DALLAS GUITAR SHOW – GuitarShow.com – April 20th – 22nd

NY GUITAR EXPO – NYGuitarExpo.com – April 28th – 29th

CHICAGO GUITAR SHOW – Texasguitarshows.com/NewChiMay – May 19th – 20th

And that’s just the season getting underway – there’s still lots more to see. Charlotte, Summer Philly, Nashville, Los Angeles, and much more – check out our Events page for more detail regarding upcoming shows.

 THIS WEEKEND — DON’T MISS IT

Gbase: Tell us a little bit about your background prior to your interest in starting a Guitar Show?

Rich Johnson: Well, first let me say thanks for the interview opportunity. It’s great working with Gbase our first year and you’ve been a big help for sure. I’ve been in the fishing & boating industry since 1993, but left as associate editor of what was at the time (95’) a major fishing publication to pursue the electronic side of the industry, starting my own educational radio & television programs here in the northeast concentrating on Long Island/NY/NJ & CT. Since that time, The Fishing Line (www.thefishingline.com) TV program has grown into 30 million homes across the country on the MagRack and the radio program can be heard in 14 million homes region wide and was one of the first to be streamed live back in 96’. As with Gbase, who was perspicacious enough to see the growth of the electronic media possibilities, so did The Fishing Line and today Gbase is the leader in on line guitar networking and I like to think TFL has done the same in the fishing industry. I have been playing guitar since the mid 70’s and started the collecting side of things 10 years or so ago.

Johnson: The fishing industry is in a state of flux as is most of the economy, but honestly fishing may be in a downward free fall. In the fishing industry we rely on the gov’t for fishing regs’ on what we can or can’t keep, the size of the fish we can keep and of course gas prices to power our fishing boats, pleasure crafts and so forth.

The main crux though is the lack of “recruitment.” Youngsters are not getting in to the fishing game when I was growing up. Single parents drop kids off at soccer practice or guitar/piano practice. They don’t take them fishing like my dad and grandparents did. The baby boomers, of which I am one, are still listening and playing their music and their kids love the same music we grew up with and their grandkids are listening to that music. There is always recruitment of youngsters in music, be it classic rock, blues, rap, hip hop, country what have you! There are always new players coming along in music and hopefully they have a taste for vintage instruments and sound, but the key is there will always be music and people who want to play it and a need for quality guitar shows.

Gbase: That’s so very true. You see it everyday when you’re walking down the street. You’ll see a teenager wearing a Hendrix shirt or a Led Zep shirt. Classic Rock seems to be a universal language of sort. So now it’s 2010/2011 and you come to the decision to start the New York Guitar Expo. How did you get there?

Johnson: The NY area has lacked a quality, higher end “boat show” type guitar expo for more almost two decades and why should one of the largest and most densely populated areas in the country with the highest per capita income, have to drive to Philly to see a guitar expo? My fishing career came from my passion for fishing since I was a kid. I’ve been exhibiting as a vendor in support of The Fishing Line at fishing/outdoor expos and boat shows, sometimes up to a dozen times per winter season and still do. I am and have been a sponsor of the NY National Boat Show at the Javitt’s Center in NYC for the last 15 years producing all their seminars. I’ve worked with management in advertising, seminars and basically have been on both sides of the aisle for 19 years now.

My passion, as I edge closer to semi-retirement, has turned more and more to guitars, collecting and becoming a better player. After almost two decades I felt it was time to start a new chapter in my life, so I took my love of guitars, people and talking (LOL) to reach outside my current business model and start a new plan as a promoter of quality guitar shows, similar to the pipe and drape shows I’ve been associated with in the fishing & boating industry such as the NY Boat Show, Rockland County World Fishing & Outdoor Expo etc., etc.

Gbase: That’s certainly what it takes. Many of the long-term guitar show around the country are all being driven by players and their love of the instrument. Now, Long Island is a big place, what made you decide on Merrick, NY?

