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Topic: Any Hints on Restringing old Fender slotted Headstock T8? |
Jim Fogarty
From:
Phila, Pa, USA
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Posted 23 Feb 2016 5:13 pm |
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Ok......this is a real PITA!
What am I missing on a method to restring my '53 Fender Custom T8? That slotted headstock pan kinda sucks. Should I be doing it inner strings (4 & 5) fist and work outward, or?
I got the inner neck done by pre-cutting the string, but it was a hassle.
BTW.....I have 30 years of doing all kinds of crazy guitars and tuners, Bigbys, Floyds, classical, etc, etc. Not a newbie here.....
Thanks! |
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Jeff Mead
From:
London, England
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Posted 23 Feb 2016 5:54 pm
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Not sure what problem exactly you are having. I usually start on the highest string and work down in order.
I cut each string so it just about reaches to the next but one string - maybe a touch more for the 2 highest ones and use one of those plastic string winders.
It really is a pain without the winder tbhough, I admit. |
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Stephen Cowell
From:
Round Rock, Texas, USA
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Posted 24 Feb 2016 7:20 am
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Start with the outside strings and work your way inward.
Never cut a wound string before making a right-angle bend... otherwise the wind can lose tension and the string is dead.
Here's my system... it takes needle-nose pliers, dykes/cutters, and a power winder. Those little plastic winder bits that fit in a cordless screwdriver work well.
1.) Lay the string out on the neck. Orient the tuner shaft so that the hole is pointing up at about 45degrees, toward the bridge side.
2.) Insert the string through the tuner hole. Grab the other end with pliers and pull it up.
3.) Now put a slight bend into the ball end of the string so that it wants to set in the bridge retainer slot. Bend it just above the ball, in the clevis section that's over-wrapped. Hook the string in and pull on the other end so that it's set.
4.) Pull up on the string so that there's about 3" rise above the fretboard in the middle (12th fret)... you're making slack for the wind around the post. Keep tension on the string so it doesn't pop out of the bridge retainer slot.
5.) Holding that slack in the middle of the string, grab the free end of the string right at the tuner hole and kink it 90deg (or more!) upwards with the needle-nose pliers. You want a sharp bend, tug while you're bending. At this point you can let the ball end fall out of the retainer (it sure wants to!).
6.) Cut the string about 1cm (3/8") after the bend. Holding the short piece against the tuner, use your other hand forefinger to kink the string so it exits the tuner toward the bridge.
7.) Wind the string with the winder, guiding the short piece on the free end so that the string winds over it. This will lock the string so it won't slip.
Once you've got the first wind on put the ball end back in the retainer and wind 'er up.
_________________
New FB Page: Lap Steel Licks And Stuff: https://www.facebook.com/groups/195394851800329 |
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Jim Fogarty
From:
Phila, Pa, USA
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Posted 25 Feb 2016 2:35 pm
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Stephen, that's awesome. I got the second neck done before I saw your post, and figured out for myself that stringing from the outside strings inward was the way to go. I'll try the rest of your hints when I do the third neck.
Three necks.......almost like painting a bridge. By the time time I get the 3rd neck strung, it''ll be time to start all over and put new strings on the first! |
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Stephen Cowell
From:
Round Rock, Texas, USA
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Posted 26 Feb 2016 9:00 pm
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Here's what it looks like when you're doing it right... as you can see, sometimes I wind to the inside for more of a straight pull.
_________________
New FB Page: Lap Steel Licks And Stuff: https://www.facebook.com/groups/195394851800329 |
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