 |
|
|
Original Post By:
Vicki
|
Date: 2/1/2010 11:50:25 PM |
Does anyone know how to repair a small chip that broke off the nut at the G string? Is there some kind of filler or resin I can use to build it up and without having to replace the nut? Would appreciate any ideas.
Thanks |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted By:
Muttzukii
|
Date: 2/2/2010 1:36:07 AM |
Vicki,
Yes but......You don't say what the instrument is. It is not expensive to completely replace the nut, which is actually easier to do than a chip replacement. You can also take advantage of the opportunity to tell your Luthier about what you like and your new nut may actually enhance your instrument.
Larry Murphy dba "Muttzukii"
|
|
|
|
|
Posted By:
Surfink
|
Date: 2/2/2010 7:23:46 AM |
| Vicki, you can use baking soda and "CrazyGlue" to build up the area if a new nut is out of the question. But, Larry is right,a new one is easy to replace.
|
|
|
|
|
Posted By:
ChefJeff
|
Date: 2/2/2010 8:52:51 AM |
Vicki,
If you decide to build up the area using the baking soda/Super Glue trick, put masking tape on both sides of the nut as a form, fill the chipped area with baking soda then drip one drop of Super Glue on it. It will cook off almost instantly into a hard, glass-like filler. The tendency is to hunch over your work when you apply the glue to see what's happening but try to avoid that. Breathing the slight amount of vapor the reaction gives off is a bad idea.
Whether you replace the nut or fix the chip you'll probably have to cut (or re-cut) one or more nut slots. Special files are available for that job but a cheaper alternative is a set of welding torch tip cleaners. I got mine on eBay for about three bucks. They are flexible and aren't as easy to use as a good file but they work for the occasional nut slot most players have to cut.
Good luck.
|
|
|
|
|
Posted By:
Vicki
|
Date: 2/6/2010 1:19:46 AM |
| Thanks for all your ideas....I'll try the baking soda super glue trick when I have a white nut in need of help....this one in question was a black ebony nut on an older Kamaka soprano. Ended up getting some black epoxy from Luthiers Mercantile International in Windsor, CA...and just layered it til it filled in a little bit higher than the space on the nut...then sanded it down level w/ the rest of the nut and then recut the G string slot. Seems to be a very secure fix.
|
|
|
|
|
Posted By:
singndance
|
Date: 2/6/2010 1:44:56 PM |
| Well, Vicki, those are some interesting ideas. I had the same problem occur on my Bugsgear concert but it was the A string. I took it to my friendly luthier who told me that it was easier to repair than to replace the entire nut and file all those slots. So he did and esstially cut the nut to make a slot for a new li'l chunk of ebony and sunk it right into the old nut. Then finished it. Came out perfectly. Works perfectly. REally reasonable. Try an expert.
|
|
|
|
