How to Upgrade Your Guitar With a New Nut - Easy and Cheap Mod
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- Опубліковано 14 жов 2024
- One of the easiest and cheapest mods you can do to a guitar is replace it's nut. Graph Tech makes a great "Preslotted" nut that is pretty easy to install and makes a difference in the quality of your guitar. In this video I show how I installed a new Graph Tech Tusq nut on my Stratocaster.
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Please watch: "Guitar Neck Shootout: Fender vs Squier vs Mighty Mite"
• Guitar Neck Shootout: ...
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Great video, I find that the easiest way to get the right radius is to cut a piece of sandpaper and tape it to your fretboard and sand the nut on your fretboard. By doing that you will sand it down perfectly to the radius of your fretboard and you wont have those annoying little gaps that probably don't effect the outcome but bother the hell out of you when you're trying to do a good job.
I didn't make that technique up, I can't remember who I learned it from but it was from someone on UA-cam. Also Tightbond or even Elmer's glue works well with gluing the nut.
Wow, that's a great idea.
Dan Erlewine from StewMac perhaps?
Thanks for the tip!
Thanks for that I'm considering this upgrade.
One of the best diy tips I've ever heard! This was exactly the issue I was looking to solve. Thanks!
Every vid you make shows that you are experienced, honest and a man of integrity. You show you care about guitars and guitar players, and man--we respect you for it!
I suggest to diy’rs to leave the nut unglued for about a month or so depending on the area you live .. temp/humidity etc. then glue it once action is to their liking. Hope that helps.
his big mistake is using supper glue
I never glue it
@@AndrewMurphy8383 right... a tiny droplet of yellow glue in the center of the nut bottom is plenty and makes it easier to remove the nut in the future if needed...
This is handsdown the BEST upgrade one can do on a stratocaster . No more g-string or tuning issues EVER . Also improves the tone drastically .
Just do it , you wont regret it .
You got a love how you said you’ve never done it before but didn’t talk like you’re a Lucier for 20 years back on your plywood set up
Great video man! Yea, that nub in the middle is there so it works on a guitar with a flat slot. And if it has a curved slot, like yours, sand it off!
Me too. Love em.
Waiting on the glue to dry under the Graph Tech nut I just installed. Unfortunately, there wasn't a specific application for my Silvertone S-style guitar, so I went with the closest thing I could find to what's on it, which was a fotly different style of nut.
It has a Gibson/Epiphone-style nut at the front of the fretboard instead of in a slot on the fretboard. Ended up using a TR-6060-00, I believe. It was for a 2014 & newer Epiphone. Oddly enough, my nut was the same exact shape and just a few thou smaller in all dimensions. E to E was off slightly but it's nothing that, makes the guitar unplayable.
How deep
@@fuzzzvibe here's a video on pre-slotted nut installation ua-cam.com/video/rtBODzKb32M/v-deo.html
Made me want to NOT TRY THIS AT HOME
I have a few mods I do on a guitar when I decide to use it for gigs. Number one on that list is replace the nut with a TusQ XL nut if the guitar has a plastic nut. The tuning stability you gain with TusQ XL is a must for gigging.
I just noticed that this is double posted. Not sure why.
Make sure you buy a pre-shaped nut. I just spent 2 hours shaping a bone nut from Amazon supposedly made for a Strat but the only thing right was the distance between string grooves.The nut slot is not flat cut but curved. Anyway, once the nut was the right height, width, and _radius_ it was easy.
I replaced the cheap plastic nut in my Squier Tele with a Tusq nut. Massive tone improvement. Only drawback was that because my Squier had a narrow neck at the nut, I had to sand the nut to shorten its length, i.e. the high E and low E on the Tusq nut are now just a bit closer to the edge of fretboard due to the Tusq string spacing. But one gets used to it. I've changed pickups, pots, bridge saddles, selector switch, and this mod makes the biggest single improvement in tone IMO.
I have seen a luthier recommendation to use a few drops of PVA wood glue, diluted with water, to stop the nut from moving. This worked for me on a Fender Mex Jazz Bass a few years ago when I fitted a Tusq nut - a very great improvement in both sound and tuning stability, although it was necessary because the original nut had broken at the G-string slot.
I cannot believe you're doing this with the strings on...
I know right? Maybe there's one where he changes the pickups with the strings on. 😂😂😂
So annoying
i realize I am kind of randomly asking but does anyone know a good website to stream new series online ?
