GRAPHTECH Appreciation and Tutorial Thread

[r_chino18]

yes, diba yung sa iyo mas maikli ng kaunti? yung may EWW part ka sa 1st post mo? ehehe..

sakin exact naman, so when i fitted my graphtech parang mas mahaba ng kaunti.. yung height ok lang sa akin, no prob, i love "high" action..

i see.. so perhaps either the stock nut is inconsistent or the neck of our SEs are inconsistent.. either way, minor adjustment and sanding lang naman yan.. kayang-kayang gawin.. 

[pitongjerome]

will any sandpaper do the job well? im noob at modding stuff i just know how to setup my guitars, but im slowly learning..

[r_chino18]

will any sandpaper do the job well? im noob at modding stuff i just know how to setup my guitars, but im slowly learning..

800-600 grit sandpaper would do. medyo matagal yung process of sanding. wag mo madaliin kasi baka mapasobra ka sa pag sand. 

pwede mo simulan magsand with a lower grit para madali maubos.. pero dahan dahan lang.. tapos pag malapit na dun sa desired sukat mo, use a finer grit para maging smooth yung nut..

[pitongjerome]

800-600 grit sandpaper would do. medyo matagal yung process of sanding. wag mo madaliin kasi baka mapasobra ka sa pag sand. 

pwede mo simulan magsand with a lower grit para madali maubos.. pero dahan dahan lang.. tapos pag malapit na dun sa desired sukat mo, use a finer grit para maging smooth yung nut..

noted!

[r_chino18]

noted!

also, suggestion ko lang wag mo itapon yung residue nung material. as written on the graphtech site, pag napa sobra yung pag sand, pwede mo ihalo yung residue with cyano-acrilate (super glue) then ilagay mo sa base ng nut. just a correction, use 200-400 grit instead of 600-800.  

[Jaco D]

i see.. so perhaps either the stock nut is inconsistent or the neck of our SEs are inconsistent.. either way, minor adjustment and sanding lang naman yan.. kayang-kayang gawin..  

When I had the nut on the 335 clone replaced, the tech told me that he would be starting with a blank nut.  Sabi ko bakit hindi nalang niya gamitin yung model xxx (can't remember the number) since the specs practically fit the specs of my clone's neck.  Sabi niya in his experience with pre-fabbed nuts, more often than not hindi nagkakatugma yung sukat ng nut at nung gitara - even if the specs on the package/website say so.  Besides he'd still have to file the groves on the nut to the string gauge to be used, so he said that he prefers to start with a blank nut and shape and cut the groves himself.  Hope that helps.

[r_chino18]

When I had the nut on the 335 clone replaced, the tech told me that he would be starting with a blank nut.  Sabi ko bakit hindi nalang niya gamitin yung model xxx (can't remember the number) since the specs practically fit the specs of my clone's neck.  Sabi niya in his experience with pre-fabbed nuts, more often than not hindi nagkakatugma yung sukat ng nut at nung gitara - even if the specs on the package/website say so.  Besides he'd still have to file the groves on the nut to the string gauge to be used, so he said that he prefers to start with a blank nut and shape and cut the groves himself.  Hope that helps.

aside from the Graphtech nut height, i had no problems with the string slots and nut length. actually, yung stock plastic nut ng PRS ko yung hindi sakto sa nut slot. bitin pa yung length. the Graphtech is a perfect fir it terms of string spacing and nut length. 

[anoemous]

nice thread  anyways may nabago din ba sa tone ng PRS mo?  sa Squier 51 modders kasi may great tone improvement pag pinalitan ng nut 

[randymarsh]

When I had the nut on the 335 clone replaced, the tech told me that he would be starting with a blank nut.  Sabi ko bakit hindi nalang niya gamitin yung model xxx (can't remember the number) since the specs practically fit the specs of my clone's neck.  Sabi niya in his experience with pre-fabbed nuts, more often than not hindi nagkakatugma yung sukat ng nut at nung gitara - even if the specs on the package/website say so.  Besides he'd still have to file the groves on the nut to the string gauge to be used, so he said that he prefers to start with a blank nut and shape and cut the groves himself.  Hope that helps.

+1. when i replaced the corian nut with a graphtech nut on my ernie ball musicman electric I had to file the grooves down kasi malaki yung gap between the strings and fret sa lower frets. also you will need to file the sides of the nut para hindi sumabit sa kamay. had four graphtechs installed on my guitars. my EBMM had black tusq, the strat had earvana / tusq material. my washburn and tele had the white graphtech tusq. i still prefer the white tusq over the black graphtech. the white material seems sound better than the black material. i think it's the teflon on the black graphtech that dulls the sound a little bit.

[randymarsh]

for those who want to file down the grooves, here's my howto. you'll need a small sharp thin bread knife and a feeler gauge

- tune your guitar
- take out the .005 inch on the feeler gauge
- starting with the high E, fret the third fret and hold (a capo would help but not necessary)
- slip the feeler gauge between the top of the first fret and the high E string
- if there's a gap between the fret, feeler gauge and string, detune and remove the string from the nut slot.
- run the bread knife over the slot/groove a few times (two or three times) and place the string.
- retune
- repeat steps 3 to 7 until the gap between the fret, feeler gauge and string disappears.
- repeat the steps for the other strings.

