How do I restring my acoustic guitar?

[NuclearFusi0n]

Just bought some Elixir coated thingers (expensive!) and i don't know how to do this.

Anybody want to explain this to me?

 

[StevenYoo]

check out the helpful tutorials at WholeNote

 

You have to pop the pegs out at the base. Should have bought a tool to do it. They are tough.

 

[KEV1N]

I usually loosen the strings, then I pull the bridge pins out with needle nose pliers. There is a special tool for it out there. After the pins are out, put the ball end of your new strings into the hole and tap the bridge pins back in.

 

[TheNinja]

Originally posted by: dwell
You have to pop the pegs out at the base. Should have bought a tool to do it. They are tough.

What he said, get a bridge pin puller, it will make your life much easier. Also, make sure you wind the string so that all the strings wind to the center of the headstock (assuming you have 3x3 tuning peg setup).

 

[RagingBITCH]

You just bought the guitar plus you're a newb. Why the hell are you restringing it? You won't notice the difference anyway

 

[NuclearFusi0n]

Originally posted by: GuybrushThreepwood
check out the helpful tutorials at WholeNote

What's with the twisting?

 

[sillymofo]

Ok... I'll try to make it as less painful as possible

1. Untwist the thingies on the neck, to loosen it up. You'll have to untwist it all the way to get the string out.
2. Pull the old strings out from bottom. Don't pull it too fast, you might scratch up your guitar, or worse, poke an eye out, and it's not pretty.
3. Put the new strings back in, don't mess up the string order, and pay attention to the grooves and riser.
4. Loop one end of the string through the thingy again, leave enough slacks for retwisting (Should be at least three times around).
5. Once you're tighten up enough, pick up your telephone, the sixth string when pluck should sound like that. Tune from there.

 

[yellowperil]

It'll make your job a lot easier if you have a pair of diagonal pliers. The pegs can be pulled out with your fingers and for the stubborn ones, a pair of pliers. Guitar techs recommend that you change one string at a time so that you maintain constant tension on the neck but I think it's OK once in a while to take 'em all off (sometimes you have to to work on the guitar). Just make sure you're winding the correct way. Check out http://www.frets.com, they have a good tutorial with pics.

 

[ScottMac]

DO NOT DO NOT DO NOT!!! Pound the pegs back in!!!

There is a notch on the underside of the top that the ball of the string fits into. The peg is only there to keep the string in the notch (the notch should take most of the strain).

If you try to get the pegs to hold the string in without the ball being in the notch, and you push/pound them in tight enough to hold the string, you will split the bridgepiece / saddle .... then you are seriously screwed.

The pins do not have to be seated that tight to hold the strings in place.

Tune the guitar before changing the strings, replace the strings one at a time and bring that string up to tune. New strings will stretch some, but it'll keep the guitar in "ballpark" tune.

You may have to pull the pins out with pliars (because it sounds like they've been there for a long time), be very,very careful. It's easy to over-leverage the pins and break 'em off, or slip and ding the top (bad juju).

Good Luck

Scott

 

[OZEE]

And pull most of the strings' "tail" through - then wind 'em up - then trim off those tails. If you don't pull those tails through, you'll have to wind and wind and wind ... then there won't be enough room on the tuning pegs to wind any more...

 

[MegaloManiaK]

Originally posted by: NuclearFusi0n
Just bought some Elixir coated thingers (expensive!) and i don't know how to do this.

Anybody want to explain this to me?

Yay, another elixir user!!!

In case its not mentioned below, when you put the string around the pegs, wrap it 3 times (where you can, you wont be able to do it on the top string) and then run it through the whole if you want to get a good tight fit.

also if you hold the guitar like you're going to play it, the smallest string .11-.13 goes on the bottom and work your way up to the heaviest string. Run them in the middle of the tuners and then wrap out.