"A" String breaks at the saddle

[ReneJaszi]

Hi everyone!

I recently finished a tele build (2 months ago) everything is working perfectly except: I started to experience "A" string breaks at the exact point where the string meets the saddle. The saddles are not rusted (they are basically 2 months old) and the guitar has a "Fender 3-Saddle American Vintage Telecaster Bridge" (https://www.fender.com/en-HU/parts/...caster-bridge-assembly-chrome/0990806100.html) with the 3 uncompensated brass saddles. The guitar is set up to my preferences and feels great to play otherwise.

Now I did have this exact same problem on my Ibanez so i changed the saddles on it to graphtech stringsaver and it fixed the problem. However I am hesitant to change the saddles to string savers because I truly love how brass saddles look on a tele.

But maybe the problem is just the break angle so I thought I could try the Gotoh In-Tune compensated brass tele saddles.

Sadly, I'm not experienced enough to file the saddles myself and I don't really have any reliable guitar techs in my area so I think this option is out.

So please give me your opinion what do you think I should do?
Should compensated saddles be enough or should I get Graptech stringsavers? Or is there any other solution?

Thank you for your help in advance.

 

[Fenderbaum]

Why would you file the Gotoh saddles?
They are already notched.

 

[giogolf]

On the Tele, check to see if the string is contacting the eyelet at the exit before it hits the saddle.. Sometimes burs in this area are the culprit

 

[Boreas]

Out of many guitars I have owned, I never had one with an A string problem - let alone two. Do you rest your palm there? Do you get significant corrosion in that area? Could very well be a sharp component, but A strings are pretty tough.

 

[Twang Deluxe]

I always had problems with the modern bridge of my Mexico Standard Tele. I broke countless strings. Than I switched to a 3 saddle bridge with threaded saddles and everything was fine

 

[ReneJaszi]

Out of many guitars I have owned, I never had one with an A string problem - let alone two. Do you rest your palm there? Do you get significant corrosion in that area? Could very well be a sharp component, but A strings are pretty tough.

It is exactly where I rest my palm but the saddles are not rusty yet and I figured the problem isn't corrosion since I don't sweat that much and as I said the saddles are basically new. In the other guitar's case it might have been the corrosion because when the problem started occuring there the saddles were 1 year old and fairly rusty.

 

[Boreas]

It is exactly where I rest my palm but the saddles are not rusty yet and I figured the problem isn't corrosion since I don't sweat that much and as I said the saddles are basically new. In the other guitar's case it might have been the corrosion because when the problem started occuring there the saddles were 1 year old and fairly rusty.

My concern isn't with the saddles but the strings. Perhaps you are corroding the strings quickly. You don't have to sweat a lot - just salts/acids/oils from the skin and any moisture can break down certain alloys. Any pix would be helpful - especially of any broken strings.

 

[ReneJaszi]

well I can't take a picture of it right now but basically the winds came apart and the core of the string snapped, there is no sign of rust or any discoloration the strings look brand new. By the way I use D'Addario 10-46 gauge string (EXL110). Also I use Dunlop string cleaner conditioner at the end of every session after wiping down the strings with a cloth. Also also I always keep this guitar in standard tuning. Oh and I use Dunlop Tortex 1.0 mm picks.

 

[UserNotAvailable]

smooth out the slot

 

[Slim Chance]

Have you tried a different make of strings? Could be a simple and low cost fix if it solves the problem.

 

[Thebluesman]

Hi everyone!

I recently finished a tele build (2 months ago) everything is working perfectly except: I started to experience "A" string breaks at the exact point where the string meets the saddle. The saddles are not rusted (they are basically 2 months old) and the guitar has a "Fender 3-Saddle American Vintage Telecaster Bridge" (https://www.fender.com/en-HU/parts/...caster-bridge-assembly-chrome/0990806100.html) with the 3 uncompensated brass saddles. The guitar is set up to my preferences and feels great to play otherwise.

Now I did have this exact same problem on my Ibanez so i changed the saddles on it to graphtech stringsaver and it fixed the problem. However I am hesitant to change the saddles to string savers because I truly love how brass saddles look on a tele.

But maybe the problem is just the break angle so I thought I could try the Gotoh In-Tune compensated brass tele saddles.

Sadly, I'm not experienced enough to file the saddles myself and I don't really have any reliable guitar techs in my area so I think this option is out.

So please give me your opinion what do you think I should do?
Should compensated saddles be enough or should I get Graptech stringsavers? Or is there any other solution?

Thank you for your help in advance.

You have a Burr-It acts like a saw upon the underside of the string when it vibrates!-where it specifically contacts the saddles edge..- smooth [round ] over the invisible edge[the burr] use fine grit Wet & Dry paper.=remove the burr.resolves issue.

 

[Monoprice99]

Photos would help to see what might be causing it to break. Are you tuning it higher than A2 ? It's a wound string, but also a core. How old are the strings ?

 

[NoTeleBob]

I'd use a high power magnifier on the slot. Look for an imperfection. If it's there, smooth it a piece of wet/dry sandpaper folded in half.

Have you broken one string, or more than one?

 

[Happy Enchilada]

Now I did have this exact same problem on my Ibanez so i changed the saddles on it to graphtech stringsaver and it fixed the problem. However I am hesitant to change the saddles to string savers because I truly love how brass saddles look on a tele.

