Stringing Tips.

Right, everyone needs strings and with such a selection it is hard to know which to buy. There are nylon strings, gold plated strings, nickel plated strings, cryogenically frozen strings, the list goes on. Most people find a set that sounds good to them and sticks to them. personally I use Daddario gauge 10. When you buy albums by top guitarists they usually say on the inlay what strings they use, this is a good starting point. I mean if they are good enough for Steve Vai then they are probably good enough for you.

In the following few paragraphs I will explain how to change strings on the most common guitars.

Normal Electric Guitars

On some guitars the strings are fed through the back of the guitar (through body stringing) if yours is this type, just feed the string through the back of the guitar and pull until the ball-end catches. On most guitars the strings are fed through the back of the bridge.

Next, pull the string through the bridge (or body) and make sure it fits over the bridge with no sharp kinks or angles. There are many different types of bridge and you may have to go through a series of  holes and saddles, this should be fairly obvious but if you get stuck use the other (old) strings as a guide.

Finally pull the string tight at the nut and cut is short (about one headstock length past the relevant machinehead is probably about right). Thread the string through the capstan (the little thingy that holds the string) and start winding. You should wind the string so the first loop goes over the string end and then the rest goes under the string end. This will keep the string held in place by the two loops. Finally tune up.

Floyd Rose Type Tremolo

Floyd Rose type guitars use a slightly different technique. The trem usually holds the string in a tiny vice, so you don't need the ball end, just clip it of with a pair of pliers. Do check first though as some trems don't work like this.

Next, loosen the string lock and fit the string into the saddle and tighten the lock first with fingers then use an Allen key (you should have got one with your guitar).

Now undo the locking nut clamps and fit the string as above. Make sure you have stretched the strings fully (more on this later). Replace the string clamps but do not tighten yet. First level all your fine tuners, tune the guitar but tune it slightly flat then tighten the clamps (this will raise the pitch slightly hence tuning flat). You can now use the fine tuners to...erm....fine tune!

General Tips.

When removing old strings don't take them off one at a time, loosen them all evenly so the neck tension is relieved evenly. Some people change one string at a time using the remaining old ones as a tuning guide. I prefer to remove all strings as then I can give the fretboard a good clean.

When changing strings on a Floyd Rose type guitar be careful not to over tighten the string locks and locking nuts. It is easy to overtighten and strip the threads or crack the string locks.

Make sure you give the strings a good stretch. If you don't do this you will be constantly retuning as the strings settle down. I just hook my finger under the string at the twelfth fret an pull the string away from the fretboard a couple of inches. I do this a few time on each string and that usually does the trick. Some people stretch the strings at other points along its length but just experiment. The strings will still have a bit of give in them but will settle down quicker.