Nut respacing

[BobKat]

Did my first-ever nut last night, on a 330/12. I blew a couple of blanks initially but learned a lot in the process. Third time was a charm.

For the second and third try, I sat down and did some math, and decided to use somehwat tighter spacing between strings in each pair.

The Dr. uses, I believe, .095 for the low E and .065 for all the others. I did some calculations and figured out that the actual distance in between the strings in each pair (the airsapce, for lack of a better description) varied greatly with this approach (not to at all imply that he is wrong; the man is legend). This theoretical calculation assumes, of course, that the person doing the work cuts everything dead-on, which I can't ascribe to myself as a newbie to nut work. Still, I decided to experiment a bit.

I did them as follows:

total spread between the centerline of the low E and the high e: 1.42

string spacings, measured out before slotting and marked with a razor:

E- .080
A- .066
D- .065
G- .061
B- .058
e- .058 (initally .055 but that was a little too small)

Total: .388

So, 1.42 - .388 = 1.032. This is the total real estate for spacing between the pairs. Divide this by 5 and the distance between each pair comes to .2064.

Using these specs, the pairs at the nut look a lot tighter than a current or recent factory RIC. But, if you look at closeups of '60s 12s, you can see that they cut the pairs much closer together back in the day. The Arden 12 (of which I have some closeups) has really tight pairs, and I remember reading about Suzi Arden's statements about how very playable and comfortable that guitar was.

So, I strung it up and played for a while. It's unbelieveable; the guitar's playability is night and day over the stock nut. I was able to set the slot height at about .026 above the first fret without any buzzing and the neck is near dead flat. There is no issue with the strings in each pair vibrating into each other's path, either. Not even close. I have not measured the action at the body end yet but it's really down there. I could not put the guitar down last night at 1:30AM, as dusty as it was and still missing the TRC.

What fun work.

[scott_s]

Good stuff, Bob! I hate playing twelve-strings that have really wide pair spacing.

That guitar will be playing itself once you get the nut height down to its final setting.

- Scott

[BobKat]

That nut height is staying right there, I think.. .025 is pretty darn low. Any lower and I think I risk buzz. I'll know more once I set the intonation and check the tunings at the first fret, but I am pretty reluctant to go further.

[scott_s]

10-4, Bob. Whatever your preferences, it sure is rewarding to cut a guitar nut that plays well, isn't it?

(My 330 is set up with a nut height from 0.013" to 0.018" high-to-low without buzz. Action is 1/16" to 5/64".)

- Scott

[BobKat]

Wow! That is low. I did not think I could get away with that.

I'll tell you more after I use the meter tuner to set up the guitar. I want those first fret notes to be dead on.

The E string is 1/10 off the fretboard at the body end. Very nice.

[jdogric12]

How about some pics of the process??? Sounds like something I might want to try.

[BobKat]

When I do my next one, which will be in a few weeks, I will photgraph the process. Do you have nut files? If not, pick up a set from Warmoth. I got their basic 8-piece set for $64.00, which is a good deal as nut files go. It has all the gauges I needed for the 12.

[jingle_jangle]

Wow! That is low. I did not think I could get away with that.

I'll tell you more after I use the meter tuner to set up the guitar. I want those first fret notes to be dead on.

The E string is 1/10 off the fretboard at the body end. Very nice.

Hey, Bob: 1/10 of what? If you are saying 1/10 of an inch, then it's appropriate (from a design, engineering, and specification standpoint, and for sheer clarity) to say .100. Actually, we're then talking about 100 thousandths of an inch, which fits in perfectly within our previous notations of 20 thousandths (.020"), 8 thousandths (.008"), and so on.

[BobKat]

Yes, I should have said .100, I suppose.

[jingle_jangle]

Just in the interest of clarity, Bob...not meaning to bust yer bippy or anything.

[scott_s]

Isn't that the way machinists talk? "Eight" to mean 0.008"?

At any rate, I had to screw up a couple of nuts before figuring out how low I could go. On bone nuts, you can mix leftover powder and superglue to refill the slot before recutting. That way, you don't have to throw away a half-completed nut if you file a slot too deep.

As for starting out, Bryan Kimsey's and Frank Ford's sites were very influential for me.

- Scott

P.S. I love the Stew-Mac nut files. I get much better results, faster, than with the methods I used to use. Money well spent.

[janglerocker]

Good info, Bob. Thanks. Can I ask how wide your fretboard is at the nut? You set the distance between the E strings at 1.42 in. How much space do you have from the outer edge of the E strings to the edge of fret and the binding?

[BobKat]

Well, it is a 330/12, so there is no binding. I measured it at 1.625, which is the advertised 1 5/8. But let me re-measure and repost. This was several days ago so I want to be sure I am giving you the right answer.

[janglerocker]

Bob, sorry I knew it is a 330 and shouldn't have said "to the binding". What I was wondering is how close to the edge of the fretboard did yo set the outer E strings?

[BobKat]

It's actually 1.645. A nice wide one.