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-   -   Nut slot too low (https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=606821)

poopsidoo 02-11-2021 09:15 PM
Nut slot too low
 
Is there anyway to save a nut when someone lowers it too much? It’s the B string and it’s buzzing on the first fret

endpin 02-11-2021 09:29 PM
The baking soda/super glue trick is very popular.

Mandobart 02-11-2021 09:32 PM
Yes, simple fix that I've done myself. Take the string out of the slot. Clean the slot well. Mask off both the fretboard and headstock where the nut contacts it. Fill the slot with regular baking soda. Drip a couple drops of thin superglue on it. Let it dry overnight. Sand smooth with the top of the nut. File a new slot at the correct depth and angle. Lube with graphite. Put the string in the slot and tune up.

mirwa 02-11-2021 11:04 PM
Or remove the nut, superglue a strip of paper to the bottom shape it and fit it back in, then cut the other slots that are now too high

cyberdog 02-12-2021 01:18 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by mirwa (Post 6633008)
Or remove the nut, superglue a strip of paper to the bottom shape it and fit it back in, then cut the other slots that are now too high
Adhesive backed labels available from the dollar store are excellent for this purpose.

phavriluk 02-12-2021 04:56 AM
A thought
 
No reason to wait for thin CA to 'dry overnight'. The stuff, when it hits the baking soda, sets just about instantaneously. No drying involved. Done it myself.

I preferred to build up and resolve one slot as compared to shimming the nut and trimming all six. Personal preference.

MC5C 02-12-2021 07:09 AM
Baking soda is a 90% permanent fix, IMO, but extremely useful and I've used it. Baking soda is a very useful accelerant for CA glue, you can mix it with water and spray it on, or dust a little and blow it off gently before applying the ultra-thin CA, and it takes the time from 15 seconds to less than a second to set. Great if 15 seconds seems like an eternity to you...

I have noticed, with two guitars lately, that I had put a lot of time into the nut slots and they developed a buzz on one or two strings, that the relief needed adjusting. Too little relief can bend the neck back just that tiny amount that the first fret buzzes out, set in .005" relief and the buzz is gone. Now, whenever I get a nut slot buzz that's usually the fix. I have been running stupid low action, nut and 12th fret, lately to accomodate some nerve damage in my left hand and fingers. They need a lot of tweaking in the wintertime.

poopsidoo 02-12-2021 09:03 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by MC5C (Post 6633133)
Baking soda is a 90% permanent fix, IMO, but extremely useful and I've used it. Baking soda is a very useful accelerant for CA glue, you can mix it with water and spray it on, or dust a little and blow it off gently before applying the ultra-thin CA, and it takes the time from 15 seconds to less than a second to set. Great if 15 seconds seems like an eternity to you...



I have noticed, with two guitars lately, that I had put a lot of time into the nut slots and they developed a buzz on one or two strings, that the relief needed adjusting. Too little relief can bend the neck back just that tiny amount that the first fret buzzes out, set in .005" relief and the buzz is gone. Now, whenever I get a nut slot buzz that's usually the fix. I have been running stupid low action, nut and 12th fret, lately to accomodate some nerve damage in my left hand and fingers. They need a lot of tweaking in the wintertime.


I have the Taylor graphite nut. Will the baking soda show?

John Arnold 02-12-2021 09:55 AM
I deepen the slot with a saw or file and glue in a sliver of bone with super glue. Then recut the slot.
I have never done it to a graphite nut. In that case, I would probably shim the bottom and deepen the other slots to match.

poopsidoo 02-12-2021 10:52 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by John Arnold (Post 6633289)
I deepen the slot with a saw or file and glue in a sliver of bone with super glue. Then recut the slot.
I have never done it to a graphite nut. In that case, I would probably shim the bottom and deepen the other slots to match.


Oh I hate to do that. Might as well replace the nut. I’d take it to my repair dude. But like most of us music types, I was looking for the easy way out.

charles Tauber 02-12-2021 11:18 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by poopsidoo (Post 6633216)
I have the Taylor graphite nut. Will the baking soda show?
If the nut is white, no, it won't show. Effectively the glue/soda is only coating the bottom of the nut slot.

Quote:
Originally Posted by poopsidoo (Post 6633395)
Might as well replace the nut.
Replacing a nut is around $50 to $100 depending upon who does it. Shimming and deepening nut slots is half, or less, of that. Filling one slot and recutting is less than that. Effectively there will be no identifiable difference in the end result. What will be different is how much you pay to achieve that same result. It's your money, your guitar: you choose.

Mirosh 02-12-2021 03:15 PM
Is baking soda better than bone dust for this? Would it make a difference if the nut were plastic, tusq, bone, etc?

charles Tauber 02-12-2021 04:02 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mirosh (Post 6633656)
Is baking soda better than bone dust for this? Would it make a difference if the nut were plastic, tusq, bone, etc?
I used all of those combinations and found no practical difference.

rampix 02-13-2021 06:51 PM
Just curious gents, has anyone tried a UV cure epoxy? My dentist uses it and I’ve used in an industrial application. My wife uses it while tying flies.

It strikes me as being a possible solution. Again, I’m just curious as there are already proven methods being discussed.

redir 02-14-2021 09:33 AM
Quote:
Originally Posted by mirwa (Post 6633008)
Or remove the nut, superglue a strip of paper to the bottom shape it and fit it back in, then cut the other slots that are now too high
This has become my favorite shim method. The paper turns rock hard when the CA cures and it's hidden well on a white bone nut or even plastic.


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