@Avery Kabir Try FlixZone. You can find it on google :)
@Julio Roy yup, have been watching on FlixZone for months myself =)
really helped me out!!! couldn't figure out how to fix it myself but great video!!!!
yes I put a Tusq nut on my Squire Strat and it made a huge difference!
What model?
Very informative. I'm going to try this on my '97 MIM Strat. I've already installed the Graph Tech String Trees and noticed a brighter tone.
Guitar Center tried to charge me $80 just to do this,thanks for this video
Guitar Center is awful!
But it’s only 4dollar nut :(
Guitar center told me it would cost 60 just to restring my guitar n wouldn't replace the nut
@@kennethmills5470 true, I found a local Tech that charges way less and actual reasonable prices. Will never get anything done at guitar center. Guitar center tried to charge me 3 times more than the guy I go to now would. Best just to Google guitar techs near me and ask about their pricing / check em out
And they say support your local guitar shop. But they rip you off!
Excellent vid--clear and instructive as could be. Thank you.
Hey Kennis. I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoy your videos. I also wanted to let you know something I found about these nuts. Graphtech's website has all of the measurements listed. I have found it easier to use a little ruler I have that has millimeters. But that's just me. It has saved me a lot of work measuring the old nut and then finding one that closely matches. This has been especially helpful on the "E to E" spacing. American and Asian spacings can be pretty different. I have to agree that wood glue is best to use. It's a lot more forgiving than super glue. Keep the videos coming!
Well said!
I got a set of digital vernier calipers. Very cheap and accurate.
I pull the nut out straight with a needle nose. Works great.
Very timely video! I have to replace the nut on my 2006 Tele. Thanks for the video, this will help a lot!
I had this same nut professionally installed on my Vintage Stratocaster. I like em. Nice Upgrade, along with the Less Friction String Trees ( among others ). Also installed: Seymour Duncan Vintage Rails SVR-1's ( no noise / no hum ). Nice Video.
Don't forget to use the Tusq string guides on the headstock as well. Belt and braces solution ;)
Great video. Thank you. They put the same cheap nut in their American Standard, many, if not all of their Artist signature series and new 'Professional Series' guitar which is a disgrace.
Other than routing the strings from the guitar to the tuners, the nut can self lubricate and keep the strings from 'catching' in the slots, de-tuning the guitar, and add sustain, the cost is just a few dollars more which guitarists would gladly be willing to pay. Same thing with premium locking tuners. Locking tuners when used properly will prevent micro unraveling around the post of the string that causes intonation problems with bending and higher actions that require the string to be pushed down hard.
The fish stinks from the head down. I believe locking tuners and self lubricating nuts are as important as a straight neck and straight string pull designed head-stocks for both electrics and acoustics.
The problem at Fender and other manufacturers, the corporate manager looks at cost savings in using inferior materials to increase profits, which is actually contempt for their customers. If they can save 1 penny per unit, it translates into tens of thousands of dollars of profit per year. Most of Fenders guitars even in the $2,000 and up categories do not have these simple cheap, sorely needed basic features. They 'romance' the colors or electronics and/or other optional features and leave the basic job of giving yourself a reliably tuned guitar up to you that voids their warranty and devalues the guitar. It is such an insult.
When you pick up your guitar and it is out of tune, without having those features you always have to wonder if either problem is the cause. I like knowing I can rule those things out. It is so stupid to pay the money people pay for new guitars that don't have them, and then must do surgery or have others do it and possibly ruin the guitar, void the warranty or both.
MrJoeyBoombotz not really Fender nuts are easy to work with are durable and have a nice frequency response. You are just pre-programmed to think if it isn't bone or some modern graphite nut then by default it sucks.
Kennis Russell no, it's not well stated your just as ignorant as he is , you should have paid attention in science class then you wouldn't be so ignorant .
A nut is either self lubricating or it isn't. What they sound like is subjective and how durable they doesn't matter if they negatively affect tuning, and they do. Camel bone and a several synthetic materials self lubricate. It makes no difference to me which one, except that graphite and synthetic nuts won't wear out or are very difficult to wear out. The nuts that Fender uses do not self lubricate because the string still gets stuck in the slot and negatively affects tuning. Fender nuts do not always come out effortlessly when being replaced either, when too much glue or the wrong type of glue is used, it pulls neck wood underneath off when the nut is removed, making the replacement much more difficult and voiding the warranty if one is place. If you paid attention to the matter, YOU wouldn't be so ignorant of it.
