How to Adjust the Nut Height on a Guitar
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- Опубликовано: 19 июл 2024
- I show you how I go about filing the nut on an electric guitar to lower the action and get open chords to play more in tune.
Website: www.lukemerwin.com
Twitter: / merwinmusic
Facebook: / lukemerwinmusic
0:00 Intro
0:13 Tools
0:46 Measure
1:55 File Slots
4:50 File Top
5:58 Outro 
Видеоклипы
This how a tutorial should be, no rock music, no gimmck,s no sreaming awsommm!, great camera work clear and precise. thank you so much ..the best tutorial I´ve ever seen thanks PB
@Aurora Borealis there's no point to have music playing in the background when trying to explain. It's just a distraction.
Right on, and a good camera angle
i adjust my nuts very fast, nobody notices.
This is by far my favorite video on RUclips about filing down the nut slots. Great job and thank you for this great tutorial!
Great instructions, simple to follow rules, and omg metric, thanks so much.
Invaluable information, Thank you!! You answered every question I had. Making my first ever guitar nut, and was completely clueless. You made my build successful
What an absolute great tutorial! You are the man, please keep doing these videos.
great video, well shot..very informative...I came here afraid to file and now I am emboldened with sensible courage! 🤘
I know this is an old video and i haven't been playing long.
All my open chords sound like garbage.
Thought it was me for awhile.
Then i leaned a trick to see if it was the nut.
You just helped me confimed it and saved me some money.
I can't thank you enough.
Thanks man! this was really helpful with my new 1 3/4 warmoth neck. Had to get an acoustic nut and modify it to fit but the string spacing was really high which combined with being fairly close to the edge was causing me difficulties. Now I have the nut set up right I'm having a much easier time playing it :)
This must be the best video on youtube about this subject, thank you.
As some have already commented this is an excellent video. Helpful, informative yet concise. Thank you
I've been a pro luthier for 50+ yrs., and You have every one of My moves down. You are still a young cat, so keep on showing the PROPER way to the kids out there. Some of the RUclips 'tutorials' are a bunch of wasted time, trash music, and opinion, not truth, and I like to be able to stick any of My 35 fiddles on a strobe and get a bang-on note each time. Keep it up, Lad. You're NOT full of $#@@(* like those others.
This maybe the best instructional on nuts I’ve ever seen! Great Job!
Wish all tutorials in yt were as direct and noise free as this one
A clear and concise tutorial, - Excellent.
Very instructive video. My nut was way to high and I finaly find out how to solve this problem ! Thanks !
Best nut slot tutorial on RUclips IMO, thank you much!!!
Good luck with your nuts, Norm
Excellent video, very helpful!!
Awesome instruction. Thanks for the advice!
Excellent vid...thanks! found this info as well on the Graph Tech website:
How deep should I carve the groove for a nut on my guitar neck?
On a new Graph Tech nut, it's recommended that you sand the bottom of the nut to compensate for the height rather than carve the guitar. You can then fine tune the height of each string, if necessary, with nut files or, in a pinch, a piece of 400 grit sandpaper folded as sharply as possible. After restringing, press down each string in turn on the 3rd fret. Now check the clearance of the string above the first. If it's touching the first fret, the nut slot is too low. Proper nut slot height is just a paper thickness between the string and the first fret on the plain strings and about twice that on the wound strings.
Thomas! Thank you! My American Standard Strat nut , with the 3rd fret test. , Produces a " very low " string to fret distance.
really great! thank you very much! very instructive and detailed!
This helped me a lot. Thank you!.
very helpful..thanks for posting this video
I fall in love with that StewMac set.
So would your nuts
Thanks, nice headstock shape
Thanks. Very informative, and now I have a new use with my daughter's and wife's nail files. :-)
Great job,austanding.👍
Good instructions. One thing I noticed with the thicker strings is when you slacken them they push upwards due to stiffness with the angle towards the tuners .so taking a second measurement after filing the nut will need the string pulled tight again. It`s not really too fussy to take that extra effort . I used a magnifier and would not usually notice that . If you have gut strings the newly filed bone nut "edge " can scrape the gut and begin some wear on the string . So I make sure to blunt that sharp edge . Then put some pencil graphite in the groove for lubrication . On one violin forum a violin teacher asked what the graphite was for .
