Nut Slot Height
- Bass Nut Height
- Proper Nut Slot Height
- Bass Nut Slot Height
- Setting Guitar Nut Height
- Correct Nut Slot Height
- Strat Nut Slot Height
- Gibson Nut Slot Height
Have you ever had issues fretting a note closer to the nut? Have you ever noticed that your string doesn’t quite fit in the nut, and tends to cradle itself on top of the nut slot?
For nut slot repair, use the sharp tip to “prime” the bottom of the nut slot by pushing it into the slot at three or four points along it’s width. This helps the new material grip the bottom of the nut slot and resist breaking free prematurely. Put a tiny drop of Krazy Glue in the freshly cleaned slot, careful not to let it run. Nut blanks: nut blanks have some shaping done but slots slots will have to be cut as well as final fit for length, height and thickness Nut slabs: nut slabs are simply a block of material that can be used to make the entire nut (or anything else) from scratch. John Carruthers shows us the proper way to adjust the Nut on a bass guitar. This video is step 3 of a 4 part series. Videos include adjusting the Truss Rod. After the truss rod is set correctly and your nut slots are filed properly, saddle height can be adjusted, if needed. First, take some action measurements at the 12th fret on the two outermost strings while your guitar is strung up to pitch.
If you have either of these issues, chances are your nut action height is off, and this can lead to your strings coming out of tune. How does this happen?
Simple. When you fret a string that is too high off of the fret, you are pulling the string down which in turn can cause the string to slip through the tuning peg and drop in tuning.
It is a chain reaction, and one that is often overlooked by many guitarists who blame these problems on either the tuners themselves, or the bridge action height, both of which are close to the source but not quite the exact problem.
In this article, we are going to go over proper guitar nut action height so that you can adjust your guitar correctly without causing damage.
If Unsure, Engage a Professional to Do the Job
Bass Nut Height
If you have any reservations about performing this adjustment yourself, it is best that you save up a little bit of cash on the side and get the job done professionally, as a bad case of nerves can cause you to make a mistake.
And while guitar nuts are not expensive, most don’t come filed, which means you will have to go and get your nut filed out which is quite a bit more expensive than nut action height adjustments.
Steps to Get the Nut Height Filed Correctly
Proper Nut Slot Height
In order to make adjustments to the action of the nut, you will need a set of files, one that coincides with the width of each string rut in the nut, a feeler gauge, a tuner, and some time and a whole lot of patience.
Bass Nut Slot Height
The first thing you want to do is take your feeler gauge and check the distance between the string of the first fret and the fret itself. If your string reaches the feeler gauge (.018 inches is the best gauge to use for optimal nut action height) you are all set. If it doesn’t, you need to file down the nut.
Start by loosening the string, not taking it off. Select a file that best fits the fret, and file the fret down a small amount. Then tune back up, and use the feeler gauge to check the distance once more.
Repeat until you reach the proper height, and then move on to the next string.
That’s it.
It may seem easy, and it is, but only if you take your time and allow yourself to relax and approach the project at a reasonable pace. If you rush, you may wind up filing too far down, then you’ll end up with a nut too deep and you won’t be able to use it.
Setting Guitar Nut Height
In the end, it is all up to you. Make your adjustments, and if you feel a bit nervous, bring your guitar to a professional. Good luck, and be careful; your guitar is only as good as you treat it.
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Correct Nut Slot Height
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Dave Johnson is the founder of Scale Model Guitars and a Guitar Craft Academy faculty member.
For this month’s tech tip, I will show you a quick way to fill and recut a nut slot in order to raise it up.
A slot that is cut correctly should hold the string in place at a height that clears the first fret. Sometimes a guitar nut slot will wear down over time and cause the string to rattle against the first fret, causing the open string to sound a little more like a sitar than a guitar.
Strat Nut Slot Height
There are several ways to repair this issue. You can use dust or baking soda with glue, but I’ve found that a Q-Tip works very well too. You simply tape off the ends of the nut and then remove a small portion of the cloth and roll it up, then insert it into the slot that is too low. Then flow a thin super glue into the fibers using a thin whip tip. You can find thin super glue with whip tips on stewmac.com (the part number is #0010).
Gibson Nut Slot Height
You can either drop super glue accelerator on the soaked Q-Tip or wait a few minutes for it to harden. Once it is cured and solid, you will then flush cut the ends of the hard fibers with a razor blade and then recut the nut slot to the appropriate height with a gauged nut file. This process would be included in any guitar setup and it’s a handy skill to have to ensure that your guitar plays and sounds great!
– Dave Johnson