Cutting and shaping bone to make a nut

[Spudman***]

I think it might be a 'seat of your pants' sort of thing. You might get close with the spacing but it might be hard to get exact.

Idea: Take a little carbon paper and rub the top of the existing nut then take a blank piece of paper and lay it on top of the now inked nut - hold paper firmly in place without moving it - press down over the paper on top of the nut to get an ink transfer of the old nut onto the paper.

You should be able then to match that to your new blank and get things pretty close.

If you file the slots too deep a mixture of bone dust and super glue can be used to re-fill the slot and you can start again.

Also, if you have a saw etc. you can just go to your local butcher shop and get bones for free to make nuts with.

[luvmyshiner]

Navvid, to get the spacing right, you could try one of these:

http://www.stewmac.com/cgi-bin/hazel...talog/sku.html

Additionally, your string slots really need to be rounded at the bottom, as opposed to the V slot you're going to get if you use a regular file to make the slots, to properly seat the strings, and avoid problems with string breakage, wear, intonation, tuning and such. Stewmac also sells nut files which leave a proper, rounded seat for the strings. Now, if you want to get the whole thing, they sell an essential nut making kit which has everything you need:

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Tools/Sp..._Tool_Kit.html

Having said all that, if you're just trying it out at this point and you don't want to sink $200 in the thing, then line your old nut up with the new nut (snicker, sorry, my inner 14 year old came out ) use a pencil to trace the location of the slots, and give it a shot with whatever you have. If you're pleased with the results, you can get the files and give it another try.

One other suggestion for us "do it yourself" kinda folks (though I've never tried it). I have a friend who actually buys his "bone" (snicker, sorry, more 14 year old stuff) at petsmart. He buys the big cow bones, which are pre-cured and cleaned for dogs, cuts them down, and makes his own nuts.

[just strum]

I've never done this with my guitars, but I always heard to do it properly, you need to have the proper files and my opinion, not cheap.

/http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Nuts,_saddles/Special_tools_for:_Nuts_and_saddles/Double-edge_Nut_Files.html

There is a debate on what value changing out the nut has. In your case, due to action, there certainly is reason to consider a nut change. Material on the other hand really makes minimal difference other than bone, tusq and some of the harder materials hold up better to wear caused by tuning. Since you are fretting most of the time, the material has little or no impact on tone/sound. The saddle plays a much bigger role in changing tone/sound.

I don't know if you ever used this site, but I found it to be a treasure of information.

http://frets.com/FRETSPages/pagelist.html

If you haven't used or read this site, scroll down to Instrument Setup and check out the two sections regarding guitar nut.

Edit: I see Shiner posted as I was writing (interupted by the Indians game), but some of the same points are made.

[Guitar Gal]

There is a debate on what value changing out the nut has.

To my novice ears, I think changing out a plastic nut is definitely worth it. I have noticed an improvement in tone using a bone nut compared to a stock plastic nut.

I've never tried to shape my own bone nut, but have either bought a preshaped nut or taken it in to a local music store and have the tech do it. I don't have the proper nut files and for now, it is cheaper fo me to pay someone else to do it than to buy the nut files and do it myself. However, as my guitar family continues to grow....I most likely will save $$ in the long run by doing it myself

GG

[just strum]

To my novice ears, I think changing out a plastic nut is definitely worth it. I have noticed an improvement in tone using a bone nut compared to a stock plastic nut.

GG

I guess I should clarify or reword my comment: the changing of the nut produces minimal change in sound/tone. One thing many do is change out the nut and saddle, or pins and saddle, then state changing the nut or the pin change made a big difference, when in fact it was probably 90%+ the result of the saddle change.

IMHO the best return on investment is a change in saddle. Again, if you are changing a nut because the slots are cut wrong, or the nut is too low, by all means it will make a difference, however I think you could change it with a proper plastic nut and get damn near the same results.

In the end, it's up to ones own ears and eyes. If you feel it sounds different or better, than it does. If you feel that it looks better, than it does.

I'm not telling anyone they are wrong, because I think you can get people to line up on both sides of the fence on this one.

[Katastrophe]

This thread is of great interest to my. My ESP (somewhere around 13 years old) has had the strings saw through the original graphite nut, leaving the action way too low at the first fret, and causing the strings to bind.

Thanks for the good info!

[just strum]

This thread is of great interest to my. My ESP (somewhere around 13 years old) has had the strings saw through the original graphite nut, leaving the action way too low at the first fret, and causing the strings to bind.

Thanks for the good info!

Kat,

If you haven't already read it, I recommend you look at frets.com - It is really a helpful website that seems to help people at all levels. As a beginner, I found it an excellent source for understanding the guitar and the maintenance that goes into acoustics.