Well done! Subscribed
Famous last words: "Oh, I'll just give it one last pass with the file".
Famous last, last words: Damn, l shoulda' just left it alone!"
lmao so true
Try 0.25mm then just to be safe . The slackened string will give the wrong reading due to string stifness . But you have to slacken the string to move it out of the way before filing .
Solid tutorial!
Finally a good nut height video! How high are the stings from the fretboard and how high are the deets crown?
Great video. It seems that many people measure the nut height by measuring the open strings at the first fret. I like your method better because it takes action and truss rod adjustment out of the equation. However you seem to adjust them all 0.008-0.0012" inch range, but the people that do it with open strings always have more of a gap on the low E (like 0.025") and less as you progress to the high E (like 0.012"). Do you think it is better to have them all set the same instead? Like you said, everyone has a different opinion. Thanks again for the video.
great video thanks
Great video. When you show the picture of the back ramp in the slot cut, is that achieved just by filing towards the tuning peg? Do you have to rock the file down somehow to do it or just the cutting angle is enough? Thank you
Nice! I subscribed. Cheers.
Great thanks 👍
By the way, the "key ring" file you showed is a welding torch tip cleaner. You can get these for about $3 at a welding supply place. Harbor Freight does not have them, sadly. Also, I heard a trick where you buy an extra feeler gauge (also about $3 at Harbor Freight) and then use a hacksaw to make it in to a set of saw blades! You just cut teeth in to the feeler gauges with a saw or grinder! Gives you lots of small saw widths!
That is a good idea!
Here is the $3 welding tip cleaner slot cutting "key ring" on Amazon:
www.amazon.com/Welding-Cleaner-Stainless-Reamers-Soldering/dp/B00OD8DUUM/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1524884034&sr=8-8&keywords=welding+tip+cleaner
And here is the feeler gauge nut slot set project in a 4-min. RUclips Video:
ruclips.net/video/CslelQBTwP0/видео.html
Hi - I've been a pro luthier for 50+ yrs., and the 'feeler gauge-slot saw' thing was brought about by accident for Me, and I have continued to use it til this day. The story? Moby Grape was doing a gig in San Fran in the '60's and a nut replacement on the lead's axe was not completed in time...I grabbed an old Gerber and (carefully) beat the hell out of a few feeler gauge edges with the knife's blade edge. Alas, many more 'saws' have been made since. Forget those Spewyart-McScrawney prices. Peace to all. -Smythie
so you are suggesting to get a set of feeler guages, and with a hacksaw blade and cut the guage into some kind of nut file? bro, its okay to spend money.
Great video- Safe to assume the same for 12 strings?
Best nut vid on RUclips. BTW people, stay away from Fenders nut video.
Used old nut with 20 thou shim as truss rod turning wouldn't take away the fret buzzing....sounds better with hardly any fret buzz but High E when OPEN sounds very loud? Shim is like a plastic material.....any idea why?.
So this would help lower the action on my Les Paul? I've set up the neck to specs, but its still too high. Thanks
I usually sand the bottom of the nut, if it's flat, works for me like a charm.
Yeah except this one was glued in and I figured I would probably break it getting it out.
Thank you
i have a new fender ultra, and using this way to measure the action, there is almost no action at all. What to do?
Does 0.20mm apply on every string at the first fret while the capo is on the 3rd fret?
Yes
Thank you, I was worried about cutting the nut without setting up the neck......put the capo on the first fret and set up the neck before cutting the nut.
???? Capo on fret 3 for this adjustment . Setting up the neck is a bit different .
Does 0.2-0.3mm apply universally to any electric guitar?
My A string isnt ringing out fully like it used to could this be because of the nut? D
How does one know the nut slot is too deep visually? Should each string's top side be fluch with the top of the nut. Or should each string just barely rise about its nut slot?
Don't you love it when people don't respond to you on here? It's like they think there are two different sets of rules. One for online, one for the real world. To me, it's equal. Rude is rude.
