Cut Em' Or Wind Em'

[Rick in Dixie]

When you restring your Bass, do you cut the longer lengths off or just wind it all on the peg ?

[snyderz]

I cut them to about 6-7" past the peg. Insert the end into the hole in the top of the peg, and try to get about 3 good winds.

[warnergt]

I cut 3.5" past the peg. That gives me about 2.5 winds.

[UncleFluffy]

I cut a hand's width past the peg (4" or thereabouts).

[PBass101]

I only use one brand and gauge of strings so I cut them to the same length each time, enough to get three winds.

[stflbn]

I leave progressively more on each string as they get smaller. Larger strings take up more space on the tuner posts... smaller strings take up less space so allow more string to be wound on filling the same space.

[Kink Rimson]

My advice is, well on a Fender style anyway, never cut the A string, that way you get plenty of winds and a good break angle at the nut.

[speedkills]

Originally Posted by warnergt

I cut 3.5" past the peg. That gives me about 2.5 winds.

Yup, this.

[bassbully]

Trying wrapping an entire E string on a post without cutting it one time.

[BigOldHarry]

cut. There is some strange mythos I've heard that cutting the string somehow damages the sound... that's just crazy talk, man!

[MooseLumps]

On fender headstocks I wind GD&A strings the entire way, I only cut off the very end 2.5-4 inches of the E string, depending on brand.

Other headstocks I leave 3-4 inches, but they have much smaller machines.

[Bassamatic]

You don't want to have so much string on the tuner that it overlaps. That will cause tuning problems. And supposedly some strings should be bent before cutting to prevent some internal unraveling.

[bassist4dalord]

I usually cut off so that there's around 2.5" past the tuning peg. Always works just fine, bass stays in tune as well as I hope for.

[line6man]

Why the hell would you wind it all on the peg?

On a tremolo equipped guitar, the goal is as few wraps as possible, so that the string won't slip or stretch off of the peg.
If you have locking tuners, you can get away with like half a wrap around the peg.

Most basses don't have tremolos, so its not often that you will suddenly release the tension on the strings, but the principle is still pretty much the same...
If you do a hard bend or something, the string could stretch out on the peg and go out of tune easier.

[bassteban]

I used to aim for 3-4 wraps on the peg; I thought it looked *right*
Then, I had a luthier(w/40+ yrs experience)trim my Precision's strings to the point that there was barely a full wrap on each.
That bass stayed in tune better & was more responsive to tuning up than any other bass I own(it was NOT that way prior to circumcision).
I now try to trim my strings way back, although I'm a bit cautious- don't want them WAAAY too short.

[bass player 48]

I crimp by bending 90 deg or more - then cut. That is what DR suggests on their packaging to avoid un-winding. I do this even though I play Ernie Ball rounds.

I need the bend anyway to put the ends in the holes - so I make the bend, cut an inch below, stick it into the tuning post, wrap the string around one time by hand, then put the ball end in the bridge and tune it up. I use as many wraps on the tuning post as I can, and I tug on the strings to seat them - and my tuning doesn't slip.

[Pilgrim]

I cut about 3" past the tuner - if in doubt, I leave more string. Then I insert the end in the hole, bend 90 degrees and wrap from the top down, making sure to wrap over the string to lock it in place. I leave strings on for years and I have no slippage and no breakage.

Winding the entire uncut string on the tuning peg is unnecessary and makes a visual mess. If anything would make the strings prone to slip, winding all that unneeded string on the tuner would be the way to do it.

[emor]

Fender specs:
How you wind the strings onto the pegs is very important. Start by loading them through the bridge and then loading them onto the appropriate keys as follows:
Standard keys. Pre-cut each string for the proper length and desired amount of winds. Pull the fourth string 3" (76 mm) past its tuning post and cut it (make sure to pull each string taut). Insert through the eyelet in the tuning key, allowing approximately 1/16" (1.6 mm) of the end to extend through the eyelet, then wind neatly in a downward pattern, being carefull to prevent overlapping. Pull the third string 3 1//2" (89 mm) past its tuning post, cut it, and repeat the winding procedure. Pull the second and first strings 3 1/2" (89 mm) past their tuning posts and cut and wind as noted. For five-string basses, cut the fifth string 3" (76 mm) past its tuning post and repeat the same cutting and winding procedure.

Vintage keys. Pre-cut each string for the proper length and desired amount of winds. Pull the fourth string 4" (102 mm) past its tuning post and cut it (again, make sure to pull each string taut). Insert into the center hole of the tuning key, bend and crimp to a 90° angle, and wind neatly in a downward pattern, being carefull to prevent overlapping. Pull the third string 4 1/2" (114 mm) past its tuning post, cut it, and repeat the winding procedure. Pull the second and first strings 4 1/2" (114 mm) past their tuning posts and cut and wind as noted. For five-string basses, cut the fifth string 3 1/2" (89 mm) past its tuning post and repeat the same cutting and winding procedure.

http://www.fender.com/support/basses.php

This provides for a couple of wraps around each post.

[73jbass]

Originally Posted by BigOldHarry

cut. There is some strange mythos I've heard that cutting the string somehow damages the sound... that's just crazy talk, man!

If that were true,new basses would come with the strings uncut.Definite crazytalk.

[PJSShearer]

I put a 90 degree bend in the string and cut it so as to give 2.5 - 3 turns round the machine head. I cut the string to match the length of the one I took off!!. When tightening up to pitch I stretch the strings as I go with a long smooth pull.

However, once I made the mistake of using the A string as template for the D string and left barely enough for a complete wind around the machine head. As I didn't have another string handy, and the old ones were deadly dull by then, I gave it a try and it stayed in tune fine!!. Maybe Bassteban's Luthier had a point?.