Nut woes

[Bassingdad]

I don't play the bass but my son does. I just had his 5 string bass repaired (sort of) and am trying to find out why the B string kept coming off the nut (and still does). According to the shop who filed the nut it is because there is not 3 wraps of the B string around the tuning nut. I am hoping someone can shed some light on this. Should I replace the strings and the nut or just the strings or just the nut. As I get to take it back and forth to repair shops I would like to know what I am to look for. Thanks for any help

[Zooberwerx]

Two questions:

*Does the B string stay in tune?

*Anyway you can post pics?

I'd question the depth of the nut slot, degree of "break" after the string passes the nut, and angle towards the tuner post.

Riis

[Bassingdad]

The B string always stayed in tune. The nut where the string sat, the side smoothed out and the string kept coming out. The repair was taking a file and making the B string spot even bigger. They didn't replace the nut as they said it was because of the insufficient wraps on the tuning nut. Doesn't filing out the nut change any sound characteristics of the guitar??

[Bassingdad]

I have added some pic's

[Zooberwerx]

Originally Posted by Bassingdad

The B string always stayed in tune. The nut where the string sat, the side smoothed out and the string kept coming out. The repair was taking a file and making the B string spot even bigger. They didn't replace the nut as they said it was because of the insufficient wraps on the tuning nut. Doesn't filing out the nut change any sound characteristics of the guitar??

Let's not worry about the sound characteristics at this point, just focus on the mechanics.

Ideally, one should have 3 or more wraps around the string post. This will vary post to post as string diameter decreases from the B to G. The lowest / last wrap should be as low on the post as possible to ensure nominal string break over the nut. String trees serve the same purpose. If the last wrap is halfway up the post, it may cause the aforementioned problems.

Do you need another B string? Is the bass 34" or 35" scale (measure from the the nut to the G string saddle)? If its 34", I have a spare on hand.

Riis

[202dy]

How many wraps are there on the peg? The most common reason for this problem is a lack of down pressure at the nut. The string should start at the top of the peg and wind the whole way down to the bottom of the peg. If it does not and has already been clipped short, it may require a new string.

[Zooberwerx]

Thanks for the pics. It appears as if the B string wrap is waaay high on the post (tough to make out the detail...really need a side / profile shot). This is compounded by the fact that, because of design, the string is not drawn straightly through the nut. Appears to be drawn laterally by ~10-15 degrees.

A properly wrapped B string may solve the problem. If not, you may want to consider adding another string tree (hell, why not?....you've got two already). You can install a new nut but the problem will reappear unless you take care of #1 and #2.

Riis

[TJBass]

To me it looks like that nut slot for the B string is too wide and maybe not very deep. Also, the nut seems to be moving in the slot, theres an awful lot of room between the G string and the bottom edge of the neck compared to the B string. I'd say go wiith a taller nut with a deeper slot and make sure the nut stays lined up otherwise as your playing it the B string will slip off the fretboard which seems to be pulling it off the nut as well.

[Bassingdad]

I am going to try and put on a new B string and a new nut as the string has alot of moving room. It seem the filing done has made the groove for the B too large and lower than the rest of the strings. Thanks all for you help