bone nut replacement/tusk

[ken374]

Anybody have this done? does it sound much better? i talked to a guy at the store and the man said prb. not much in sound, if its worn then yeah replace. I hear different opinions on this.

[Whitmore Willy]

Ken,

 

I have bone nuts (lucky me) on my older guitars. I have been using graphtech Tusq or Trem nuts for the last few years and have no complaints. Would recommend them to anyone. They are a vast improvement over plastic production nuts. Much better tuning and stability. In my opinion they also add a slight clarity to the sound of the guitar.

Some will say that a nut only effects a guitar in the open position. I for one feel differently about it.

You decide.

 

Additional info:

http://www.graphtech.com/kbase.html?ArticleID=31

 

Willy

 

Edit: If I had a well cut bone nut on a guitar I would probably not replace it. Plastic or nylon...Replace!

[Supersonic]

Ken,

 

I have bone nuts (lucky me) on my older guitars. I have been using graphtech Tusq or Trem nuts for the last few years and have no complaints. Would recommend them to anyone. They are a vast improvement over plastic production nuts. Much better tuning and stability. In my opinion they also add a slight clarity to the sound of the guitar.

Some will say that a nut only effects a guitar in the open position. I for one feel differently about it.

You decide.

 

Additional info:

http://www.graphtech.com/kbase.html?ArticleID=31

 

Willy

 

 

I put in a tusq nut on my G400 and I love it. The sound is somewhat brighter and sustain is better. Worth every penny and easy to do as well.

[brianh]

Anybody have this done? does it sound much better? i talked to a guy at the store and the man said prb. not much in sound, if its worn then yeah replace. I hear different opinions on this.

It depends.

 

What type of nut is on there now - plastic?

 

If so, than a bone, graph tech, corian, etc. nut could provide a slight improvement in tone, and probably improved ease of tuning.

 

But more importantly, the nut needs to be cut properly and to suit your playing style...

[The_Buffalo]

 

...the nut needs to be cut properly and to suit your playing style...

 

Which means buying/borrowing/stealing an expensive set of nut files.

[Whitmore Willy]

Which means buying/borrowing/stealing an expensive set of nut files.

 

OR....

Torch tip cleaners. $5.00 at any welding supply store. File sides on all gauges.

Not for everyday use but, for a one time adjustment they work fine.

 

Willy

[ken374]

Thanks for the replies when i play gibson SG then go to the epiphone the tone is not as smooth, kind of crappy sounding.

[ken374]

It depends.

 

What type of nut is on there now - plastic?

 

If so, than a bone, graph tech, corian, etc. nut could provide a slight improvement in tone, and probably improved ease of tuning.

 

But more importantly, the nut needs to be cut properly and to suit your playing style...

59 epi les paul plastic nut

[RaSTuS]

Tusq nuts are great, no need to cut your own (unless you are very particular), they're available already cut and are a simple drop in replacement, a job almost anybody could do.

[surfaday]

I just installed and Allparts pre-slotted bone nut on my new Dot last night and I'm very happy with the sound. I thought I had cheapie factory pickups - maybe I do - but the bone nut made high e a lot stronger, more volume with better sustain. Guitar sounds better unplugged too, and though I'm sure a lot of it is the placebo effect, I think overall it rings clearer. I'm not in such a rush for new pickups now.

[modern image]

had it done sounds a bit better. but also had a tonepros bridge on replacing the nylon which i hated. to it sounds acoustically pretty good. i'm thinking of replacing pickups now however as it sounds like crap amplified. i had a elite that beat the hell out of this lennon i now have.

[atfab]

Please note I do my part making with the old strings, loosened then retighened, so at best any percieved change should be minimal.

 

I haven't done much with bridges and nuts but I replaced the beat up adjustable bridge and nut on my Epi Texan 12 with a solid Tusq bridge and nut, big improvement in the overall balance and tone. I had to make my own.

 

I also put a corian nut, again hand made, on my SG copy. I notices a slight improvement in sustain.

 

Ebony bridge pins added some better balance to my Dean

 

My last experiment was with my Winston POS plywood junk. I used some stabilized walnut for knife handles to make a new nut and bridge. again an overall better, louder sound.

 

My point, dump the plastic.

[heretic]

To all,

 

Has anyone verified that Epi nuts are a generic plastic and not 6-6 Nylon? I have tons of sustain with the stock nut on my Epi's and no tuning issues. My '56 Gt sounds surprisingly good unplugged, great tone and sustain. I have Tusqs on all of my acoustics but I can't say that I need to change the nuts on the Epiphones.

 

– heretic

[bolide]

It is my view that replacing the nut on a guitar should be likened to having a new pair of trousers hemmed; It should be replaced with one which is tailored to the gauge of strings you use, and to your intended playing manner/style.

