this whole 'refilling the nut slot' thing

[jivetrain]

i have to redo some of the nut slots on my guitars after having them filed incorrectly by a tech a while ago, and am not totally sure about how the process goes. i understand the basic task as far as putting glue in the slot and then filling it with powder from the top of the nut, but i need to know what type of glue to use in the nut slot, how much to use, and how much powder needs to be sanded off the top of the nut to fill the slot, what grade sandpaper to use... if any of you master experts want to share your advice about how to do this step by step i'll be very grateful

 

[aznrambo481]

it's probably be a lot easier just to slap a new nut on there... they aren't expensive and will let you get a fresh start. Unless the nuts are originals you don't want to swap out..

 

[boris bubbanov]

I've always looked at this procedure, while a good one, as a stop gap for someone who is away from their luthier and not at liberty to take a guitar out of commission while a new nut is fitted.

I recommend you try a new precut nut of tusq or graphtech. IMO a nut of even the finest material is no longer superior to much of anything, once it becomes necessary to triage it with baking soda and cyanoacrylate penetrating formula glue.

 

[Stuco]

if it's a vintage guitar with an original nut, maybe.

otherwise just get a new nut. Nowadays you can buy pre shaped and slotted nuts for fenders.

 

[KokoTele]

I've fixed my mistakes when making nuts plenty of times, and only once have I detected any real difference in the quality of the slot.

However, I only do this with bone nuts and using bone dust.

I use a little piece of tape on either side of the nut to act as a dam, then fill the slot with bone dust. Then I put a drop of superglue on top and let it soak in. You can remove the tape pretty much right away, but I let it cure for a while before filing. I wait overnight if I can, but if I'm in a rush I'll give it a couple of hours.

Once I think I used too much glue and not enough dust and the slot was sticky afterwards.

 

[Flat357]

Filling a nut is no big deal , and is something every guitar player should know how to do .
If it's plastic , you might throw it away , but if it's bone , then they don't come cheap if you get a luthier to make one , but in either case , it won't harm to learn how .

2 tecniques that you can use .

On a bone nut , tape the sides if needed , then you can drop a little superglue into the slot , then with a sharp knife , scrape the top of the nut , so that the residue falls into the slot with the glue .
Or ...

Again drop a little glue into the slot , then sprinkle some baking soda over it .
It dries very quickly .
Then , take your file and re-do the slot .

Files are rediculously expensive , so most guys won't have them .
Some alternatives can be found using hacksaw blades , knives , or even sandpaper wrapped around a fila guage etc .

Be sure to lubricate the slots afterwards using a mix of vaseline and pencil lead , or just vaseline if you have no pencil at hand .

 

[Flat357]

Just saw Erics post .... same as I guess lol

 

[jivetrain]

i don't want to replace the nut because that's a lot more work. i don't know anything about how to set the string spacing or shape the nut, nor am i too keen on learning it all right now. i don't know if this superglue method results in a different sound when the strings are played open, but i doubt it would be much of a change, so i'm fine with it.


are there any specific recommendations for superglue? or is it just anything that will harden sufficiently?

Files are rediculously expensive , so most guys won't have them .
Some alternatives can be found using hacksaw blades , knives , or even sandpaper wrapped around a fila guage etc .

i doubt that those tools will do a good job, in fact the reason my nut slot is too low is because it had been filed with some random tool that gave it a perfect 'V' shape. the tuning was terrible so i tried to use an actual file to round it out to a U shape, but by the time it had widened it was too low. i'll never consider using anything but a real file again

 

[lambchop]

I think that these files are a must have for any guitarist, they make the job of nut filing easy peasy and they're not that expensive.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Norman-Guitar...NameZWD2VQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1638Q2em122

 

[pgambon]

I've never had real good results filling a nut slot. The glue just doesn't seem hard enough. I develop another technique I use for quick fixes or on guitars where I just don't want to replace the nut. Otherwise its cheaper and easier to just replace the nut, I use the preslotted tusc nuts from Stewart MacDonald. Anyway, I use a round needle file and inlarge the slot until I get a deep channel. Then I use a piece of acoustic saddle material (again tusc works well, it's good and hard), I round it so it fits in the channel, trim it to a small size and super glue it in place. After it dries I file it down and reslot the "new" nut. The string should sit completely in the new material. Works great and its really pretty quick.

 

[Wardpike]

I've fixed my mistakes when making nuts plenty of times, and only once have I detected any real difference in the quality of the slot.

However, I only do this with bone nuts and using bone dust.