Johnson: That sort of came by accident. I wanted a place on Long Island that was easily accessible by car, train and plane. The old NY Guitar show was in a church basement and fishing buddies of mine (Ray Geiger & Harry) from the Freeport Tuna Club hold their monthly meetings at a church venue in Merrick, the Cure of Ars Church. I went to their meeting and saw how much room they had, the natural lighting, a 6 minute walk from the Long Island Railroad station, it is situated right off a major parkway (Meadowbrook) in between two major highways (Sunrise Hway & Merrick Rd.), the amount of parking is huge with hotels and restaurants 5 minutes away or less and all in a nice residential neighborhood setting. It was as if you know a house you’re looking at is right or not right away. A no brainer for a first year show, but the way booths sold I expect to be looking for a larger venue in 2013.

Johnson: I think a well-advertised and attended, good-looking quality guitar show & exposition. It started off as vintage guitar show, but as word spread, the first contract came from a huge music retail store on Long Island, All Music in Plainview. The next five booths went to custom builders. Then the guitar/pickup repair folks, then vintage guys started to get on board slowly with Howie at Rivington Guitars in NYC and John DeSilva at My Generation Guitars of Long Island.

I can understand vintage dealers saying, “well it’s a first year show, let’s wait and see how it goes.” This NY Metro region is in dire need of a quality show creating a buying and fun atmosphere. I think any vintage dealer from the Long Island/NY Metro region should jump in at the ground floor and get established with a new and upcoming guitar show. I would do the same for a quality fishing /outdoor expo for sure! First year shows garner lots of press attention and have larger advertising budgets than some established shows that may rely on their history for a successful turn out.

The NY Guitar Show & Exposition is not a mini NAMM nor did I want it to be, but it has naturally progressed in to a quality all around music show, like a boat show for guitars with vintage dealers from LI to MA, retail stores from NJ, NY & LI selling new and used equipment, accessories like DR Strings and D’Addario and pedal guys like Pigtronix and luthier/repair people too.

Johnson: We’ll have some of the usual characters you’d see at Dallas or Arlington show with Rivington & My Generation Guitars (as we previously mentioned). What would a guitar show be without the the support obviously D’Addario Strings of Farmingdale, Long Island who will be in attendance with the exciting products from Planet Waves as well.

Something different for sure is Lazy B Cigar Box Guitars. John Bernyk says cigar box guitars or “CBG’s” have a rich musical history and are enjoying a recent spike in interest among local musicians. John has made over 100 of these including acoustic, electric, license plate resonator, and tradition types of CBG’s under the “Lazy B” cigar box guitar name.

Flat Hills Vintage from Amherst, MA is a fun story. I opened the mail one day and found a contract and check from John Loeb of Flat Hills Vintage Guitars. He had found the NY Guitar Expo website, liked what he saw and sent in the contract and check for a booth having never spoken to me! John specializes in prewar and post war Martin guitars among other things.

Jeff from Murphy’s Music on Long Island is excited about the ukulele craze and he says they outsell guitars 20 to 1 now. I guess we’ll see but he wants to be the “uke guy.” Marty Turman of Bellmore is a CPA with a large collection of Gibson J-45’s and ES335’s. Marty has taken a booth to display and sell his vintage wares. I have heard from several well-known vintage dealers they are in for next year, such as Joe Menza of Best Guitars. He wants to be exhibiting but he is out of the country this time around, but plans on being here next year if he can.

Paul Livoti of The Guitar ER is an expert guitar repair person and Pigtronix pedals will be in the house as will the Guitar Asylum of Ronkonkoma, NY who will have PRS guitars and they brought in Vigier Guitars of France as well with their own booth. Long Island-based Rock n’ Roll amps, a killer sounding amp on par with any boutique builder in the country will be present as will Tubes & More (Jensen) from Tempe, AZ, so folks are coming across the USA to be here which is very exciting. We’ll have 40 booths and a wide array of vintage and newer guitars and amps.

