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Post subject: Which one nut for this guitar?
Posted: Sun Jul 14, 2019 9:02 am
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Hello L&G,
Can someone tell me which one nut will be okay for this guitar? I need to buy new :/
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Post subject: Re: Which one nut for this guitar?
Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2019 12:41 am
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I don't know anything about your experience or skills with guitarteching, and I don't mean to question them in any way.
But your question makes me guess you are new at that kind of stuff.

Replacing a nut is never just buying a new one and dropping it in a guitar. Even the preshaped ones need to be fitted, so at the very least there's some sanding to be expected. And sometimes removing the old nut gets tricky.
So, I'd strongly suggest taking the guitar to a good tech for nut replacement. The price is easily comparable to DIY costs, if one has to buy a couple of nuts (the practicing...) and the suitable tools, plus the job done by a pro doesn't take long.

BTW, that serial doesn't turn up in Fender's database, so I won't start guessing the model, radius, nut width etc. based on that one pic only.


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Post subject: Re: Which one nut for this guitar?
Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2019 2:06 am
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MZ0 + 5 or 6 digits = 2000/2001
Looks like it's a Mexican Standard Strat.
You could replace the nut with a Tusq one, but, as has already been mentioned, you'll need to sand it down to get it to fit properly and sit at the right height.

http://www.graphtech.com/products/brand ... 0b292744c9

If you're unsure about doing it yourself, take it to a pro.

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Post subject: Re: Which one nut for this guitar?
Posted: Mon Jul 15, 2019 5:21 am
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+1
A pro should do it for $50-$70
Attempting DIY without the proper tools ($100+ for nut files) and knowledge will result in hours of frustration and taking it to a pro to fix.

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Post subject: Re: Which one nut for this guitar?
Posted: Wed Jul 17, 2019 2:09 am
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If you are asking wich nut, you may have no skill to work on a nut and ...no tools ?
Best is to see a pro.

As jmattis wrote, nut is not just to drop in.

First what is wrong with your nut ?

Graph tech sell pre-cut nut. You need to do some measurements ;

http://www.graphtech.com/products/brand ... uitar-nuts

Stew mac too;

https://www.stewmac.com/How-To/Online_R ... uitar.html


How to replace nut ;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6lGTSGaSOo


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Post subject: Re: Which one nut for this guitar?
Posted: Wed Jul 17, 2019 8:35 am
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I routinely adjust factory nut slots and have made bone, brass, and melamine nuts from blanks.

But I've long been curious about precut nuts. Got a beater Explorer style guitar that needed a new nut, so measured and ordered a Tusq.

Just had to sand a little flat off the bottom. The slots were perfect for .010~.046". Surprised and impressed me.

I did a little cosmetic shaping of the top, but just for aesthetics.

3x3 headstocks are different. I angle/aim those slots toward their respective tuners. I don't cut those slots parallel to each other. So I wouldn't use a precut since those all seem to have parallel slots. (Just like Gibsons, renowned for tuning issues.)

But for straight-pull strings like Fenders (or almost straight like most hockeystick heads) the Graphtech precuts really can be installed with nothing more than a sheet of sandpaper, an improvised backer block, and a flat surface to trim the bottom of the nut. And be better than a lot of big-name high-end factory nuts.
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Of course, trimming the bottom is still a fine-motor skill that requires patience and multiple test fittings. Easy to take off too much or make it lopsided/leaning. (Improvise a backer board/block, and press the long tall edge of the nut against the block as you swipe both of them on the sandpaper.)

But if you make a nut from an oversize blank, that trimming is just the first step, with a dozen more critical steps that are harder.

And of course, getting the old nut out also requires fine-motor skills, and the confidence and ability to troubleshoot and solve the problems that may crop up.

I enjoy making nuts and don't expect I'll ever use another precut. Just did it to see how much work they actually need. But if you don't have slotting tools, Graphtech precuts are a viable option that will give you at least a factory-quality nut (often better than factory stock).


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Post subject: Re: Which one nut for this guitar?
Posted: Wed Jul 17, 2019 6:31 pm
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strayedstrater wrote:
So I wouldn't use a precut since those all seem to have parallel slots. (Just like Gibsons, renowned for tuning issues.)

Looks like Gibson has learned a lesson, my 2019 Lester is angled:

Image

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Post subject: Re: Which one nut for this guitar?
Posted: Wed Jul 17, 2019 7:22 pm
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Yeah, really most Gibson nuts work ok. Just as most Gibson heads never snap off.

3x3 slots are a little trickier to cut, and Gibson doesn't always do them well. But that doesn't mean all of them have tuning issues. Not really even very many out of the total production. Some might complain that none of them should have poorly cut slots, but that's debatable.
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Parallel slots for 3x3 can work, and it's a common practice. I personally have better results with angled, and I like making nuts from scratch, so I personally wouldn't buy a precut for a 3x3. And therefore can't vouch that those slots won't need adjusting.
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Just a moot sidetrack since the question is about preslotted for a Strat.


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Post subject: Re: Which one nut for this guitar?
Posted: Thu Jul 18, 2019 12:56 am
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CB91710 wrote:
strayedstrater wrote:
So I wouldn't use a precut since those all seem to have parallel slots. (Just like Gibsons, renowned for tuning issues.)

Looks like Gibson has learned a lesson, my 2019 Lester is angled:



/quote]


It easy to fix if nut slots are parallel and you need few angle. I do on few guitars with Stew Mac tools.
Short answer ; Gibson make a "V" on peg head side.

Tuning machines on a Fender are mostly parallel .


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Post subject: Re: Which one nut for this guitar?
Posted: Thu Jul 18, 2019 5:26 am
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And I will +1 the precut Tusq nuts being very good.
They still require some thickness sanding to fit the slot, and they tend to make them a touch tall.
The slots do seem to be nicely cut for 10's... a little on the deep side, but certainly no worse than factory.

The Mexican Fender neck could accept either a curved or flat nut... we have no way of knowing which, you'd have to remove the factory nut and lay a straight edge in the slot to see if it rocks back and forth. The curved Tusq nut has a tab in the middle that needs to be shaved down, but it's not long enough to allow a curved nut to be installed in a flat slot.

But I also had a Tusq for an Epiphone that was cut too low and needed to be shimmed.

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Post subject: Re: Which one nut for this guitar?
Posted: Thu Jul 18, 2019 11:45 am
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Graphtech thinks the curved nut with the tab fits a flat bottomed slot; "It will work in both a flat bottom or curved bottom nut slot". Haven't tested that myself; I'm old school and think a nut should have full length contact with the neck.

Has anyone (else...) ever filed a curved nut slot bottom straight, instead of sanding a straight nut bottom to a curve?

And BTW, has anyone sighted the OP after that first message? :wink:


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