I use a little piece of tape on either side of the nut to act as a dam, then fill the slot with bone dust. Then I put a drop of superglue on top and let it soak in. You can remove the tape pretty much right away, but I let it cure for a while before filing. I wait overnight if I can, but if I'm in a rush I'll give it a couple of hours.

This is thew exact method I have also used over the past (mumble mumble) number of years.

As for sandpaper... well, once filled, you need something semi-coarse like 240 to take off burrs or anything rough, but if it's smooth, go straight to the 600+ wet-dry paper and use a little moisture. Then some 0000 steel wool to polish. But I don't think you have to go through all that much trouble to make it too perfect.

And get the nut-slot files! A fine saw blade will do in a pinch, but that's only if you're absolutely stuck! I've been on the road in years past where I've had access to nothing more than a hack-saw blade, crazy glue or super glue and some 240 sandpaper, and I've made do and gotten a usable result.

But...the thought of doing it without the right tools makes me shudder.

 

[Flat357]

i don't want to replace the nut because that's a lot more work. i don't know anything about how to set the string spacing or shape the nut, nor am i too keen on learning it all right now. i don't know if this superglue method results in a different sound when the strings are played open, but i doubt it would be much of a change, so i'm fine with it.


are there any specific recommendations for superglue? or is it just anything that will harden sufficiently?



i doubt that those tools will do a good job, in fact the reason my nut slot is too low is because it had been filed with some random tool that gave it a perfect 'V' shape. the tuning was terrible so i tried to use an actual file to round it out to a U shape, but by the time it had widened it was too low. i'll never consider using anything but a real file again

If you have files , then use them .... if ya don't , then you improvise don't ya You grind the blade down to the required thickness .
I wouldn't of told you about them if they didn't do a good job , but then I don't remember charging you for the info , so by all means doubt away . Doing a good job is more down to experience of what is needed , rather than simply relying on the tool .

Which superglue do you use ?
The type that say ' superglue ' on the box . Seriously lol . Some luthiers might look for cyanoacrylate glue , but it's not that important . The trademark ' superglue ' IS ethyl-2-cyanoacrylate .

Will it change the sound of the guitar ?
It's a repair that is needed . No , it won't if done properly , or at least not that you would notice .

If you have files , then always use them , and get the bottom round . Make the groove slightly bigger than the string gauge . Use a smaller file to start with and work the nut .

Here are some files

(link removed)

(link removed)

Good luck !

 

[spankdplank]

Corian countertop material makes great nuts. To fill in a too deep slot I use the technique Eryque described above, but I use Corian dust, regardless of what the nut was made from. Far easier than replacing a nut and when properly done, I can tell no difference between a filled nut and an original nut.

 

[jivetrain]

I wouldn't of told you about them if they didn't do a good job , but then I don't remember charging you for the info , so by all means doubt away . Doing a good job is more down to experience of what is needed , rather than simply relying on the tool .

Good luck !

no offense, i'm sure you can get those tools to work; my last tech didn't though, and he's an old experienced luthier type. i barely know what i'm doing even with the proper files i have, so i wouldn't dare try to make it any more challenging for myself by using a foreign tool.

anyway, i've got the stewmac files which i hear are pretty good. thanks for the advice everyone, i'll try this soon

 

[Flat357]

Just give it a whirl with the files .
At the end of the day , you'll have added a little string to your bow even if you balls it up . It's a useful thing to learn , so you can't lose either way .
Don't forget to lay tape either side of the nut , just incase you have a lil accident with the glue
Good luck , and let us know how you get on .

 

[Dacious]

Then there's Ol Fuzzy's improvised nut file, which was an icy-pole stick (lollypop stick?) with a short length of the correct gauge string taped or glued to one edge - if a plain string, roughened up with plier jaws.

Takes some patience, but actually works and as a fine 'vernier' or finishing method if all you are doing is touching up a slot. If nothing else, it's an excuse to eat a Magnum or Heaven, or treat your significant other to one. Then they can't say they never get anything out of your guitar playing.

But I have the Norman guitar files off ebay, and I have to say, they work just dinkily for me. Cheap, too.

 

[crowden]

... But I have the Norman guitar files off ebay, and I have to say, they work just dinkily for me. Cheap, too.

I use the Norman files also and they work just fine for me. Guitar Parts USA used to have a set of nut files that weren't to bad a deal but they are out of stock ATM. I got their fret crowning file for $19.95 and it has done that job as well as I expect it to.

 

[jivetrain]

i'm going to try this tonight, but still am not too clear on what to use to generate the bone dust; i assume sandpaper on the top of the nut would create very fine dust, while the kitchen knife method i heard would probably make larger bits. i was thinking i could also use the slotting files themselves, going across all the string slots. the larger low E file would be easiest, but i don't know if that's a good idea.