@@thegrandpencil4374 Well the answer is The slot should be only deep enough so when you you fret a string on the first fret, it does not play sharp
❤👍
I am about to attack my first nut, as soon as my files arrive from Amazon. All other videos that I watched used the open string method to measure. From what I have seen, with open strings, E/A = 0.020", D/G = 0.018" and B/E = 0.016". I assume the difference in height is due to the vibration depth of each gauge of string. Your method does not account for this. What I like about your method is that action height and neck bow variances are removed by having the capo on the 3rd fret, but I do question the logic of setting them all at the same clearance. Surely a low E requires more clearance than a high E. Would love to hear your thoughts or others.
Ok the string passes from the fretboard side across the front of the nut , just how much of the string should touch the nut surface ,, front edge 1st , on its way to the tuning peg . Any type measurement is fine. Lol Thx
"Almost level "on the fret side and then curving down to the tuners side . A straight line exactly from the edge would be bad for the strings .
This is great, but what if the nut is too LOW? I'm getting lots of buzzing on the lowest three strings at the first fret on a Chinese Fender Squier Strat, even after replacing the stock plastic nut with a new bone one. Measured (feeler gauge) Low E string height at the first fret (with the capo at the 3rd fret as you advised) is .13 mm. Nearly zero on the high e side. I can just push the .04 mm gauge under there, but I think it might be touching the fret lightly. Should I pull the nut out and put in a thin, hardwood shim? I don't think I will get enough height using the old super glue and baking soda trick in the slots. The slots are not very deep... And the bridge is already set kinda high to reduce the buzz. Makes the string action a bit high at the high frets, but tolerable. Measured 2.25mm at the 17th fret on the low E string with the capo at the first fret, as you advised in your bridge height video. 2mm was the target. Or maybe I should just live with the buzz? What do you think? Thanks! :)
You replaced the nut with a new one and it was still too low? If you didn't just cut the new one too low then maybe your nut slot is weird and you need to shim it up with a piece of wood veneer or something.
I would guess that is the problem but also make sure your neck doesn't have any twist in it, and is fairly straight with a slight up-bow.
I think you are right that my slot was cut too low. The bone nut I bought was brand new, and I did not make it lower at all. I did make it a shade thinner to fit in the slot, just by a few passes with a sanding block. Neck is not twisted and has a nice relief. If the desired string height at the first fret is .2mm to .3mm, and I have .13mm, then I need a shim that is only .1mm thick. that is really thin for wood. I wonder if I should remove the nut and put in a little of that super glue and baking soda along the bottom of the nut slot? What do you think about that idea? Or is there some other shim material I could get that I could make .1mm thick, and might still transmit sound nicely to the wood of the neck? Hey, man, thanks for your help! :)
I guess I could put in a really, really thin wood shim, and then when the nut is back in, I could cut the slots deeper as in this video to achieve the proper string height above the first fret?
They sell brass shims for fender guitars on Ebay. They are .019mm thickness. That's about twice what I need.
I may just need a thin layer of glue.... Maybe I should just use some thick super glue?
my strings are thick cause i play some metal yah know! i wonder should my strings(all of them) lay on the top of the not or be completely inside the nutt with a tight or loose fit?
Don`t have the groove any deeper than half the string thickness .
Would you ever remove the nut and file it on the lower side? In the case where the action at the nut is high all the way across the fretboard, for instance?
Sure but your nut is more than likely cut to the radius of the neck. You don’t want to fuss with that. Then you’d still have to do final adjustments on top. Basically, don’t do it that way.
@@u563rick6 In this instance I found the nut was cemented in too firmly to be removed for bottom filing without damaging it. I also wasted a few minutes trying to cut the slots deeper with some cheap nut files and that didn't help. Quality nut files are cost prohibitive. One of these days I'll try spending more time on it with the cheap files. Thanks for your reply.
First time installing nut on my Fender.... I’m noticing your instructions “Capo on 3rd fret, .2mm - .3mm height” seems to be a little lower than Fender factory specs? I guess it comes down to personal taste?
great vid by the way 👍
Definitely man. Why not go to 3mm and see if it's still high? Guitar setups are personal preference to a degree
What's the capo for?? I don't need one when doing my slots...