So why did you get this guitar, to ogle or to play?
GraphTech saddles and nuts are the FIRST thing I change on an electric I'm going to keep.
This and so many more reasons. Like additional sustain, staying in tune ...
But hey, it doesn't look like the one Buck picked on "HeeHaw."

 

[eallen]

The exact same problem on the exact same string in the exact same place on 2 guitars is fishy. Look close at the saddle and make sure there are no burs. I have used Gotoh bridges & saddles on a bunch of builds without issue.

 

[reedrainey]

Hi everyone!

I recently finished a tele build (2 months ago) everything is working perfectly except: I started to experience "A" string breaks at the exact point where the string meets the saddle. The saddles are not rusted (they are basically 2 months old) and the guitar has a "Fender 3-Saddle American Vintage Telecaster Bridge" (https://www.fender.com/en-HU/parts/...caster-bridge-assembly-chrome/0990806100.html) with the 3 uncompensated brass saddles. The guitar is set up to my preferences and feels great to play otherwise.

Now I did have this exact same problem on my Ibanez so i changed the saddles on it to graphtech stringsaver and it fixed the problem. However I am hesitant to change the saddles to string savers because I truly love how brass saddles look on a tele.

But maybe the problem is just the break angle so I thought I could try the Gotoh In-Tune compensated brass tele saddles.

Sadly, I'm not experienced enough to file the saddles myself and I don't really have any reliable guitar techs in my area so I think this option is out.

So please give me your opinion what do you think I should do?
Should compensated saddles be enough or should I get Graptech stringsavers? Or is there any other solution?

Thank you for your help in advance.

Okay, here goes. I've had that problem, myself. If you're not mechanically-gifted, get a proper guitar tech in a repair shop to use a very fine nut file to smooth down that notch. If you get a magnifying glass strong enough, you will be able to see the jagged groove and you can point it out to that tech. These problems are easily remedied, have faith.
I live in Florida. I drove to the lower part of Georgia to Randy Wood's guitar shop for something I didn't feel competent to solve. Get a buddy, take a guitar road trip, and make a thing out of it.

 

[Wound_Up]

So why did you get this guitar, to ogle or to play?
GraphTech saddles and nuts are the FIRST thing I change on an electric I'm going to keep.
This and so many more reasons. Like additional sustain, staying in tune ...
But hey, it doesn't look like the one Buck picked on "HeeHaw."

Why are so many people wrapped up in thinking they need all the sustain they can get from their guitar? Imo, it's one of the most useless things guitar players try to change/increase. What's the point of your guitar being able to play notes for 15 seconds each? Do you let each note ring out for as long as you can when you play? So what's the point of getting all the sustain you can? What's the point of wanting your guitar to ring out for 15 seconds per note when nobody plays like that?

I don't know of any guitar player that let's all of their notes ring out long enough to even worry about how much sustain their guitar does or doesn't have, much less have a need to increase it. How long does the avg note last in an avg song. 1 second? Half a second?

Getting more sustain is a fools errand. There's zero reason to worry about it and even less reason to need it.

 

[Joe-Bob]

Yes, you have a burr. Use a magnifying glass and just smooth over the edge with fine paper.

 

[Wallaby]

Exactly. I'll trade sustain for character, woodiness, choose an adjective that describes the sound of the guitar and its wood and construction.

One thing I find important that's related to sustain in my mind, though, is the decay of a plucked note.

When a note decays too quickly it has a "plinky" quality that I don't like and doesn't suite my style. Which is not intended to sound like a banjo. I'm not looking for 15 seconds of sustain, but I do want the volume of a plucked note to remain relatively stable for a while if I want to let it ring while I play other notes.

Banjos are cool, I used to have one and learned how to use picks and delight visitors

Why are so many people wrapped up in thinking they need all the sustain they can get from their guitar?

 

[Bass Butcher]

Why are so many people wrapped up in thinking they need all the sustain they can get from their guitar? Imo, it's one of the most useless things guitar players try to change/increase. What's the point of your guitar being able to play notes for 15 seconds each? Do you let each note ring out for as long as you can when you play? So what's the point of getting all the sustain you can? What's the point of wanting your guitar to ring out for 15 seconds per note when nobody plays like that?

I don't know of any guitar player that let's all of their notes ring out long enough to even worry about how much sustain their guitar does or doesn't have, much less have a need to increase it. How long does the avg note last in an avg song. 1 second? Half a second?

Getting more sustain is a fools errand. There's zero reason to worry about it and even less reason to need it.

First clue - using a brand name in place of the material name
Most experienced player's know that brass saddles impart a distinctive tonal flavor to a Tele, as do the brass nuts on guitars and basses that came with them. I really don't see where graphite would have increased sustain over brass either, sustain would be tied to the specific gravity/density of the material, not that it is made out of a dry lubricant. Any plastic or composite of the same density is going to have the same sustain, pretty simple physics.
If I was trying to increase sustain I'd be looking at a lot more than just what the bridge/saddles are made of. Related contact points solidity/stability (like equal pressure on both height adjusters on two screw saddles or sloppy grooves in a bridge or nut), and anything else that might dampen the string vibration have a direct effect on sustain.
Neither saddle or nut composition has much or any effect on 'staying in tune', even with floating bridges. Tuning stability is down to the tuners and the quality of the tremolo if the instrument has one. A graphite nut might help a bit with tuning stability with a trem and no string locks but if the strings are floating on the nut the wound strings in particular are going to remove nut material over time, they do that with brass nuts combined with a trem so it's definitely going to happen and faster with graphite.