Oh gawd! I recently bought a few guitars with this head stock design!!!! I'm doooooomed 🙂 A Hohner SG lion with a fixed Gibson type bridge. It seeems to Floyd Rose broke and some amateur put car filler to fill the big gaps in the bridge replacement. And a ESP LTD M50 (with 2 humbuckers, no whammy and only 1 knob which push/pulls. There's also a battery slot at the back of the M50 for active pickups (mine aren't). I researched but have never seen a similar layout to mine. Ho hum. You live and learn. And your page is the best I've found out there to learn. So, just to clarify, your advice is to make sure my nuts are well glued down? 🙂 Respect. cheers, Pete

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Жыл бұрын

Any string that goes through and has to turn an angle (whether at the front of the nut or the back) is going to create additional unwelcome friction. That increases the likelihood of having tuning stability problems which we can ALL do without :) Leo Fender (OK, Paul Bigsby to be accurate) chose the best possible design - 6 strings straight through the nut. PRS aims for the same even with 3-aside, as did Brian May with his Red Special. Gibson, Jackson etc etc... all those hockey sticks... a bloody nightmare. Regarding nuts you want them as lightly glued down as possible. Try a dab of glue on the front face of the nut so it sticks to the fingerboard cut end rather than the softer, more easily-torn floor of the nut slot. The less glue, the easier your or someone will find removing it later if you need or want to... Oh, always use Tusq. :-) No they don't sponsor me.

Hi Sam, As usual you have been very generous with your time and advice fella. Many thanks. As a newbie your friendly advice really helps. I'm going to buy a gauge as you suggest for measuring nut dimensions in orderto buy those nuts you suggested. 1. I've bought a multimeter but have no idea how to use it. A video on multimeter testing and then fitting new or restored pickups, showing soldering etc. would really help me. There are other vids out there but I prefer your style of presentation and advice. 2. Tremelo block weight?: I presume the heavier the better. There's brass and steel and many different dimensions, again. I don't want a whammy bar but to lock it down. I think the current one in the Tanglewod is Zinc. If I superglued some brass/lead plates to the the tremelo block or stuffed it with a wood packing to stop it moving would it improve things? 3. Trem springs? How many? How tight. I'm rather confused. I'd like to lock off the whammy bar. More or less springs? 4. Electrics. Pots, switches, earth/grounding/ insulation. The wiring on the Tanglewood is flimsy. One of the wires has aleady broken free from the selector switch. Any advice on wiring, twisted wires insulated (cloth) covered wiring etc. would be great. 5. Strat bridge base plates. The Tanglewood has a chromed base plate that seems designed for a whammy bar config. Would it be better just to replace the whole bridge with a non-whammy version? If so what do you recommend? 6. Pots. 250k/500k what's the difference? cheers, Pete

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Жыл бұрын

Hi Pete... it could become a full-time job answering your questions! I enjoy it but the pay is terrible ;-) Some of the questions you're asking - for example the tremolo use / springs etc - are quite complex things that require deeper understanding rather than simple "do this / do that" kind of answers. And that takes a longer time to do. My videos talk a lot about the different parts / aspects of guitars and how / why they work the way they do. It's better that you learn from watching them and other guitar tech channels than asking lists of questions. Of course that requires time but it's never wasted. I do offer a video tech support (covering any issue you need to know about) at £45 for a 90 minute session. Some people use it to get help with a specific project they're working on; others use it to demystify a particular aspect of electric guitars that they can't get their heads around. My first eBook '5 Steps To Guitar Set Up Heaven" demystifies a LOT of stuff about guitars and set up facebook.com/relovedguitars/posts/pfbid0dZWGksV2kWx3w6jEtDEeP99zuBQwE8s2ZVMKhscS2svsMVDHj47jhuHKfyzyeen4l I always like to share what I've learned but my wife is my 'minder' and it's her job to make sure that I make a living out of it instead of doing everything for free :) Hope you understand!

Sam, I apologise for asking for many questions. I'm too thirsty for knowledge I'm afraid. I totally understand. You've been a real help to me. I thank you so much for the advice that you've kindly provided. I promise I won't ask any more technical questions. This question is a non-technical question :-) Did you think about the holiday guitar workshop idea? It could be a money-maker for you and your, understanding and patient, wife. I'd be interested. All the best and once again many thanks for your advice. Take care. cheers, Pete

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Жыл бұрын

No problem, no need to apologise :) I appreciate the guitar workshop idea... I don't think I'm materially equipped for it unfortunately. My workshop is buried in a recycling facility and is... basic (but great for me!). I'd struggle to accommodate more than two additional people at one time. If I ever migrate to more up-market facilities I'd like to do courses like that. Until then I'd probably be better working online.

