Good abrasive for polishing nut slots?

[Purfle Haze]

I took out a guitar I haven't played for a while and noticed that all the wound strings stick in the nut slot when tuning <PLINK!>. I have read about the string-and-abrasive method. I have Bon Ami, Soft Scrub, baking soda, and baking soda toothpaste available. It's a bone nut. Are any of this suitable?

I also have a set of 3M polishing papers, but I worry about making the slot deeper, and I don't want to do that! Suggestions appreciated, and thank you.

[charles Tauber]

If the strings are old and tarnished, they could be oversize. If a new, replacement set of strings stick in the nut slots, the nut slots are the wrong size for the strings. It isn't a question of "polishing" them, but, rather, resizing them to suit the string diameters. One option is a $10 set of needle files. If you know how to use them, they will work quite adequately. If not, take it to a professional, rather than fool with inappropriate polishing compounds.

[Bruce Sexauer]

A well sharpened "soft" lead pencil can be used to add graphite to the slots with great results, assuming the slots are not too narrow for the strings, which is not likely if the problem developed recently. If the nut is properly adjusted, any actual material removal (polishing) could easily cause you to need a new nut.

[Purfle Haze]

This nut was cut on a PLEK for 12-53 light strings a couple of years back. I stopped playing the guitar right after it was PLEK'd, and the strings are two years old.

While a little lube might solve the problem, it bothers me that the strings stick in the slots. Maybe it was cut incorrectly for light strings, or maybe the slots are too sharply cut at the entrances and exits.

[Ned Milburn]

Is the nut plastic or bone?? (Graph-tech, tusq, and similar are plastics.)

If a guitar is not used for a great deal of time, nut slots could possibly develop grooves from the windings of the strings due to the strings sitting in the exact same position in the slot over time. These grooves will be more likely with plastic than bone.

I'd be surprised if a plek machine can do as well as a seasoned top quality craftsman. Does a plek machine cut nut slots with variable curvature horizontally and vertically?? Likely not...

If you have a trusted craftsman near you, bring it to him/her for a look.

If the slots did develop slight grooves from static string pressure over time, they'll have to be VERY LIGHTLY filed to remove just the protruding portions of the grooves.

Pencil lead, as Bruce mentions, is a good option. I used to regularly use this trick in my jazz performance days.

[Alan Carruth]

Any fine soft abrasive ought to work. Toothpaste should be fine, and will leave your guitar smelling nice too. I use rottenstone, which can be gotten at good paint stores, but they sell it by the pound and that's an awful lot more than you'll need to polish one nut.

[Purfle Haze]

Thanks for all the good advice on the problem of sticky nuts. As it turned out today, I had to visit my repair person for something else, so I took the naughty nutter along and he put it right.

I was actually looking forward to trying the toothpaste trick…