Filed my nut slot too deep

[brad barron]

Hey guys

I am in the last stages of finishing my first guitar - the 000 kit from Stewmac. All has been going well so far. However, when finishing the nut, i filed a bit deep on the low E string somehow and only have 0.006" clearance. Damn!

My long term plan is to make a new nut. However, I am on assignment in China right now and it is a major pain to bring in materials. My wife is in the US now so can hand carry when she returns in March. However, in the meantime, suggestions on how to temporarily fill in the slot?

I was thinking a bit of thick superglue with accelerator and then file back down. What do you think? Other ideas?

brad

[Greg Robinson]

Hi Brad, welcome to the new forum!

A good trick that works in a pinch is to stuff the slot with baking (bicarbonate) soda, then wick in some thin super glue (cyanoacrylate). The bicarbonate soda acts as an accelerant and the resulting material seems to be a bit harder than cyanoacrylate by itself (not quite as good as bone though), as well as being a better colour match.
Then just file it to the correct slot height as before.

I suppose bone is a little difficult to come by in China as they don't consume as much beef and don't have the same pet (dog) culture as western nations?

[Steve Senseney]

Another fix is to simply shim the nut a little higher with a slip of paper or cardboard.

Could you locate jade locally?

Edit-What about bamboo for nut material?

[Mark Wybierala]

Brad, It happens to the best of us. Sometimes the nut file is just a bit more hungry than you expect or you encounter a soft spot in the bone. The superglue and baking soda thing works but I reserve it for times when a quick temporary fix is needed. You put down a drop of superglue and then very lightly sprinkle on the baking soda being careful to not let more fall onto the drop than would cause the drop to become porous with unsaturated baking soda. It cures very fast as the baking soda acts as an acellerator but let the superglue sit for ten minutes or so before you start carving it. The superior fix is to elevate the nut itself and I do the baking soda thing here also by laying on a thin coat of superglue on the bottom of the nut and lightly sprinkle it with baking soda and apply multiple layers one after the other and then reshape the bottom of the nut with both file and sandpaper. On a Fender style nut, this is nearly invisable.

[brad barron]

Thx for the quick help guys.

I think i'll try the baking soda for now. Since it is only on the low E string, i don't need to shim the whole nut - just that string. The jade idea is interesting though ...... Any thoughts on baking soda vs bone dust? I have a scrap from the bridge i can grind down.

I'm sure as well there is somewhere in this city of 20,000,000 people to get proper parts but i have had no luck yet though. There is a street with like 100 music shops - all the violin and cello shops have luthier gurus working in them as well but my mandarin is sill developing - that conversation would be a challange. I guess i could also get some random bone from the market but that is just a bit creepy.

Anyway - this should last until my wife gets back in March - i'll load her up with a stewmac care kit for the suitcase.

brad

[Jim McConkey]

Do they have pet stores there? Get a dog bone that has been cleaned and bleached and cut it up.

[Clay Schaeffer]

There are a lot of Chinese ebay sellers selling bone nuts and saddles. The bone dust will work in place of the baking soda and may make a near permanent fix. If you have a high ratio of bone dust to superglue it may wear as well as the rest of the nut.

[Arnt Rian]

I have bought lots of unbleached bone blanks on eBay directly from China, the quality is usually OK. For temporary fixes like this, I prefer to use bone dust, or chips, rather than baking soda, as it seems to wear a little better. A more "agricultural style" fix, which actually works OK, is a wooden shim under the nut, and then re-cut each slot. Then, replace the nut (and toss the shim!) when you get a new bone blank.

[brad barron]

just filled with bone dust and sg - seems fine. thx for the help guys!