Hi Sam, yet again you have helped me no end. But.. I have a few questions if you don't mind. 1. Would it help to put wiring inside plastic flexible tubing that has beeen wrapped in silver foil for easier fitting and insulation? 2. Would using black, insulation paint and then aluminium foil be preferable? 3. Would fitting a zero fret help on strats? 4. Tusq nuts: At your suggestion I'm going to buy two Tusq nuts. However, I'm trying now to find the nut dimensions for both the ESP LTD M50 and Hohner SG Lion online with no success so far. I don't trust my measuring as it's an expensive mistake that I'd rather not make. Therefore I'm currently cautious about buying the correct nuts for each guitar. Does anyone have any info please? best wishes, Pete

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Жыл бұрын

I've got a Tusq nut catalogue... take a look at this pic. You want to measure the dimensions shown and then you can find the closest match in the Tusq catalogue. It can be a long process finding a 'close match'! facebook.com/photo/?fbid=620376183425194&set=a.2248417895415318 To get it right you need to buy an inexpensive (£15-20) digital caliper on Amazon to measure those dimensions. You can't rely on Google searches for someone who happens to have posted the correct nut / number... Re zero frets - avoid them (sadly). They're a good geometric solution but they ALWAYS notch quickly leading to clicking on bends. Very annoying. Conductive paint is good but can be messy, gets all over your hands while working on electric components etc. Whatever you use you have to ensure that different cavities are continuously connected... I use wires between cavities (through tunnels) to ensure this.

Hey dude! how much would something like this cost me on my MIM tele? Ive DIY fret levelled it and given it a fallaway to stop it choking but the action still isnt as nice as on my SG which is crazy low, do you think its possible to get a really low action on a telecaster without changing necks? to something like a 12"? im at about 1.5mm but id like to get down toward 1mm iff poss

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Жыл бұрын

Hi, my set up (as shown here) is £125 but it's going up tomorrow to £135 to cope with last few year's worth of inflation! Price includes: new Tusq nut (fitted or adjustable), action setting (1st, last fret, neck relief), precision fret levelling, re-crowning, sand and polishing out... all over clean, check and fix small issues (loose jack sockets, switches, pots etc). Oil fingerboard, fit and stretch new strings and intonate. Also set any tremolo. You can contact me at samdeeks@gmail.com .

Should be a law against guitars that don't use a in-line headstock like a Tele, Strat or Musicman design. Even majority of acoustics splay out the strings for no good reason.

@jessieward2964

Жыл бұрын

I completely disagree, some of those reverse headstocks are gorgeous, they look great and play well. Your statement is a very personal opinion in a world where you can almost get a. Guitar with any headstock you'd like. In-line, 3 and 3, reversed. If those are the only ones you like them stick with em, this day and age offers much more creativity and freedom when choosing the instrument that is right for YOU and you alone. The guitar world has become incredibly energized with different shapes, size, and styles. There shouldn't be a "law" against anything. A 3-5000 Gibson with a 3 and 3 head that can't stay in tune for more than a song or two is still someones prized possession and there's no law against that.

@maximilianl4453

Жыл бұрын

@@jessieward2964 my boy just took it so personally, he wrote a essay about it.

@jessieward2964

Жыл бұрын

@@maximilianl4453 I respect everyone everyone's opinion either way, that's just my own take on it! I love all styles of headstocks, there are some that speak out more to me but there are absolutely no laws, and should be no laws on how a headstock is made or which one a musician prefers to play. There is something out there for everyone, just play what feels right to you and enjoy what you have 😁

@shanebiggs1888

Жыл бұрын

@@maximilianl4453 yeah I take it that way too, when people just disregard fact then yeah that's annoying haha and they need a reality check sometimes

@maximilianl4453

Жыл бұрын

@@shanebiggs1888 I mean... Guitarists are very emotional about their instruments. Musicians in general. But its just a fact, that straight running strings are superior. Its physics. I dont get why anyone reacts so upset about something, that doesnt influence the tone - But the good or bad thing on the design itself. Headstocks with strings that arent guided straight face problems they wouldnt face with straight guided strings. You can fight against it with a good nut, locking tuners... But its just a move to kill a problem that wouldnt need fixing in the first place. I got a guitar with many flaws in my collection too. Looks good... But just doesnt work as good as my Charvel with Evertune Bridge, Locking Tuners and Fender headstock... And thats fine, because it has other qualities.

