ya then Chris... you take care of my car, I'll take care of your guitar.

Velvet Elvis
Click to expand...

Deal! I'll send you my guitar tomorrow. When are you going to send me your car to, um... "work on?" :D:D:D
 
Your guitar might be worth more than my car... this could be a good deal.

Velvet Elvis
 
I have to say I've changed a few nuts, it's pretty low risk. So long as you follow Light's advice on glue, the worst case scenario is you're out a few bucks for the nut, and you take it to a tech for a quality job. So go ahead and try.
 
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