For doing nut slots no, but it helps you adjust the bridge end of the guitar when the nut isn't set yet.
Thanks for the video. My guitar build is about finished. Should I do the bridge adjustment with radius gauge first, before doing the nut height adjustment?
Like I said in the video it's always better to adjust things that are just a screw turn before you do anything that can't be undone, like filing.
@@MerwinMusic Yes, but when fretting/capo at the 3rd fret. that takes everything else out of the equation. Just like when adjusting relief... So with this, I feel it should be done early in your setup, because it will affect your action (slightly).
I like how guitar feels when capo is on. How do I get that feeling without the capo?
File the nut probably I without looking at it I don't know.
Would there be any downside to just using a triangular file for all the slots? I figure if anything you probably wouldn't have to sand down the the entire nut afterwards
Triangular files are the worst possible . That leaves two sharp angled edges pressing against the string. It will begin shaving pieces of nylon off the strings . It happened to me once with a new guitar . Use a magnifier and watch as you tune up . Every change in the tuning will add to the damage .
@@amezcuaist hey thanks for the reply. I actually did it though because I couldn't find a file small enough for the E string. But instead of filing it straight through, I did a round motion at the end just to take off any burs or sharp edges. Seems to be holding up ok.
Edit: I am using metal strings though
Mine at 0.20 is very hard to put inside the filer is very low the nut
Would the gap between the string and the first fret be the same for an acoustic guitar?
.010 on low E & .006 on high E.
@@12south31 You changed away from Metric there .
@@amezcuaist I was never in Metric, ha!
so all the way from malta pls from where i can cat thes tools files ttns
Stewart - McDonald...Athens Ohio
very well explanaion but not tested if it won't sharp when freted
What if the nut is too low? How can you raise it?
I don't want to be the turd in the punchbowl, but if you cut your nut heights to what he specified, you will have a very high action over the first fret. When fretted at the third, the height above the first fret should be like a slice or two of paper.
Agree!
Two sheets of paper equals .2 mm or .008” So he is right on the money.
Yeah don't do this, this guy is basically clueless and giving very bad advice. Get them as low as possible without fret buzz. Google a 0 fret guitar, it'll make sense after.
is this same method for les paul style guitar?
It would be similar, especially the measurements but the process would be a little different.
The nut action on that guitar is way too high. I can see that towards the end when you go close up. The nut should be higher than the first fret but not that much higher.
My American Standard Strat nut is not cut very deep, and a .010 feeler guage will not fit under some strings, too tight. There is no open string buzzing anywhere.
thats correct, this guy has no idea what he's on about here. He's just parroting stuff other uneducated youtubers are doing.
Ooh, I would not go for a nut job on a guitar I need to gig tonite ... :o
Good if you got the self confidence!
Well the guitar was ungigable before so either way I was going to play the MIDI guitar for the gig, or I would just have to play a different guitar.
Nothing quite as nerve racking though as playing a gig with equipment you have built or worked on yourself, if something goes wrong it is all on you. haha.
If the nut is more than 0.5 mm too high, wouldn't it be easier just to sand off the bottom of the nut? This would also avoid the slots from becoming cut too deep and causing other problems.
It would be if the nut isn't glued in and can be pulled from the guitar. This nut must be glued down real well because it didn't want to move.
what do you do if your Nut sits too low and all the low notes buzz?
Replace the nut with a new one.
OR! Pour some cooking soda on the under filed slot and dip one drop super glue, and then file it again till desired height.
For better explanation stewmac have some video with soda and superglue trick. Have fun and rock that guitar.
Fastest way would be just to shim the nut with something so it will sit higher.
I’ve heard of the shim trick, but wouldn’t that kill or alter the resonance of the guitar? Perhaps that’s an unknowable and debatable question but it would get in my head nonetheless that my expensive guitar has a hack job nut.
@@VintageRadius One shim or a new nut . Easy choice .
So many scary things being said here. DO NOT give the guitar an "upbow" that's just a big no-no. Secondly. .020 millimeter AFTER capoing the 3rd fret is still way too high. .020 with NO capo is fine, (still higher than it needs to be lol) but with a @the 3rd it'll be too high.