[bryanarzaga]

@randy i lol'd at the bread knife thing..i hope you dont forget and dont get graphite in between your teeth,

i prefer using blanks too since its only $2..graphite nuts but not from graphtec..

[randymarsh]

@randy i lol'd at the bread knife thing..i hope you dont forget and dont get graphite in between your teeth,

i prefer using blanks too since its only $2..graphite nuts but not from graphtec..

kaya pala sumasarap ang tinapay the bread knife always stays in my tool box.

[masterchoxter]

for those who want to file down the grooves, here's my howto. you'll need a small sharp thin bread knife and a feeler gauge

- tune your guitar
- take out the .005 inch on the feeler gauge
- starting with the high E, fret the third fret and hold (a capo would help but not necessary)
- slip the feeler gauge between the top of the first fret and the high E string
- if there's a gap between the fret, feeler gauge and string, detune and remove the string from the nut slot.
- run the bread knife over the slot/groove a few times (two or three times) and place the string.
- retune
- repeat steps 3 to 7 until the gap between the fret, feeler gauge and string disappears.
- repeat the steps for the other strings.

nice how-to randy!

here's the how-to from the graphtech website - http://www.graphtech.com/kbase.html?ArticleID=32

Installing a Black TUSQ XL nut:
To begin, you will need to remove your stock nut. In order to avoid any chipping or flaking of the neck, score around the edges of your existing nut with an exacto knife, carefully working your way through the grooves to allow for easy removal.
Take a flat head screw driver and lightly tap the side of the nut to remove it. You may notice that it won’t move, in that case take your screw driver and work it from the front of the saddle and tap towards the headstock of your guitar. This should loosen it enough for you to be able to slide it out.
If there are remnants of chipped plastic, Corian, bone, or whatever you had in there before, take 200 grit sandpaper and carefully work out any imperfections. Be gentle because you don’t want to change the dimensions of the slot.
If you attempt to install the nut and it doesn’t fit, don’t worry. All of our Black TUSQ XL nut’s come with extra height and length. Using 200 grit sandpaper to adjust the dimensions of the nut will assist you to make a perfect fit.  In most cases you will only need to take off a mm or two, then use some 400 grit sand paper for fine adjustments.
To ensure the nut does not fall our or slide around, use some regular wood glue.  Neatly dab some glue around the slot and nut and place the nut in the slot.  Once you restring your guitar, the 200 pounds of pressure being applied to your nut from your strings will allow the nut to dry tightly against the wood.

here's how you should measure your guitar nut and compare it with the sizes (as much as possible use 'mm') from the graphtech website - http://www.graphtech.com/products.html?CategoryID=5

[masterchoxter]

here's a demo of the Graphtech Ghost System:

you'll find that you can use your guitar to play drums, piano (keyboard), bass, etc...

http://graphtech.com/news.html?ID=77

reaaaalllyyyyy gooooodddd!!!!

[khelbanzon]

Nice thread! A lot of information here.
I'm excited to install my supercharger kit!
Can't wait for Christmas break! 

[r_chino18]

nice thread   anyways may nabago din ba sa tone ng PRS mo?   sa Squier 51 modders kasi may great tone improvement pag pinalitan ng nut  

ui, musta na bro?  

to begin with, i changed my nut 'coz the stock nut gave me constant tuning issues.. i like to do string bends most of the time kasi.. the change in tone was just some sort of bonus for me.. what i was really after with the graphtech nut was for the tuning stability..

after installing the nut, i wasn't surprised that the tuning issues were gone.. totally gone..  
but i was surprised that it played a big factor sa sustain ng gitara and clarity of notes.. parang mas defined at pronounced sila compared sa stock nut..

[.bong.]

Sir chino, di ba masyado madikit yang wood glue. What if kung gusto mo palitan o i set up ulit yang nut, di ka ba mahihirapan tanggalin yan? 

[r_chino18]

Sir chino, di ba masyado madikit yang wood glue. What if kung gusto mo palitan o i set up ulit yang nut, di ka ba mahihirapan tanggalin yan? 

konti lang inaaply ko na wood glue. thin layer lang actually. 

[.bong.]

konti lang inaaply ko na wood glue. thin layer lang actually. 

Ah ok 

THanks!

[masterchoxter]

yebah!

[pitongjerome]

papagawa ko nalang nga key jon yung sakin, mas mahaba yung nut eh, unlike kay r_chino, exact..

baka magkamali pako, sayang naman hehe.. 

[masterchoxter]

papagawa ko nalang nga key jon yung sakin, mas mahaba yung nut eh, unlike kay r_chino, exact..

baka magkamali pako, sayang naman hehe.. 

nandun ngayon si maxi kina jon...

[pitongjerome]

nandun ngayon si maxi kina jon...

ohhh...sayang wala ako time ngayon..

wala kasi ako trust sa "pseudo-luthier" skills ko and it will end up mapapamahal lang ako pag i do somethig stupid hehehe..

 

[maxi_musikero]

nandun ngayon si maxi kina jon...

i'm back!!!  all i can say is that Graphtech String Saver set brought my strat to life!  i'll post a detailed review later or tomorrow with pics.  kudos to Jon for doing a tremendous job with my strat.

[pitongjerome]

i'm back!!!  all i can say is that Graphtech String Saver set brought my strat to life!  i'll post a detailed review later or tomorrow with pics.  kudos to Jon for doing a tremendous job with my strat.

inggit ako!!!