Gbase: Well, we do appreciate you taking time out of your very busy schedule to check in with us and we here at Gbase are excited about being part of the NY Guitar Expo. We’re sure you have much to do between now and the end of April. Thanks for taking time to speak with us Rich – care to promote any other aspect of the event?

Johnson: Sure my pleasure, but before I do I want to thank the folks at Gbase for all your wonderful support in helping the NY Guitar Show & Exposition get the word out. I deeply appreciate it for sure! Guitar World who is our media sponsor as well and Emily O’Neil who made it happen have been a huge help and I thank them as well. The one main attraction is the Les Paul Foundation. The LPF will be displaying Saturday (4/28) only a Les Paul display with some of Les’ own personal artifacts and guitars. As you know the Les Paul Foundation honors & remembers the life, spirit, and legacy of Les Paul by supporting music education, engineering and innovation as well as medical research and will establish scholarships at one or more music or music related schools. I want to thank Executive Director Michael K. Braunstein for setting up this display and making it happen for us

I just want to remind everyone our venue is accessible by car and public transportation, all within 90 minutes of NYC and the metro area. There will be fun for the entire family with terrific food and refreshments on site and we expect kids 8 to 80 to attend. Thanks to Gbase again for their wonderful support and I’m very excited looking to the future of this show as well.

Gbase: Terrific, we looking forward to hanging about and making finding a few rare gems to take home. There’s never enough G.A.S. to go around. For more information on The NY Guitar Expo, be sure to visit their website for more information. Be sure to keep April 28th 29th open – it’s just around the corner!

TIPS AND TONE – DIY Catastrophes

…and other man-made disasters!

By John LeVan

OK, so the economy is down and the thought of paying a Luthier several hundred dollars isn’t in the budget. But, before you decide to “DO IT YOURSELF” (thereby the DIY)… here are a few things to consider.

• Are you trained for the job?
• Do you have the right tools & materials?
• How will this affect the value of your guitar?
• Can you afford to have it repaired after you fix it?

I know there are many great repair guys out there, many with little or no official training, but that doesn’t mean they’re unqualified to fix a guitar. However, there are some repairs you should never attempt without the proper training and supervision. Back in the 80′s (yes, I’m THAT OLD), I made a lot of mistakes and learned many valuable lessons. As a wise man once told me, ‘You’ve paid a lot of stupid tax‘.

There are many repairs and modifications that can be made to a guitar without a lot of training, that are reversible if you make a mistake. Like adjusting the action on a Strat, or replacing the pickups in a Tele or Les Paul. On the other hand, there ARE repairs that will cost you a lot of Stupid Tax. Below are several examples of DIY Catastrophes. Some (with a lot of money) were reversible. Some were, well, toast!

FRET FRUSTRATIONS

Replacing frets is an art form that takes a long time to master. I didn’t have a clue what I was doing when I did my first re-fret. It was a disaster! After I had completed over 40 re-frets, I thought I was God’s Gift to Frets. That is until Bob Taylor made me question everything I “thought” I knew. After studying guitar repair at Taylor Guitars, I realized that I knew nothing! Once I learned Bob’s technique, my work improved dramatically. Experience is a great teacher, but learning from a Master is priceless! Before you attempt fretwork, study with a Master, it will save you from creating your own man-made disasters! A great example of poor fretwork is….

Figure 1.1 Different size fretwire. (Photo by John M. LeVan)

….this electric guitar that came in for a setup. Notice anything wrong? This guitar had three different sizes of fretwire. This is a “Cardinal Sin of Lutherie”! In addition, the frets weren’t even seated properly.

Figure 1.2 Frets are sticking out of the board. (Photo by John M. LeVan)

This fret is sticking out of the fretboard. That’s great if you like stitches! Bad fretwork makes a great guitar play terrible. Great fretwork is expensive, a re-fret can cost as much as $500 by a reputable Luthier, much more if they have to re-repair someone else’s work. Keep this in mind before you grab a pair of pliers and a hammer!