It's really simple. You get them as low as you can without buzzing. The only thing right about this video is that he's using the right width files from stew mac and the angle he's filing at, everything else is just no loll. There's a relationship between relief, action and nut height, you want to avoid the "triangle shape" and there's a way to set it up with about 1.25mm action consistent across the entire fretboard with zero buzzing and excellent intonation.
I can tell by looking at it, all of this strings are too high. Maybe he can't tell his chords are all out of tune, or is just used to the massive action but there's no benefit to having them that high, it's crazy. CAPO the first fret, and notice how high the strings are before the second fret. That + a little bit extra is all you need for nut height. When you capo the 3rd fret, the strings should juust be touching the 1st fret.
Take your instrument to a professional and have somebody experience do it. If you are curious, google a zero fret guitar and you'll understand what i'm talking about.
I like the slots high because I have a super heavy attack. Without it, my strings bang against the first fret when played open.
Pretty awesome if you're looking to lower the height. Pretty useless when trying to raise the height tho...
Это высоко. Надо опускать ниже. Те же 0,2 но без каподастра.
This is true! Even Mexican Fender cut deeper than in this video. I just measured the stock nut on a Mexican stratocaster, and it wasn't even near 0.2-0.3mm, it was hundredths of a millimeter. But it's still high! Otherwise, the first frets will go much higher in tone.
Why the capo on fret 3? Why not on 4 or 6 or 8? I'd rather do without any capo. One should consider that on fret 1, neck relief out of spec or bridge height have virtually no effect.
Then, I am surprised that he moves the string out of the nu without loosening. String should be tuned, thus difficult to move without loosening.
3rd fret takes the neck and bridge out of the equation so you can measure the 1st fret. The string is usually mostly tuned and then I pop it out of the string tree on the head stock and that loosens the string enough to pull it out of the nut.
@@MerwinMusic OK, thanks for your kind reply
Still way too high on my taste. I never even measure that space, i just leave enough space to tell there is any at all. Talking about the thickness of a hair. But it's a matter of taste.
I hold down a string on the first fret, and the height of the string over the next fret is what the nut height should be.. Pretty darn close to a hair.
well if you have the nuit so low you will have fret buzz issues
Yeah, that's about all you need. You don't need these giant heights people are talking about, it's crazy they have no idea how guitars work lol. They are just repeating nonsense. You want them as low as you can without buzzing, which is generally about 1/64th.
@@vedalkin7220 Heey we have a winner, this guy gets it. It's common sense. Now, if you wan consistent action across the entire fretboard (many very famous guitar players run this setup....) you'd want the nut height just a bit high than it needs to be @ .015 or about .06 milimeters. with proper relief and action height, and a really good fret job, you can have consistent action across the fretboard. It's a bit of an industry secret but as an example Dimebag ran this setup as well as a bunch of others.
@@cephalopodintelligence932 Billy Gibbons also uses this approach.
maybe explain what to do if file too much
Somebody has read Dan Erlewine's books...me too
At the beginning of the video you say the neck should have a slight "up bow". I see this as causing confusion among readers. Actually the neck should have some "relief" mid section of the neck. The neck should fall away from the string slightly towards the middle of the neck.
that's what's called an upbow exactly, six of one, half a dozen of another 😀
And if the nut is to low, what then?
unfortunately you have to start over
@@MerwinMusicthanks for your kind reply! is it possible to use some kind of a shim? i bought bone nut that is lower for a half of a millimeter, so i didn't sand it at all.
@ is the slot in your guitar really deep? I have heard of people mixing up some glue and saw dust to make a filler paste to raise a nut that is too low. Usually they do that on vintage guitars when they want to keep it all original.
@@MerwinMusic since i don't know how deep it suppose to be for a standard, i can' tell you for sure. I will try some simple methods with some shimming if that does not give me good results i will try to find more about filler way of yours. :)
Take it to a luthier - but until then you can play with a capo at the first fret. Tune to standard with the capo on, and enjoy the lighter, perfectly low nut action.
the title is wrong.... it is about adjusting the nut slots' heights..... not the height of the nut. pencil lead graphite makes a black mess when you can use nut slot lubricant that is cheap to buy and apply.