In fact Epiphone started putting all Tusq nuts on many of their models to help them sell a couple of years ago. Epiphones lack straight string pull and locking tuners, so they needed to do something.
I just use little "Elmer's glue" on each side easier to get back loose then super glue
even though Mfg use Cheap super glue. Also, some may need to sand the slot a tiny bit to remove residue for a perfect fit. 400 grit or above sandpaper. Tusq is an easy great upgrade for inexpensive guitars Epi's etc cause the Mfg use's cheap plastic.
Yep.Tusq nuts and a roller saddle bridge go in all my Epis.Total transformation.
Guitars Gods & Guns
I had to replace a nut in my guitar and I didn't want to use super Glue so I went to the Hardware store and found Elmer's wood glue and it seem to have worked really well
That is exactly what I use to attach a nut. Never super glue. If you use super glue than need to replace the nut again years later, the nut will take some wood out with it when it is removed. That's not a good thing.
Just a heads up on a tip I got from someone else. When trying to sand down the back of a radiused nut you can use the curve of the fretboard by putting a piece of sticky back sand paper. Makes it a whole lot easier.
Isn't there a raised bit in the middle of the TUSQ that fits into a slot on the neck of the guitar? you would have to sand that off before any benefits from the curve of the neck could be gained. Sorry to pee on the bonfire!
No. The tang is for slots that have a flat bottom.
+Andy Prendergast I was thinking they meant that too, but they are referring to the slot that the nut slides into. You know? Like how you can slide it back-and-forth between the high E and the low E(the width of the neck).
I would have put the original nut back in. It had perfect surface-to-surface contact. The only time the nut contributes to the tone. Is when there's an open string. If you compare an open string to a fritted one, you will hear there's hardly any difference in tone. In my opinion not enough to pull the original nut out. Which has perfect contact because both parts were machine to be put together. Where is any aftermarket nut needs a skilled Craftsmen to fit in properly. If you really want to contribute to the tone of the guitar replace the saddles. That has a much greater effect on the tone and something that anyone can do.
The issue with my MIM Strat isn't tone but tuning stability. The best thing I've done for it so far is to put a little pencil lead in the grooves. I couldn't believe the difference. Because it's such an improvement, I will be doing this mod. I don't expect really any noticeable change in tone for the reasons you said. It's all about staying in tune.
it's nonsense and the writer is barely legible. Skip It.
Just keep the strings in tune while working on the nut! It ll be just fine.
Fender nuts are pretty solid. However, Tusq with its self lubrication is great for whammy bar use.
wrap sandpaper over the neck to fit nut to proper hight fot different strings following the neck radius
If you’re ok with a “quick n dirty” job I guess this one will help u get it done but if you want precision contact between nut & guitar you’ll be up sh*t creek.
You have to properly sand the bottoms & sides of these Fender style nuts and make sure they keep a 90 degree angle. THEY ARE Definitely radiused at the bottom so you need to use the existing fretboard as a template. Otherwise you won’t have clean contact between the nut & body & this will affect the guitar’s sound transference. The way this guys does it (bless him for trying) is imprecise. Your nut won’t fit snuggly/correctly in the nut slot.
“you always want good contact between parts when dealing with sound” - Graphtech Training Video
not that it matters on a neck that worn but it looks like you took a nice little chip out of the finish on the edge where you used the hammer n wood to knock it loose....
besides that rest of video was very good.
Excellent Video, thank you.
Melbourne, Australia.
Cool video. You just gave me the confidence to try this on my Tele. 👍
Yes I put a Tusq nut on my Squier Strat and the factory nut would not budge so I had to break it up.The Tusq nut fit fine,I just had to file the overhang flush
I fit Tusk nuts to all my guitars.I believe it .is the simplest and most effective upgrade you can make.
***** Yes.It always surprises me how they alter the tone,in a good way.Great product.
John Iain McFarlane unless you play open strings, it affects the tone 0%
+Lew Magroo It's not just the tone. These nuts never need graphite and the strings will never bind, unlike plastic, bone, or brass. It really is a great product, and I rarely say that about new guitar stuff. I'm VERY much against "snake oil." : )
John Iain McFarlane even on expensive guitars?
Tried this part number for my 2002 Squier Affinity Stratocaster made in Indonesia, but the string spacing is WAY off holding them next to each other.
Great video bro. Doing this tomorrow.
Did you use PQ 5000 (Tusq for Fender style)? If yes, how did you fit that product which has 10" radius roundness to a Strat Mexican that apply 9.5" radius? Please help. I'm about to do the same but I'm a noob and currently no service available for guitar services. Gotta do it myself.
why with strings on ? why?? you can't wait till you need new ones?