I always knew that string angle affected tuning stability b8t I never imagined the amount of sideways tension put on the guitar from such angles. Thanks as this is important as even decent quality guitars are still rather expensive. I actually had the LTD Vulture on my list of possible purchases. Not anymore as it has the same head stock as the snakebyte. For the money I think function is more important.

A little super glue and some baking powder fills up nut slots just perfect and then we cut them to your desired height.

That's a nice Kurt Hamster Ltp Snowblind guitar. Good video showing the pain in the butt that nut installation can be. I don't think a glue-in nut is right for that guitar. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that thing is a good candidate for a LSR roller nut. Mainly because it uses screws like a FR nut.

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Жыл бұрын

Agree with you on that. Even then the sideways force is still there. Just bad design.

@DrRockter5150

Жыл бұрын

At least, it should have a string guide or two into the design, giving a straight string pull past the nut, like the string butler for Gibsons.

@shanebiggs1888

Жыл бұрын

@@DrRockter5150 that string butler looks stupid af and hard to install. Anyone doing it must not knew a whole hell of a lot about guitars and setups and strings

@maxammo6282

Жыл бұрын

Yeah that's why I love the Floyd Rose so much locking nuts problem solved.

Hi Sam, Me again! Roughly where do you live in Devon Sam? A general post code will do. I want to research the local area for my holiday guitar camp idea for you if that's OK. I have some ideas that would get around your workshop issues if you'll let me try. You've been so generous with your time and expertise so I'd like to do something for you. cheers, Pete

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Жыл бұрын

I live in Lamerton Pete about 3 miles outside of Tavistock in Devon PL19 postcode area

I showed this to my friend and we both have explorers, i have the ghost fret standard and he has the epiphone explorer ebony. we've been discussing which guitar has a better bridge and headstock design in terms of both functions and looks, and of course we are biased like him saying the angle dont matter etc. we are also debating about which neck is better, mahogany or maple haha. may we get a professional luthier opinion on this little parley of ours? we do this just for fun, thanks!

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Жыл бұрын

Well... from a tech point of view I'd say the Chapman Ghost Fret Standard wins on headstock & bridge design. The string angles are a little less than the Epiphone (+ve), the bridge is a strat-style with lots of intonation room (+ve). The use of that bridge imposes a near-zero degrees neck angle with the body vs. the Epiphone's TOM bridge which requires a 3º neck to body angle. But that aside, I dislike the upside down tuning of the Chapman (with the long low E string behind the nut) and I don't like it's looks either - preferring the curvaceous Epiphone. But guitars are a mix of function and looks... so, since I hate upside down headstocks more than I like the slightly better string angles through the nut I'd probably go for the Epiphone... and that's despite my historic loathing of tune-o-matic bridges!

@NicKenMic

Жыл бұрын

@@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars ah fair enough! i could say the same about reverse headstocks, either you love it or hate really and for some reason i find it easier tuning on it as everything's underneath haha. thanks for the input!

Hi Sam, I've researched Tusq as per your recommendation. Please be very careful. It appears that they contain Teflon. Tusq XL's are impregnated with Teflon. If you get it over 400F degrees, through sawing, filing etc. Teflon emits very toxic fumes. You're probably aware of this but just in case 🙂 cheers, Pete

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Жыл бұрын

Don't worry - nothing I (or any normal guitarists) do with Tusq comes anywhere near 400ºF :)

I've got a Yamaha Pacifica s-type, which is a beautiful guitar, but no matter what I do it always sounds slightly out of tune to me. No other guitar does this.

@TheEARLD

Жыл бұрын

Probably needs the nut slots lowering.

Does anyone know an exact fit for a tusq bone nut for the snakebite ltd?

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Жыл бұрын

Sorry I don't @joey... looked back through my 'job notes' and couldn't find anything. I recall that there probably wasn't a direct fit meaning I would have started with 3 measurements: 1) e-to-e measurement 2) side-to-side measurement (nut width) and 3) front-to-back nut slot measurement (nut thickness). I then get as close as I can using the Graph Tech catalogue and find one or two nuts that are as close as possible to these dimensions. I then have to search the internet for a retailer / ebay seller who has one of those nuts. In my experience the e-to-e is priority (i.e. getting an exact match) after that you can afford a bit EXTRA / OVER in terms of the other 2 measurements as you can always take away with careful use of a sanding block.