CHANGING PARTS

One of the great benefits to guitar players today is all of the great replacement parts that are available. Never before has there been such an excellent variety of replacement parts for a guitar. Unfortunately, when cheap parts get into the wrong hands, good guitars go bad. If you want to upgrade the parts on your guitar, always make sure that the new parts are an exact retrofit. In other words, if you have to drill extra holes in your guitar, don’t do it! There is nothing wrong with upgrading the parts on a guitar, so long as you can change them back without it being detected.

Check out this perfectly fine guitar. See what someone did to it?

Figure 1.3 Headstock with extra holes drilled into it. (photo by John M. LeVan)

The extra holes in the headstock have dropped the value of this guitar significantly. To add insult to injury, the keys are horrible. Another evil perpetrated upon this once beautiful guitar, is the gigantic hole routed to install an obsolete bridge. Not cost-effective to repair, this is a prime example of “Toast”.

Figure 1.4 Electric guitar routed for an obsolete bridge. (photo by John M. LeVan)

STRUCTURAL DISASTERS

Structural repairs are some of the most difficult to do well. They usually require a significant amount of finish touchup and color matching. I remember the first time I attempted to re-glue a broken headstock. Talk about a man-made disaster! It would have looked better if I used a crayon and a glue stick. Since then I have developed new techniques and tools to do the job right, but it took many years of practice. This is why some of the best Luthiers (I have known and worked with), will tell you they are a “practicing Luthier”. Like a doctor or lawyer, it’s an on-going process of trial and error and learning from your mistakes. Fortunately, if we mess up, no one dies, but it can result in losing a client and/or a law suit!

Here is a photo of a very bad headstock repair.

Figure 1.5 Bad headstock re-glue & touch-up. (Photo by John M. LeVan)

Like my first time, it appears that they didn’t glue the break flush, then did the touch-up with a marker.

Note to all of you aspiring repair techs: Markers, regardless of color, tend to turn green or orange when you spray lacquer over them!

If you are attempting to do touch-up work use either stains, tinted lacquer or dyes.

Figure 1.6 Internal sins!. (Photo by John M. LeVan)

The first two sins occurred when they attempted to repair the braces. (1) They glued Popsicle sticks to the X-Brace to correct for drilling holes through the bridge, resulting in shattering the braces. See the dowel sticking through the brace? (2) The third sin happened when they slopped glue all over the inside of the guitar to hold things together. (3) FYI, they used the wrong kind of glue, it should have been hide glue. The fourth sin was using two huge bolts to hold the bridge on when the previous dowels failed. (4). After several months of restoration, (and a lot of prayer and stupid tax) I was able to redeem these sins and return the guitar to original.

Figure 1.7 Redemption. (Photo by John M. LeVan)

At the time this project came in, it was the largest restoration I had ever attempted. Despite the huge repair bill, it was worth restoring, but the family would have saved thousands of dollars if they would have brought it in before they had attempted to fix it.

AVOID DIY CATASTROPHIES!

• Never attempt a repair without the proper training & supervision.
• Find out if such repairs will lower the value of your guitar.
• Only use replacement parts that are an exact retrofit.
• Consult with a qualified Luthier!
• Buy my latest, best selling book, Guitar Setup, Maintenance and Repair. Signed copies available – contact me for details.

The purpose of this article is to inform, entertain and shock my readers. The most important of these is to inform. If I can help others through my mistakes and experiences, it makes my column a success. So keep sending me those E-mails, and let me know if there is another topic you would like me to write about. And thank you for making Tips & Tone successful.

If you have any questions about this, or any of my other articles, feel free to e-mail me at guitarservices@aol.com. Be sure to visit us on the web at www.guitarservices.com

copyright©2009 John M. LeVan all rights reserved

John LeVan

The Guitar Services Workshop

Strat and Tele are trademarked names by Fender Musical Instrument Co. Les Paul is trademarked name by The Gibson Guitar Co.