Pedantry...
@@MerwinMusic no; ot os being clear about what is shown and what the title implies. the video is about adjusting the nut slots ... not the height of the nut, as your title says. You did it wrong and not me.
@@DougHinVA I am meticulous. You are pernickety .
Those keyring things are pretty hopeless
Get the proper files if you are going to do this yourself.
Agreed! I bought a set of them off Amazon when I replaced a plastic nut with a Tusq XL preslotted nut in case I needed to take the slots down any. Fortunately I didn't need to, as half of them didn't even have any grooves in them! Just weak little pins and completely useless.
Those so called key ring files are actually made to clean the hole in the end MIG welding guns.
@@cliffb2454 about right
I’m a little mystified as to why you don’t take the nut out and shave the underneath?
It is harder to control and often times glued in.
MerwinMusic Always easy to tap out. Getting the right radius on nut slots is crazy. I’m about to do a couple of my guitars.
0.300 is to lowe.. It should be 0.508 !
Maybe it's lower cause of the capo? Probably you mean 0,5 without it
Specs is way too high. The 0.2-0.3mm is without the capo on 3rd fret.
good job dude you said it all in 6 minutes!
you also said a lot of nothing. I know this has nothing to do with the videos purpose but in my personal opinion I feel it would be cool if you had music quietly playing in the background to cover up the blank spots.
Perhaps even local musicians and bands music to get more views and other people interested.
just a thought love your channel man
Funky Brewster couldn’t disagree more. Usually people have background music and it’s way too loud. This was a very informative video. Much better than the one from Fender themselves.
????????????
Dude, you're putting the capo on 2nd fret no? You should put it right after the 3rd fret (the steel) no?
Thank you for using metric and not those fractions that requires a college degree to understand.
I think I disagree. Any infinite small clearing with the 3rd fret test is what's needed.
Whoever pressed " like " listen to me. If you have any gap at all with the 3rd fret test, Don't make any changes! If there's no buzzing, leave it alone my friend!
Thanks nice video. But he ran out of time because he needs this 14 dollar guitar for a gig tonight. LOL
Thank you? It's not the gear but how you play it. Better to play music with whatever gear you have then to have a basement full of expensive gear and you don't know how to play...
@@MerwinMusic Shh. Some people were not loved as children and teased as adolescence and NEED to demean in order to get through the day.
NOOOOOOOOO!!! DO NOT LISTEN TO THE VOICES!!!
okey so after watching this video I ruined my strat
My f*cking lord. 0.2mm - 0.3mm is ridiculously high. When fretting the third fret, the action at the first fret, in a electric guitar, should be almost none. 0.2mm - 0.3mm are good values for action at the first fret BUT without the capo at the third.
You have the expensive tools and all the stuff...But man, no. You are no helping. Sorry though, but the values you are giving are totally off and the beginner is going to be confused forever. As always, too much people talking about guitar stuff. Don' t take it personal.
We're in AMERICA...Why mm...Thousands so we all can understand. !!!
pat welch - we’re not in america and wtf is thousands?
RUclips is international. America is about the only place now which doesn't use metric, and it's probably holding you back. It makes it difficult to co-operate internationally with foreign high-tech companies, and it limits your ability to export your products.
@@ratherbeforgotten8458 "pat welch - wtf is thousands?
He means one thousandth part of an inch, or 0.001".
America has no excuse for not using metric at this point. I try to use it but it's so hard to convert having grown up with inches and feet. Eventually the whole world is going to have to speak a common language and use a common calendar, unit of measurement, etc. The English Imperial system of pounds and feet has lost the battle and everyone knows it except us in the US.
@@AlexHand The problem is that the "imperial" measurement system is good enough, in that you can do everything you want with, up to and including building rockets! The metric system is better, but to an outsider used to the imperial system, the difference appears marginal, and the cost of changing appears non-trivial. But exporting your cars (say) is always going to be a problem when every nut and bolt is made to a different standard, and you have to buy a new set of tools to do any basic maintenance.