I can understand replacing the plastic nut. But if i dropped 1600 on a guitar it better have leveled frets out ofthe box or its going back

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

3 ай бұрын

Some manufacturers seem to do a 'basic' levelling (i.e. pass a radius block over the frets) but no crowning... just taking it to the buffing wheel and polishing things up. But even those that have been levelled that way, I almost always find remaining unevenness - which I think is due to the radius block level being done with the strings off and the neck flattened whereas I level with the neck under tension WITH longitudinal compression at play. When you level flat & relaxed you get good, even frets - but that accuracy is thrown out a little when you then load and compress the neck.

Good to know. I'm now chewing one as a ciggie substitute 🙂 Do you have an email address that I can contact you privately? I've been looking into the holiday idea but would prefer not to discuss publicly. cheers, Pete

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Жыл бұрын

Hi Pete I'm on samdeeks@gmail.com :)

Good work on this, perfect setup job. This headstock design with the fanned strings looks cool (IMO) but is a poor design. Just as you said, form over function. The nut shifting problem can likely be solved by winding the strings the opposite direction on the posts. They will pull much straighter across the nut that way. It's not conventional, but it should improve the issue. As a result, less glue can be used, and the strings are less likely to bind in the nut. Also, whoever strung it up the first time didn't string it properly, considering they're locking tuners (too many windings). The low E, for example, is wound in such a way that the string sits higher on the peg than it should, causing less downward force over the nut, probably exacerbating the shifting problem. Locking tuners only need half a wind (if that...some say none...certainly no more than one wind). Poke them through and lock, but if one insists to wind them, then when the string meets itself on the first wind is the time to stop (assuming the locks are used).

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Жыл бұрын

Hi Anthony sorry for the late reply. You'd be amazed how many people DO wind to the 'wrong side' of the posts - but many of them do it on ordinary guitars without hockey-stick headstocks! I'm a bit of a purist and I don't like form over function - especially when the function that gets messed with is the 'staying in tune while I play' function :-D

Yeah I hate those angled headstocks as well, but more bc of how modern inventions like spindle trussrods are being ignored, which have a perfect reason to exist on those necks. Im in the process of converting a kramer neck from headstock access to heel, I just cant stand it otherwise

I got one of these recently and I just ordered the Papa Het 11 gauge strings… I hope it doesn’t pop my nut off. It came with 9’s

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Ай бұрын

To be fair, the angles here are not as bad as many guitars I've seen. But yes, the bigger the gauge the higher the sideways pull...

Is there a Matt white version?

@nikolasmetalupyourass4820

Жыл бұрын

No

Try wrapping the strings in the opposite direction. It won't cure the bad design, but will definitely help..

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Ай бұрын

Won't that make the guitar owner have to tune backwards? :D

@PopPop_2

Ай бұрын

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars Well, yes, but it'll create a more even tension on the nut. Not a great design. But looks incredible!

Sam, I bet your Mrs was happy with you working the bank holiday with the lovely weather we've got? 😂

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

Жыл бұрын

I was home swinging next to her in my hammock by 2.30pm ;-) It’s a hard life. We’re as happy to relax under the swaying trees and dappled sunshine as we are driving miles to a busy beach :)

@ericcrawford9827

Жыл бұрын

@@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars That'll be an English reply, then.

Really confused why you have the strings wrapped around the tuners when you have locking tuners. That kinda defeats the point of locking tuners

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

10 ай бұрын

In my experience looking tuners crush the string and weaken it substantially. If you then need to slack off the strings for any reason you will often end up with one string breaking. So I add a 1cm of string so that if I have to slack or remove the string then I push the extra bit through before locking on fresh, un-crushed string. Adding the extra bit of string also means you don’t have to crush the string so hard, making breakages less likely.

If nothing else was mechanically improved by dropping in that TUSQ nut, the aesthetics were certainly improved. Was that original one environmentally yellowed (smoke or sunlight) or just started out cream-colored? Either way, good riddance to it.

@maximilianl4453

Жыл бұрын

Pretty funny to start a comment under a video of papa hets guitar with "If nothing else..." XD Its slightly yellow from the beginning

It is LTD and it is NOT what James plays

@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars

21 күн бұрын

@@michael4591 I hope you can understand that what these guitar are called and who plays them is the least important thing to me. I don’t mean that I don’t care, just that it doesn’t have any real impact on setting up. I understand that fans of Metallica or this brand are more interested than me in those details :)

@michael4591

20 күн бұрын

@@SamDeeksRelovedGuitars Totally. I mean LTDs are known for being not the best guitars. Nuts installed crappy, paint cracking… these are typical issues with those. Also it is not even a cheap version of what fanboys expect because the neck dimensions are totally different from the real ESPs

I have the same 1 beautiful guitar

@nikolasmetalupyourass4820

Жыл бұрын

And what about with problems (nut , paint, etc....) ??????????