Vol 2 No 1 Est 1996 Rev 2006 JS/HB

How To String Your Guitar So It Stays in Tune

Load the strings all at once except for guitars with floating bridges (arch tops and mandolins). In this case replace the strings one at a time, which lets you avoid having to reset the bridge for intonation.

Floating trems are another special case. They have a nasty habit of slipping off the pivot posts and scratching the top of your guitar when the string tension is gone. This can sometimes be remedied by putting a piece of wood, about the size of a tongue depressor under the back of the trem.

Some of the styles of guitar bridges that fall under the "it's faster to load them all at once" category are: acoustics, Strats. Teles and Les Pauls. Bass Bridges include P. Bass, Bad Ass and Schaller.

Step One

Remove the strings. Taking them off all at once is faster and gives you the opportunity to clean and oil your finger board. To clean a rosewood fingerboard I recommend starting with 0000 or superfine steel wool - anything else is too coarse. Move the wool across the frets in a rapid, smooth motion. Brush off any bits of steel wool and use masking tape to lift bits and pieces from the tops of pick-ups. Condition the wood with lemon oil, teak oil or linseed oil. (Linseed oil takes a while to soak in and has to be wiped off a number of times before the finger board is dry.) Try to avoid getting the oil on the strings since it shortens their life. If you're dealing with a finished maple finger board put making tape on either side of the fret and treat it the same as the rosewood (the masking tape can be removed after this step is complete). This type of maintenance needs to be done periodically when the finger board looks dried out and/or the frets look tarnished.

Step Two

Load the strings. With acoustic guitars, make sure the ball end is anchored securely against the top. With electric guitars, make sure the string is seated securely in the bridge and riding over the saddle.

Start with the string closest to you (low E for right handed guitars) and move all of the other strings to the treble side of the guitar or away from you. Insert the string through the hole in the machine head post and pull it to the shoulder on the bass side or six to eight inches from the fourteenth fret (see photo right). This should give you approximately three to four winds on the bass side and five to seven on the treble side, which is ideal. With the string still pulled away from the body, hold the end with your left hand and the rest of the string with your right.

Kink the string on both sides of the machine head post so it bends at a right angle in the opposite directions on the either side of the post (see photo below). This is an important part of keeping your guitar in tune. The string will not slip if this is done properly.

The significance of the number of windings is that it applies strength to the binding effect of the coil, much like the winches used on a sailboat. As the string winds lower it applies increased pressure to the nut. Although this is a case of diminishing returns, it is most effective on Fender-style head stocks, especially on the plain strings.

(With the Kulson-style machine heads which Fender guitars have used for years, use the same technique to measure the length except cut the string one to one and a half times longer. Insert the string in the hole in the top of the machine head and kink it at a right angle to the post.)

Step Three

Start winding and grip the string with your right hand from middle finger to baby finger at about the fifth to seventh fret area. Use your index finger to apply tension to the string (see photo left). This will keep the string tight from the the bottom to top. It's like skate laces - if they're tight at the bottom, the stay tight for a whole game. Applying tension while winding helps to seat and anchor the string and pre-stretches it. The result is a guitar that stays in tune longer with a new set of strings. Next, cut the string approximately one-quarter of an inch from the kink in the post (see photo below). Proceed with the rest of the strings.

Step Four

You will need to tune your guitar several times with a new set of strings. I like to tune it by ear the first few times for two reasons: 1- It's good practice to use your ears, and 2- It's faster.

When you first tune a guitar with new strings the neck will start to flex back and by the time you tune the sixth string, the first one is no longer in tune. This is because the neck tension, and the string tension have to balance out, much like a teeter-toter. This may take a while on guitars with floating trems.

With each pass of tuning, use the same trip described in step 3, except move your hands down towards the bridge and stretch the string so that is seats more firmly at the bridge and machine head end. Doing this also stretches the string. In my experience most of the stretching in new strings is the seating of the string, not the stretching of the metal.

When you have followed all of these steps, tune your guitar one more time and play it. You will be surprised at how long your instrument stays in tune. Once you have the technique down it's amazing how fast it is.