In cooperation with Gbase Dealer A1A Guitars and Pigtronix, some very lucky Gbase Gearhead has a chance to maximize their pedalboard with two of the coolest sounding Pigtronix pedals to-date. The first is the Class A Boost, a chunky fat-laden, tone-inducing punch that will give you just what you’re looking for with up to 20db of clean boost. Just what the Pig ordered…. – And secondly, (and one of our favs) The Tremvelope. This is Pigtronix’s take on the classic effect which will allow you change the speed, width and overall effect. Two great additions to anyone’s EFX collection – Sign up now!

Gbase: So Lisa, thanks for taking a few to chat with us. You’ve certainly been keeping busy. Before we talk about the show, tell us a little bit about yourself?

Lisa Sharken: I have been playing guitar since I was seven years old and music has always been my passion. Today I am a full-time industry veteran with 30 years of experience in various areas of the music business, including sales, marketing, artist relations, guitar repair, teaching, and over two decades as a writer and photographer for every major guitar magazine and website, as well as being co-author of Gear Secrets of the Guitar Legends, published in 2005. I have been working in the New York metropolitan area since the mid ’80s, and during that time, I have attended and displayed at numerous music trade shows in the local area and around the country.

Gbase: For those of us that know you (and those of you who don’t) – that’s an impressive resume to say the least. So what leads you to want to do a guitar show?

Sharken: When the promoters who coordinated guitar shows in New York’s East Village stopped doing shows around 2006, it left a void in the scene. Many guitarists and dealers who had been longtime participants really missed the experience.

Gbase: No doubt. New York is such a guitar town, one would think that there is a need to fill that void.

Sharken: My friend Michael Schnapp, a former record company executive, was DJing at the Brooklyn Bowl in Williamsburg and had helped coordinate two record shows at the venue. We talked about the possibility of hosting a guitar show there, so I checked out the venue and thought it could be a great place with all it had to offer — a large concert area, which is where we set up the dealer displays, the fabulous Blue Ribbon restaurant, a great bar with local Brooklyn brews, nine high-definition video screens, and 16 bowling lanes. Williamsburg has also become an area filled with artists and musicians. I felt that local guitarists would welcome a show in the area, and hoped dealers would want to recreate that great vibe we had at the show on the Lower East Side. I also realized there was a whole new generation of players who never had an opportunity to experience that event, and that business has changed a lot during the years while there were no shows in our area.

Gbase: There’s does seem to be a whole new generation of players that would be excited about a guitar show coming back to NY, it’s more of an experience, so to speak.

Sharken: So much business is now done through the internet, and there are fewer brick-and-mortar stores, as well as many boutique builders making some truly amazing guitars, amps, and effects pedals. There’s a lot more interest than ever before in both vintage and boutique gear than the typical stuff you find in big box stores, so I really wanted to try to bring the public together with these dealers and builders from our area so people could see more than just a picture on the web or an ad in a magazine, try out gear, and network with other musicians.

Gbase: Interesting and how are you finding the news being received by the music community?

Sharken: Everyone responded favorably, so I put together my first show in a record six weeks, and it took place last April. We did extensive grass roots promotion, and brought in over 1,200 people. The response was so positive that we decided to host a second show in the fall. Once again, we had an excellent turnout and people wanted to keep the momentum going. So here we are, a year later, hosting our third show. It’s great to see so much enthusiasm from the musicians, manufacturers, and dealers in our community, and so much support of our show. I truly hope we can continue the tradition of hosting these shows for years to come.

Gbase: Lisa, as always, great to speak with you. We look forward to swinging by the show and checking out some gear. For those of you so interested, you can see more by visiting the Brooklyn Guitar Show FB Page -  or check out The Brooklyn Bowl Page.