 

That said, the stock nut on the Epiphone Dot I just got is amazingly sticky. Nothing a little visit with the trusty Dixon Ticondroga dry lube applicator didn't help, but it is remarkable how my D string just refused to go into tune on an otherwise perfect set-up. (I love my Dot, the nut is the only sticking point, to be replaced in the not too distant future; I'm thinking of going with the Teflon impregnated black Tusq.)

[cjlandry]

It is my view that replacing the nut on a guitar should be likened to having a new pair of trousers hemmed; It should be replaced with one which is tailored to the gauge of strings you use, and to your intended playing manner/style.

 

That said, the stock nut on the Epiphone Dot I just got is amazingly sticky. Nothing a little visit with the trusty Dixon Ticondroga dry lube applicator didn't help, but it is remarkable how my D string just refused to go into tune on an otherwise perfect set-up. (I love my Dot, the nut is the only sticking point, to be replaced in the not too distant future; I'm thinking of going with the Teflon impregnated black Tusq.)

 

Had the exact issue on my Dot, only mine was with the D and A strings.

 

I used the torch tip cleaners, since I had some in my shop, and it worked great. Scraped pencil lead into all the slots when I restrung it, and it's fine. I like this guitar enough to upgrade everything, though (pickups, pots, caps, switch, jack, and wiring), so I'm gonna put a Graph-tech nut on it as well. There's just no reason not to, since I'm doing everything else anyway.

[james_edward]

I'm not sure what type of material a stock Epi nut is made of, but I will say that only 1 out of 10 epi's at my place still have the stock nut in place, the rest are Tusq and one is bone.

 

I think the major difference and the only reason I switched them out is for (a)proper playing action and (b)tuning stability - but in this regard the improvement is massive, I find the stock nut is almost never properly cut.

 

I swear besides a microscopic amount more resonance, and an even less noticeable improvement in clarity, I can't tell the difference from the stock nut (if it was cut properly)but for the reasons pointed out above I think it's worth the effort to change them out.

 

As someone mentioned above if you buy a pre-slotted nut like Tusq, they are good for string sizes 9 through to 11, fitting them involves sanding the underside to "drop" the nut down to the correct height - no nut files required.

[heretic]

I must be very, very lucky. I have two excellent, Chinese-made acoustics, three Epis and a Chinese-made Ibanez with original nuts. The acoustics are bone. But, all have been properly made. I'm a pretty discerning guy and I won't be changing them any time soon. I did replace the original nut on my '74 Gibson Heritage Custom, though. I had a "luthier" work on it 30 years ago, and he really effed it up. Recently, I made a blank out of real ivory and had a local guy cut the grooves. Another botched nut. So then I tried the pre-slotted Tusq, and fitted it myself just like james_edward. Perfect.

 

– heretic

[BillyGibson]

I can see on open strings a nut could affect the tone. But once you play a chord, especialy a barre chord, the nut would no longer be a factor in the tone. I don't want to fiddle with my nuts unless I have too.

[RaSTuS]

I can see on open strings a nut could affect the tone. But once you play a chord, especialy a barre chord, the nut would no longer be a factor in the tone. I don't want to fiddle with my nuts unless I have too.

Nut fiddling is a noble pursuit, I can't stop fiddling with mine.

[rdsmith3]

I'm not sure what type of material a stock Epi nut is made of, but I will say that only 1 out of 10 epi's at my place still have the stock nut in place, the rest are Tusq and one is bone.

 

I think the major difference and the only reason I switched them out is for (a)proper playing action and (b)tuning stability - but in this regard the improvement is massive, I find the stock nut is almost never properly cut.

 

I swear besides a microscopic amount more resonance, and an even less noticeable improvement in clarity, I can't tell the difference from the stock nut (if it was cut properly)but for the reasons pointed out above I think it's worth the effort to change them out.

 

As someone mentioned above if you buy a pre-slotted nut like Tusq, they are good for string sizes 9 through to 11, fitting them involves sanding the underside to "drop" the nut down to the correct height - no nut files required.

 

I just replaced the nut in my Les Paul Traditional Pro with a Tusq nut. I agree with the above assessment. I can't say I notice a difference in tone. However, tuning is less sticky. In fact, when I first got this guitar (which I really, really like) I changed the strings. When I tried to remove the D string, it was stuck in the nut slot. Have you ever had dental floss stuck between two teeth and tried to pull it out? Well, it was like that with the D string. It was really wedged into a slot that was obviously cut too low and too tight.

 

I still have to sand some more off the bottom. I was being cautious -- I did not want to sand off too much. Now it is in, and I have played it, I think the string height at the nut is a bit too high.

 

It's fairly easy to change a nut; it costs less than $10; and it helps tuning, so why not?