Got a Tusq XL to go in my JS22 Dinky
I'm laughing each time I read "quick and easy" mod. After sanding one of these for 2-3 hours, I swore to myself I would never ever change a nut by myself again.
I don't think they make one for me. :(
I did not take my nut off but I did measure what I could and what I found seems to be nothing they offer. It is a Fender Stratocaster from about 11-12 years ago.
Height is the iffy measurement since the strings are in it, and it is still attached, but it is around 3.8mm. Width is 41.90mm, E-E is 34.78mm, and depth is about 3.36mm.
If I replace any nuts on my strats it would be the brass nut, those look and sound incredible ! Tusc nuts are just a different plastic....phuck dat...
Thanks for the video. Very informative. I'm surprised the manufacturer considered this a drop-in replacement. Seemed like a lot of sanding and re-shaping to get it to fit right. Does anyone know of a brand/model that fits right out of the package? I bought a new MIM Strat and the low E slot in the nut is too close to the edge. I surprised they didn't notice it during the build, since it is visually obvious that the spacing between the E an A is larger than the other strings. I figured I would just upgrade it.
They are not considered "drop-in replacements". Even at the factory they need to shape the nuts a bit because of variances in the necks and the cut of the nut slot at the top. The Graphtech site tells you as much - you pick a nut as close as possible to just a bit larger than your current nut because you can easily file material away to make it fit. They make a lot of choices but every guitar - even of the same model made on the same day - is going to be a little different.
I ended up buying the same one he used in this video. My MIM strat had no slot, so I had to completely file off the tab on the bottom. That was not ideal. If I remember correctly, it was also not curved as much either. It took a lot of sanding to get it to fit correctly. I would recommend not gluing it in. Leave it slightly wider than the groove, so it’s a press fit. It doesn’t move around and should be easy to remove if it ever needs to be replaced.
@@emersorc Agreed on gluing...avoid it possible. If you have a tight press-in fit, that and the string pressure will keep it in place. If you do have to glue it, use just a couple of drops of wood glue rather than super glue.
Go watch the Stew Mac video. The luthier shows how this nut is properly installed. You sand the nut using the radius of the fretboard. This is not a great install.
There was no radius in the nut slot of this guitar.
How do you do with a string tree that high? I have two of that in my strat but I've sanded their base with a file to set them in the correct hieght, using just like in your guitar the sitar sound was really disgusting!
YIKES! this is why you take your instrument to a luthier. some things are better left to the pros
That little foot is so the nut sits correctly in a straight slot. Sand it off for a curved slot.
Thts works good think i saw it on a stewmac vid with Dan Erlewine
Hey Kennis can you please help me with a brand or nut type which is a drop in fit for YAMAHA PACIFICA 112M
Could i use the original nut on a strat if i wanted to play left handed u know like hendrix would i have to buy a new nut and readjust the bridge? what modifications would i have to do?
There is always sanding involved when installing a Tusq
Just replace the guitar and keep the nut...But make sure you keep bouncing it on the table ...it might improve the frequency ratios...
Smoking the good stuff he is lol
Was not at all easy for me, my strat has a painted headstock with a urethane clear coat. Literally was so hard and embedded , it is like being buried in epoxy. Once out, after a violent war, I still had to sand the headstock end, the paint is so thick. I hit that nut with a board like that thing owed me money. No more painted head stocks for me. I didn’t score it with a blade, it was more like a knife fight.
Is this nut works in all neck ratio?
Nice informative vid. Seemed like a big PITA though! I guess it's worth 30 mins of work though for better tone and tuning.
"There is not a gap, its just looks like that." LOL. Terrible job dude.
What if I have a strat fender squire bullet made in Indonesia does the same logic apply
Whatever it is made of?
Great video! You kinda look like Blake Shelton.
I would never change a nut for the “sound” of the six open notes. Plastic is crap because it’s soft and the strings dig into it easily, thus deepening the slots. The density of material is important for durability, but unless you play a ton of open notes, no big deal for audio. What I am saying is, don’t go replacing a bone nut with tusq, or graphite, because of “sound”.
I chipped the wood a little but all good 👍🏾
what grit of sand paper are you using?
That looks incredibly difficult. And you didn't even adjust the nut slots, which is crucial.
These are like 13 bucks nowadays at GC. Oh how times have changed!