1 Fender Custom Shop “Play Loud”, only made in 100 examples worldwide

1 Fender Gold/Gold Stratocaster, dead mint unplayed

2 Fender Antiguas,

1 Fender International Color in Capri Orange

2 Fender Stratocaster Yngwie Malmsteen Signature och 1 Fender Dave Murray Signature

Here is the more detailed infomation along with the serial numbers:

Brand Picture Model Serial number Prod. – Manufacture – Year – Color – Neck – Cond

• Fender 1 American Standard Stratocaster E349438 USA 1985 Inca Silver Rosewood 10
• Fender 2 Gold Stratocaster, Collector´s Series CA11495 USA 1981 Gold Metallic Maple 10
• Fender 3 Yngwie Malmsteen Signature Stratocaster, Version 2 SZ3041518 USA 2003 Vintage White Maple 10
• Fender Custom Shop 4 Reverse Proto Stratocaster LTD SZ4098012 USA 2005 Vintage White Maple 10
• Fender 5 American Standard Stratocaster Antigua S903311 USA 1979 Antigua Maple 8
• Fender 6 American Standard Stratocaster Antigua S915272 USA 1979 Antigua Maple 10
• Fender 7 The Strat E032030 USA 1980 Lake Placid Blue Maple 8,5
• Fender Custom Shop 8 Yngwie Malmsteen “Play Loud” Stratocaster LTD YS499 USA 2008 Olympic White Maple 10
• Fender 9 American Standard Stratocaster E329339 USA 1983 Olympic White Maple 9,7
• Fender 10 American Stratocaster International Color S938176 USA 1980 Capri Orange Rosewood 9,8
• Fender Dave Murray Signature Stratocaster V177911 USA 2009 Black Maple 10
• Fender Stratocaster Splatter Limited Edition MZ312516 Mexiko 2003 Blue/white/silver Rosewood 10
• Fender Yngwie Malmsteen Signature Stratocaster, Mark 3 SZ9386068 USA 2009 Vintage White Maple 10
• Music Man Luke Signature Edition ???? USA 2006 Black Sapphire Rosewood 10

Please spread the information about the burglary and the lost guitars to your partners and business contacts. A generous reward will be given to information that will give me my guitars back!!

If you have any information about the instruments, or have heard any rumours, please come back to me. Your help to get the guitars back to my will be highly appreciated and generously rewarded!!

Greetings one and all. We hope this Gazette find you in great spirits and prepping for spring, as here in the Northeast, we have no idea what’s going on weather-wise. Looking at the Calendar, it clearly indicates its………………yep, it’s says “March”. But as I’m typing this, it’s 38 degrees and tomorrow, there’s a winter weather advisory, predicting snow – something we have seen nor heard from in quite some time.

But I digress, this crazy winter weather is all the more reason to get out there and find the gear-of-your dreams. There are lots of Guitar Shows upcoming where you can trade/buy/sell and land that guitar-amp-bass-EFX-whatever, you’ve been looking for, for the past “way-too-long”.

A few things to mention – The New York Guitar Expo is coming up fast. April 28th and 29th in Merrick, NY. This will certainly be a show worth checking out. You should also remember the Dallas Guitar Show is April 20, 21 and 22 at Dallas Market Place, in Dallas TX. This is one of the greats and certainly not to be missed. Another NY Area Guitar Show is the Brooklyn Guitar Show at the Brooklyn Bowl, Sunday, April 1st.

You can always keep an eye on what shows and events are upcoming by visiting our Gbase Events page. Also if you have an event you’d like to submit, shoot us an email at James@gbase.com.

There are currently over 34,000 pieces of gear looking for a good home on Gbase and the dealers are just waiting for your call or email. Take a peek, I’m sure, just like myself, you’re in need of a new chorus pedal, ’58 LP Jr., a Blonde J-200 (preferably pre-1963), a Gretsch Duo-Jet, A Fender Bassman………..egads…….but enough about me. Thanks for visiting with us and we hope you find it is what you’re looking for in the near future.

Don Dawson

Managing Director

Gbase.com

Tips and Tone

Crazy About Nuts

How you’re string nut affects intonation, tone and playability

by John LeVan

The string nut plays a big role on how your guitar performs. Believe it or not, the condition & location of a string nut will dramatically affect its tuning, tone and playability. Maintaining it properly will make any guitar perform great.

What’s a string nut?

