nut job

[fretless]

Replaced the original nut today , it was cut a wee low on G& B strings , it wasn't exact on the spacing either , no biggie but that and not sure of the original material but I thought I'd pop on a bone nut . It took awhile to track down one with the right specs and radius and pre slotted for ease of working without all the tools . I found that the Stew Mac Slotted Unbleached Bone part # 6013-VS was darn near perfect . It only needed a slight shaping on the sides , a few swipes with sandpaper on the backside to get it to sit in behind the headstock veneer & just slightly rounding those corners over and the slots were right on but I did just check them with some files for my ga. strings . Very Quick and easy . You just need to cut the old one with a razor blade to free it up from the finish and tap it out . I'm no Luthier but it came out nice ! The sound is wonderfully improved on as well , clear and bright with a strong solid bass .

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Nuts,_saddles/String_nuts/Slotted_Unbleached_Bone_Nuts.html

 

 

 

old sits on top of the ruler

 

 

[H]

Nicely done and thanks for the pics

 

Nothing like doing the job yourself for that extra feeling of warmth inside and having the guitar to play all week!

[bolero]

great job, looks fantastic!!

[fretless]

Thanks Fellas ! I was very happy to find such a quality product to do the job with . For me it saved hrs of work . There will probably always be fear though when doing things like cutting the finish and whatnot .

[FredZepp]

Well done. It's great that you just carefully handled the job yourself and it worked out great.

[fretless]

Well done. It's great that you just carefully handled the job yourself and it worked out great.

 

Thanks man ! I took my time that's for sure . Sadly in my area most of all the good Luthiers/ techs have moved out of the area so I started a few years ago doing simple things for myself . There is at least one or 2 guys in town I could go to if I ever screw it up .

[Steiner]

 

Thanks man ! I took my time that's for sure . Sadly in my area most of all the good Luthiers/ techs have moved out of the area so I started a few years ago doing simple things for myself . There is at least one or 2 guys in town I could go to if I ever screw it up .

 

It's always good to have a backup plan. Nice work!

[fretless]

 

It's always good to have a backup plan. Nice work!

 

Thanks Steiner !

[brentrocks]

good job scott....thats my next thing to learn

 

a good trick for a quick fix on a nut slot that is cut too low:

 

take super glue, drip into the slot and sprinkle baking powder onto the glued slot, quickly pat it in....it will turn rock hard in seconds........sand and file to desired height

 

pete moreno taught me that

[fretless]

good job scott....thats my next thing to learn

 

a good trick for a quick fix on a nut slot that is cut too low:

 

take super glue, drip into the slot and sprinkle baking powder onto the glued slot, quickly pat it in....it will turn rock hard in seconds........sand and file to desired height

 

pete moreno taught me that

Thank you Sir ! yeah I thought about doing the quick fix , works especially well on a bone nut too but I was attracted to those unbleached replacements and thought I'd give it a whirl . Have I told you how much I love this guitar

[brentrocks]

Have I told you how much I love this guitar

 

That is awesome Scott! I love to see someone buy a guitar from me and really bond with it!

[Hfan]

Thanks Fellas ! I was very happy to find such a quality product to do the job with . For me it saved hrs of work . There will probably always be fear though when doing things like cutting the finish and whatnot .

I was going to say you are a brave man. Glad it came out well.

[Blunote]

I've noticed on two of my three heritages that the G-string felt low. Had one fixed by my luthier and took the other back to the factory where I think it was replaced.

 

I wonder if the have a jig that causes them to come out that way.

[fretless]

I was going to say you are a brave man. Glad it came out well.

Thanks Hfan !

I've noticed on two of my three heritages that the G-string felt low. Had one fixed by my luthier and took the other back to the factory where I think it was replaced.

I wonder if the have a jig that causes them to come out that way.

 

 

Odd coincidence ?

[TalismanRich]

Kudo Frettless, Nice job on the new nut.

 

Changing the nut is one of those jobs that most of us could probably do, yet would never try for fear of screwing things up. I noticed that you chose the nut with the closer string spacing (6013 vs the 6012). That seems to have moved the E strings away from the edge nicely. Sometimes the E (especially the high E) are so close that they will roll off the fretboard with the slightest pull. Was that the reason for choosing the 6013?

[fretless]

Kudo Frettless, Nice job on the new nut.

 

Changing the nut is one of those jobs that most of us could probably do, yet would never try for fear of screwing things up. I noticed that you chose the nut with the closer string spacing (6013 vs the 6012). That seems to have moved the E strings away from the edge nicely. Sometimes the E (especially the high E) are so close that they will roll off the fretboard with the slightest pull. Was that the reason for choosing the 6013?

 

Thanks man ! Yes I failed to mention that and glad you pointed it out . I took a best guess approach as the original varied between the 2 or roundabout so I took the chance , it's very very slight but it plays perfectly , not too tight and I didn't really notice . As you point out it will help keep them from rolling off too . Sometimes the fret ends will be filed over and that string will slip right off like it was on ice .

[fretless]

Part of the problem for me was finding a good replacement , I did buy a few only to find it required too much work, most of the LP types and Tusq types are the wrong sz. Too high or too wide . This was right on , with very little required to get it in. Really just needed the corners rounded over .

[DetroitBlues]

Thanks Hfan !

 

 

 

Odd coincidence ?

 

I think it is because Heritage being a big archtop maker, they expect a wound G string. That may cause the slot to be a little deeper.

[Blunote]

 

I think it is because Heritage being a big archtop maker, they expect a wound G string. That may cause the slot to be a little deeper.

Brilliant! I think you may be on to something.

[smurph1]

Nice Job Scott..Sweet 137 by the way!! What kind of strings are those in the red pack?

[fretless]

Nice Job Scott..Sweet 137 by the way!! What kind of strings are those in the red pack?

 

Thanks man ! Those are R Cocco , my fav's , amazing strings , fantastic bass strings too , might be the best ever . Limited in ga. though but if they have your ga. give'em a try . I find they are very well balanced from string to strings and sound excellent and last a good while too .

http://www.stringsandbeyond.com/r-cocco-strings.html

[Spook410]

Thanks for posting this. Made me go look. 4 files. Gauge. Nut. I'm thinking I can do this for pretty close to the price of getting one guitar done.

[fretless]

Thanks for posting this. Made me go look. 4 files. Gauge. Nut. I'm thinking I can do this for pretty close to the price of getting one guitar done.

 

I like to have to files around , I got the set so one for each string but these tools last and are very useful for setups on all your instruments . The gauge is very cool to , great for setting action .