Nut replacement 101 with Blake Shelton
Tusq nuts are a synthetic bone and to be honest using a real bone nut will improve the tone better than the Tusq nut. A perfectly slotted plastic nut will work just as well as long as it's lubricated as it's all about the nut slots. And take the strings off next time! Even tho it's pre slotted it will still need to be cut to be perfect. Nice job tho
What year is your guitar
*I did that technique to may strat I broke the* *slot where the nut is sitting hahahaha*
I expect parts to fit. I might end up cussing like Sam Kinison. My1976 Alverex needs Saddle and nut job.
Does the TUSQ nut make your guitar tone brighter? I know it sounds unbelieveable but it made my Les Paul a lot brighter than before.
Did you like it or it became too bright for you?
@@ibzmav I changed the pickup height to softened it. Having said that, I suspect it's the brand new set of NY XT that makes it brighter instead of the tusq nut. I changed both at the same time, and coincidentally, the previous owner sold the guitar to me with dull strings. I took it directly to the tech without experimenting with other strings. Unfortunately my only reference before the nut mod was with the old set of strings.
GT Tusq nut for Strat come only in 1 radius....
No Nimrod. The mim strat has a 42 mm neck and this nut
is for American Standard 43 mm. The E to E spacing is off, too wide
and despite what the dickhole at Tusq will tell you, You will
notice the difference.
Tusq makes exactly two nuts for Strats, the model 5000-00 and the 5000-0L, the last being for a left handed strat. It doesn't matter if it is made by Fender or made by Squier, one size fits all and then you trim it to fit. Or you can buy a blank and carve it into shape yourself. Do you really think that one millimeter in difference is going to hamper any guitarist? Besides, you can always sand the 1/2 mm off both sides of the nut when it is finally fitted. Your language is inappropriate for a public forum and makes you look an immature teenager--something I don't think you want to present yourself as.
That headstock rubbing against the sandpaper made me sad.
I would take the strings off first for easier access and to do a proper job or at least only keep the 2 E strings
What other upgrades have you made?
I have a '14 MIM Roadhouse Strat, modded with a Bladerunner whammy bridge, which improved the tuning quite a bit. I was also considering a zero fret thing, but Tusqs have fairly good reviews, too... After watching your video, I think I will go the cheaper route first and get a Tusq. Thanks for the content, and Happy New Year, Kennis.
Take off the strings it drove me nuts
you chipped the finish take it to a guitar tech they would remove the strings.
now seriously is it wroth it?
Just watched another video that showed your supposed to file the tab on the bottom.
Only if the nut slot is not flat. This nut works for both flat and curved surfaces once you find out what you have.
You did not show the testing part
bro... you messed it up.
1. you file the whole bump down
2. file down the width
3. it should fit tight
4. use wood glue
5. get a new nut for your guitar, you gooched that one!
People live the damn things alone! 59 Les Paul have nylon nut. Nobody is complaining about that. Just play the damn things!
That was sloppy as hell. You have the gaps at the end because you didn't match the radius correctly.
Did he not damage the wood near the nut when he knocked the nut out like that? I do not agree with that method.
@@Muz64 no damage done...
And now you have ruined your guitar. Bring it to a luthier!
How so?
Why did you not play?
put nut in freezer for 10 minutes it will slightly shrink and fall into place
Mystic seafoam?
I have 12 to 56 gauge strings on my guitars so I can't just buy a off the shelf nut.
Good example of why you might want to leave this to the pros...
sweetwater wants $120 to replace the nut plus cost of strings
Micrometer micrometer micrometer.....
Your method is very risky, there is many way to take off the nut and the nut height should be files at the upper side at the nut slut because if you files at the bottom it will affect the radius measurement.
No radius on this neck under the nut. It was straight across.
@@kennisrussell It's not flat, Fender mexico has 9.5' radius
you must mbe out of your mind to fit it in with the strings on and NOT sanding down the little piece protruding underneath... wtf!
The original nut is better than that madison ave advert nut...graph tech ...lol...
Wood glue, not super glue
Why wouldn't you take the strings off. Probably played a role in the sloppy outcome. 👎🏻
Kennis Russell if you put out a "how to" video. You should know how to do what it is your doing. You clearly have no idea 👎🏻 Unsub
Wow, if you want to change your nut, don't do it like this guy, seriously.
Properly.
ua-cam.com/video/_BgrIuHI2Xk/v-deo.html
What a nut! Ok, I'll leave.
I don't think that fits your guitar man... It doesn't even have the same radius.