The string nut is that ‘white” thing at the end of the fretboard, sometimes called “the bone”. How the string nut is carved directly affects a guitar’s performance. They are made from many different materials; plastic, wood, graphite, ivory, bone and (God forbid) metal. The most common are made from plastic and/or graphite. I personally prefer bone because it produces great sustain and tends to have better endurance. Another reason I like bone is it gives the guitar more volume and a broader dynamic on the open notes. No matter what material you choose, if its not carved correctly your guitar won’t perform well.

Figure 1.1 Here’s a diagram of a string nut. Photo by John LeVan.

Impact on your guitar

There are five important components that determine how the string nut affects a guitar.

1)    Location

2)    Height

3)    Angle

4)    Width

5)    Spacing

Location is critical! If the string nut is too close or too far from the first fret, the instrument will NEVER PLAY IN TUNE. The location is determined by a series of calculations based on scale length of the neck. Basically, you divide the scale length by the “rule of 18” (17.817) and that’s how far the string nut should be from the top of the first fret. If the nut is more than 5/1000” off, it will be nearly impossible for the instrument to play even remotely in tune.

The height (or the action) at the string nut can be the difference between string rattle or simply bending notes out of tune in 1^st position. Each string slot (in the nut) must be carved to the proper depth to avoid these issues. If the slots are cut too deep (in relation to the 1^st fret) the string will rattle. If the slots too high (in relation to the 1^st fret), the string will bend sharp & out of tune. On average, the high “E” string should be about 1/64 “above the 1^st fret. The rest of the strings (beginning with the “B”) should gradually increase in height up to 1/32” for the low “E” string. Typically, this will give the string enough clearance above the frets to play clearly, and prevent them from fretting sharp in the 1^st position.

Figure 1.2 The action at the nut is critical to it’s playability. Photo J. LeVan

The Angle of the string will affect string rattle, intonation and how quickly the nut wears out. Each string should follow one angle from the face (fret side) of the nut to the (tuning key) peg it ties to. If this angle is too steep, the nut will wear out faster than normal. If the angle is too shallow, the strings will rattle and the intonation will vary based on what fret you’re playing on.

Figure 1.3 The angle of the string. Photo by John LeVan.

Width of each slot must be carved to match each string. If the slots are carved too narrow, the string will bind in the slot causing it to damage the nut or even break the string. If the slot is carved too wide, the string will rattle and slide from side to side when you bend a note. I use nut files that are specifically made to fit each string gauge. It’s important to use the correct size file to prevent string binding and undesirable rattling.

Spacing is the distance between each string. The spacing affects the playability. Each string should be equally spaced (measuring from the outside diameter of each string).  The two “E” strings should also be an equal distance from the end of the fretboard to prevent them from slipping off the fret when you play. These distances vary from guitar to guitar. It all depends on the width of the fretboard, if it has binding and the bevel of the frets. In short, if the string slots aren’t spaced correctly, the guitar will be difficult to play.

Figure 1.4 The string spacing on a string nut will affect it’s playability. Photo by John LeVan.

What’s Produces The Best Tone?

There are many choices available for a string nut; plastic, bone, ivory, micarta, brass and graphite, to mention a few. Most factories use plastic, but it’s a soft material that not only wears quickly, but it insulates and absorbs tone. It tends to sound dead and thin. Another common material is graphite. Graphite is great for a guitar with a tremolo, but it lacks volume and has a limited dynamic.  Micarta is a synthetic material that sounds rather strong in the midrange. What I don’t like about Micarta is that it collapses under pressure and can pinch the strings (this will causing tuning problems), and cause string breakage. Brass was hip back in the 70’s, but it’s bright, harsh and difficult to carve. Each of these materials will sound slightly different depending on the overall tone of the guitar. A bright sounding guitar will benefit from Ivory more than bone. A warm sounding guitar often sounds better with bone, which adds brightness and sustain. It’s important to use the right material for your guitar to get the best tone and sustain.

Troubleshooting

Here are several warning signs that the string nut needs to be replaced.

