What to do about loose nut?

I was restringing my Seagull S6 acoustic and the nut fell off. I put the new strings on and the nut seems to be held firmly in place so do I need to make a more permanent fix like gluing it in place? I assume nuts are glued in since it has not happened before is this so? If so what glue is best, its a bone nut? Thanks.

The nut came off of one of my acoustics the very first time I restrung it. I used Pritt-Stick (a very weak glue designed for paper) to hold it in place while putting the new strings on, and that was that. Never had any issues as the strings prevent it going anywhere.

When I eventually replaced the nut I did the same. Superglue or whatever would just make it a real pain (and potentially damaging) to remove in the future, should it need replacing or adjustment.

1 Like

If the strings hold it in, you can just leave it alone.

5 Likes

I had the same issue in an acoustic guitar, just popped the strings on and it held everything in place. That was maybe 2 years ago and no issues.

1 Like

+1 for letting the strings hold it in place. My acoustic has been like that for at least 3 years with no issues. I checked with my local shop a while back and they said they could glue it in but it is unnecessary and it it would probably get loose again in the future.

1 Like

If one of my nuts ever fell out like that, I would buy a couple of bone blanks and start cutting them for different string thicknesses. Probably one cut specifically for high strung (Nashville tuning) and some super light gauge as well. Seems like a bit of good luck to me.

1 Like

-1 on letting the strings hold it. :slight_smile:

I had to glue mine in. any string bends in the first 3-4 frets would make it slide with the bend.

The original had an uneven mess of glue under it and the channel in the neck was similarly uneven. I cleaned it up just enough to make sure I had a good flat surface on each and not change the string height by being too aggressive with removing material. Minimal glue to hold it. Sustain improved noticeably which was a surprise.

1 Like

The strings can hold it in place or a very light dab of a white glue, you don’t want to use superglue or anything too strong

1 Like

Thanks for all the replies.

@Goffik @Jamolay @Eddie_09 @nhh2oskr @RobDickinson The strings seem to hold the nut firmly in place so all seems good for now at least.

@sequences I am not at the bending strings stage yet but had a quick try and the nut stayed in place. Next string change I might glue it though.

@CT It might be a good idea as I was thinking of trying some different gauge strings but I have real trouble with anything DIY, I am terrible so cutting new nuts would probably end up going bad LOL.

1 Like

Unless you are really going out there with string sets, the nut you have is probably fine.

The nut you have can probably hold standard sets 13 or smaller.

If you go with something odd, like 14 or more (odd for beginners) or sets with unusually heavy bass strings, you would need to make or have made a new nut.

In the USA, it seems like our loose nuts run for office….:man_facepalming:t3:

1 Like

:rofl: Same the world over isn’t it?

Sounds good in theory, but not always in practice. I found that having a perfectly setup guitar with a specific set of strings will not always translate to perfection with a string gauge change. Try it and report back.

If you are changing all the strings anyway, sliding in a perfectly cut nut to accommodate a new gauge makes good sense to me. My two guitars that are perfect with D’Addario 12-53, will buzz with 11-47 Silk and Steel and High-Strung Nashville strings. I’m not going to futz around with any adjustments to accommodate special string sets. A perfectly cut nut would make sense to me.

Shellac can be used to fix the nut in place without risking any issues in future.
Saw it on the Crimson Guitar youtube site, when Ben Crowe (the boss) fixed one onto a guitar he was building or repairing, stating that he had seen it somewhere else. It worked.
It’s possible to get it from screwfix or other places - just look for shellac or shellac sanding sealer (same thing).
If you don’t fancy that, then go with the white glue (nothing super-strong) or just a couple of spots (literally) of superglue.
The main thing is to be able to fix anythign else in future, and superglue can be a bit too super. :crazy_face:

Thanks Andy. The strings hold it in place for the moment, next time I restring I might try and glue it.