At some point, all guitarists need to learn how to change the strings on their guitar. Sometimes you will be compelled to change one when a string snaps. But generally, you'll merely want to change them, as strings lose their brightness and wear out.
Most Expert guitarists often change their strings prior to every gig. But in the long run, it all boils down to a matter of personal preference. Something to keep in mind if you're making use of your guitar for a gig, is that your strings require several hours of play to break in correctly. During this time, your strings will go out of tune as they stretch so you'll have to retune.
Anyway, here's what you need to do:
Remove the old strings by detuning the machine heads till the tension becomes loose enough to allow you to pull each string away from the headstock.
One more fast method to remove the old strings is to snip them using a pair of wire cutters. Be very careful if you need to do it this way.
How you start installing your new strings will generally be based upon the kind of guitar you have, as many guitars have somewhat various techniques.
Here's a little insider tip guitarists have been using for a long time to get more life from your steel strings as soon as you have removed them: Boil them.
Putting a set of strings into a pan of boiling water for ten to fifteen minutes will get rid of lots of the grimy build up and provide a new life back to what would otherwise be lifeless strings.
It won't last for for an extended time, and you can't get away with doing it as well many times, but it can be an effective temporary measure.
Regardless of what kind of guitar you have, your strings need to be stretched after you have placed them on. When you first tune your guitar, place your hand under each string close to the pickup area, pull the string several centimeters away from the fretboard, then release it. If the pitch has fallen, re-tune and repeat the procedure. Maintain doing this till all of the strings stay in tune.
On most electric guitars the strings are either secured at the bridge end by an independent tailpiece (like most Gibson guitars), or passed through the body of the instrument from the back into an all-in-one bridge unit (like most fender style guitars)
At one end of each and every steel string, you'll discover a tiny disc of metal close to which one end of the string is wrapped. This is called the ball end.
Take the opposite end of the string and thread it through the fixture at the bridge.
Pull the string through until the ball end prevents you from pulling the string any further.
Most electric and steel-string guitars use a similar system for securing strings at the machine head. The capstan to which the string is attached stands out vertically from the headstock. Strings can be passed through a hole in the side of the capstan.
The end is then passed around and under, trapping it in position when the machine head is tightened. Some capstans have vertical slots rather than holes. To make use of these, cut the string to length, and insert into the tip of the capstan. Then bend the string to one side and wind it around.
This leaves the string endings neat and clean. Here is what you need to do next: Slowly turn the machine head for every string, increasing the tension till the string becomes appropriately tight.
To save yourself time and energy, you can make use of a cheap plastic string winder, which merely fits over the machine head permitting you to crank it along much more quickly.
If you want to know more about topic, you might want to check out a great read I found online. Go here: Guitar Music Lessons
- 40725
Most Expert guitarists often change their strings prior to every gig. But in the long run, it all boils down to a matter of personal preference. Something to keep in mind if you're making use of your guitar for a gig, is that your strings require several hours of play to break in correctly. During this time, your strings will go out of tune as they stretch so you'll have to retune.
Anyway, here's what you need to do:
Remove the old strings by detuning the machine heads till the tension becomes loose enough to allow you to pull each string away from the headstock.
One more fast method to remove the old strings is to snip them using a pair of wire cutters. Be very careful if you need to do it this way.
How you start installing your new strings will generally be based upon the kind of guitar you have, as many guitars have somewhat various techniques.
Here's a little insider tip guitarists have been using for a long time to get more life from your steel strings as soon as you have removed them: Boil them.
Putting a set of strings into a pan of boiling water for ten to fifteen minutes will get rid of lots of the grimy build up and provide a new life back to what would otherwise be lifeless strings.
It won't last for for an extended time, and you can't get away with doing it as well many times, but it can be an effective temporary measure.
Regardless of what kind of guitar you have, your strings need to be stretched after you have placed them on. When you first tune your guitar, place your hand under each string close to the pickup area, pull the string several centimeters away from the fretboard, then release it. If the pitch has fallen, re-tune and repeat the procedure. Maintain doing this till all of the strings stay in tune.
On most electric guitars the strings are either secured at the bridge end by an independent tailpiece (like most Gibson guitars), or passed through the body of the instrument from the back into an all-in-one bridge unit (like most fender style guitars)
At one end of each and every steel string, you'll discover a tiny disc of metal close to which one end of the string is wrapped. This is called the ball end.
Take the opposite end of the string and thread it through the fixture at the bridge.
Pull the string through until the ball end prevents you from pulling the string any further.
Most electric and steel-string guitars use a similar system for securing strings at the machine head. The capstan to which the string is attached stands out vertically from the headstock. Strings can be passed through a hole in the side of the capstan.
The end is then passed around and under, trapping it in position when the machine head is tightened. Some capstans have vertical slots rather than holes. To make use of these, cut the string to length, and insert into the tip of the capstan. Then bend the string to one side and wind it around.
This leaves the string endings neat and clean. Here is what you need to do next: Slowly turn the machine head for every string, increasing the tension till the string becomes appropriately tight.
To save yourself time and energy, you can make use of a cheap plastic string winder, which merely fits over the machine head permitting you to crank it along much more quickly.
If you want to know more about topic, you might want to check out a great read I found online. Go here: Guitar Music Lessons
- 40725
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