• Cracks
• Chipping
• Loose fit in the slot
• Loss of sustain
• String rattle
• Intonation problems

I see a lot of these problems in the less expensive guitars. Older guitars that haven’t been properly maintained are also prone to these issues. A commonly overlooked mistake is changing string gauge without re-cutting the string slots to fit that gauge of strings. The string slots are generally cut to fit the gauge of strings the manufacturer recommends for that guitar. If you want to change string gauge, you’ll need to take the guitar to a qualified Luthier to have it setup for that string gauge.

Care & Maintenance:

There are a few things that I do to minimize the wear & tear on a string nut. Adding a little bit of graphite to the string slot will help the string slide smoothly through the slots. Simply use a mechanical pencil and color in the slots. Another way to make a string nut last longer is to use the same string gauge when you change them. This will prevent tuning problems, string rattle and premature wear of the nut. Regular inspections are also a good preventative measure. Take a look at the slots when you change strings and look for signs of wear, crack and chips. In general, consistency, inspection and a little graphite will go a long way to preserve your string nut.

For more information on string nuts, check out my Guitar Setup, Maintenance & Repair Book (published by Mel Bay).

Guitar Setup, Maintenance and Repair. (Photo by Mel Bay Publis

John M. LeVan

The Guitar Services Workshop

Nashville, TN

www.guitarservices.com

guitarservices@aol.com

Copyright © 2012 John M. LeVan all rights reserved.

Gbase.com: Tell us a little about yourself and how you got started in the world of guitars?

Eddie: I was fascinated by electric guitars very early on. I played piano a great deal in my youth, but was never ‘allowed’ to have a guitar.

Gbase.com: What was your local music store like growing up?

Eddie: The local music shop was a full line store focusing on pianos, organs and band instruments. Guitars were more of an after thought at that time.

Gbase.com: Sounds like a lot of local music stores, back in the proverbial day. When did the decision to open your own shop come about?

Eddie: After a few years of visiting shops around the country I felt that no single store offered the feel, quality of inventory or one on one service I would desire. Having all ready being trained in the retail end, the decision was made to create the best, high end guitar shop possible.

Eddie's Guitars

Gbase.com: Do you do more local business or  is your business primarily online?

Eddie: We do great business in St. Louis as we are the only boutique shop in the area. We are THE go to place for discriminating players to find gear. Also, many of the customers we cater to find out about us online and will schedule a time to come in and browse our vast selection of guitars, amps and pedals. We also offer airport pickup service to out of town customers. We provide the rare opportunity to be able to try and compare many different amp and guitar models under one roof, giving the buyer more confidence in their purchase. Globally, our customers can browse our incredible inventory at eddiesguitars.com

Gbase.com: I’m not sure we’ve ever heard of service like that…….airport pickup – that’s terribly cool! Does Eddie’s Guitars specialize in anything particular?

Eddie: We specialize in high end, handmade guitars, amplifiers and effects. We deal with many independent builders who take great pride in the attention to detail and craftsmanship they offer.

Gbase.com: Where might we find Eddie’s Guitars beyond Gbase?

Eddie: You can find us in several online locations:

There is our Gbase store, of course -www.gbase.com/stores/eddies-guitars/inventory

You can visit our website directly – www.Eddiesguitars.com

There is our Ebay Store – stores.ebay.com/Eddies-Guitars

And you can also follow us thru our social media efforts as well:

Facebook – facebook.com/pages/Eddies-Guitars/172171730936

Twitter – Twitter.com/eddiesguitars

Gbase.com: Your store looks almost like a museum – beautiful presentation and layout. What’s the nicest guitar you have in stock at the moment?

Eddie: We carry hundreds of exquisitely made instruments in our shop. We have MANY favorites and narrowing it down to one would be impossible! “What flavor do you like?”

Gbase.com: Certainly that would be too difficult to narrow down. We’ll take one of each…..! Thanks for chatting with us.

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Only to be surpassed by the e-hooter (with commercial rights to “The Hooters” well in hand)..

Via BoingBoing/Rob Beschizza via Alesis

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