Stringing an acoustic: A tip from Dan Erlwine's book

[poodlesrule]

I had D. Erlewine's Repair Guide for a while, from the local library.

He has a interesting tip for stringing an acoustic, specifically, the ball end of the business, which is often poorly done, leading to the chewing-up or the underbridge, as ball does not get where it's supposed to be.

What he does is bend the string with needle-nose pliers, on the part just off the ball, over a half inch or so.
When fully inserted, the ball now naturally sits slightly spaced away from the pin, and seat itself firmly against the wood under tension, without messing with the hole.
He gives the string a good hand pull to feel and confirm that the ball is well-seated.

[Eric]

Thanks for that input. I was planning to do that the next time I put new strings on my acoustic. I've had concerns about how it mangles the bridge pins, and this seems like a decent solution.

[poodlesrule]

I forgot to add that he does a visual check with a mirror. The string ball should fit nicely against the surface of the underbridge plate, not bitting into it. There is a good demo on the DVD that comes with the book.

[markb]

I've had to cut off a couple of bridge pins due to jammed low E strings over the years. I always bend the wound strings now.