How to flip an acoustic guitar from right handed to left handed?

[samal50]

I tried it but came across some problems; when I flipped the nut it was clearly slotted to be made as for a right handed guitar. Should I buy a non slotted nut and cut it my self or buy a nut for a left handed? The bridge was also problematic because it was slightly angled from high to low, so when I switched it upside down, it's a bit unstable, but somewhat doable than the issue with the nut. Lastly, do I use super glue to glue the nut and bridge to the guitar body, right?

 

I called up Guitar Center and they told me that a steel string guitar (like the one I'm attempting to switch from right handed to left handed) is problematic than a classical guitar. The person at Guitar Center said that classical guitars have straight bridge and not angled. I believe the nut would also be evenly cut as well for the nylon strings to fit, unlike steel strings, they come too big. Should I try using nylon strings then?

[Freeman Keller]

Samal, there are a bunch of subtle differences but the big one is the angle of the saddle slot in the bridge. It is done that way to "compensate" each string so it plays in tune - fatter strings need more compensation. Classical (nylon string) guitars don't need compensation because their strings are basically the same diameter (however sometimes you will see the 3rd string compensated).

 

There are a couple of ways around that - you can ignore it and live with the intonation problems. If you mostly play in the first position chords you might not notice it. If you play up the neck, however, you will. A good repair person can fill the slot in your bridge with a piece of rosewood or ebony and route a new slot at the correct angle - it is a fairly straightforward operation. Optionally, the bridge can be removed and replaced by one with the slot already cut for a lefty - that would be my choice if the bridge was at all loose.

 

Once you have dealt with the saddle compensation the other differences will be the nut - you simply have to make a new one. I believe that a nut has to be hand fitted to a guitar - it is very difficult to buy one that is going to drop in and work. It is also a tad tricky to do and requires some special tools - my recommendation is to have it done (and save the old one)

 

Many people will put a left handed pick guard on it - removing the original one will probably leave a tan line so you might want to just leave it. Install new fret position marker dots in the other side of the fretboard.

 

Technically there is one more difference that people never worry about - two of the braces are angled to make them respond differently to the bass and treble side of the top. The effect is so small as to not matter, however if I was building a left handed guitar for you from scratch they would be angled the other way.

[daddymack]

add to Freeman's answer...no, do not put nylon strings on your steel string guitar.

[garthman]

add to Freeman's answer...no' date=' do not put nylon strings on your steel string guitar. [/quote']

 

I have nylon strings fitted on two steel string guitars. They are my most-played instruments.

[catscurlyear]

this is what i do.so you attempt this at your own risk

nuts don`t cost a lot it`s easy to do so just buy a couple incase you mess up ,,as regard string spacing on the nut, just line up the original with your new one ..the strings will hold the nut in place, i prefer not to use super glue but just put a small dot on to lock it in place you may want to remove it again

i know some people on here might cringe but you can cut the slots with a junior hack saw blade and for the fatter strings work it in a V shape ... cut the slots on a slope so that the highest part of the slot in the nut will be next to the fret board..so in effect the string will travel from the tuning pegs uphill over and off the nut and then down onto the fretboard.

regarding depth of the nut slots what i do is get the string to a reasonable tension and pull the string out of the slot and file a small amount away then put the string back in the slot and check the height and keep repeating this till you reach the desired height there is no fixed height rule, you just get it to a height you prefer and it feels comfortable to you .just don`t go too deep or the string will buzz or deaden and if left too high it can make it hard to play.

don`t glue the bridge in place,,, to get the bridge to the correct height get a flat file or sand paper and rub away the bottom of the bridge check this video here as a guide, start the vid at 52 secs

[video=youtube;_IkSYgk-DKE]

[Freeman Keller]

Here is a left handed nut. It happens to be on an electric but that doesn't matter - I use the same target values for nut slot clearance on both acoustics and electrics. You can space the slots so they are equal distance apart (measure between the first and sixth string, divide by five) or you can position them so there is the same amount of space between the edges of the strings - that will mean that the notches get gradually farther apart as you go from one to six. Most people prefer the latter, it takes a bit more math to locate the slots or a special rule.

 

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Here is an old thread where I make a nut (again, for an electric but the steps are the same). Starts with post #228.

 

https://www.harmonycentral.com/forum...104633-/page16

 

My process for doing this is a little different from Catscurlyear - I happen to think that a well made nut can greatly improve the playability of a guitar, a poorly made one will just make it worse. I generally charge one and a half hours of labor plus the bone blank, but that also includes the reset of the setup.

 

Cats also says "don't glue the bridge in place" - what he means is don't glue the saddle into the bridge, but the bridge itself definitely needs to be glued to the top of the guitar.

 

And for what its worth, here is the procedure for routing a new saddle slot at the correct angle. Again, if I was doing this I would probably charge a couple of hours of labor for the routing, a new properly compensated bone saddle and the setup.

 

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[catscurlyear]

My process for doing this is a little different from Catscurlyear - I happen to think that a well made nut can greatly improve the playability of a guitar' date=' a poorly made one will just make it worse[/quote']**************** off. i haven`t heard any evidence in your playability .

 

[Freeman Keller]

**************** off. i haven`t heard any evidence in your playability .

 

I happen to agree with Bryan Kimsey who on his setup web page says

 

"Unlike the 12th fret action, a few thousandths at the nut IS noticeable. A well-adjusted 1st fret action can make a BIG difference on the feel of the guitar, all the way up to about the 5th-7th fret"

 

In fact, I rather like his specs and unless someone prefers something else that is the way I would build a nut

 

http://www.bryankimsey.com/setup/index.htm

[catscurlyear]

a final set up is just guess work if you do it by strict measurment .it is feel that finalizes any of my guitars.or anyone elses guitars i do. if you drive it like an old banger it `s gonna feel like an old banger.

[Grant Harding]

You're saying that using careful measurements and proper tools for the job is inferior to using a hacksaw blade and just eyeballing it?

[catscurlyear]

not for everyone it would appear but for me it has to be feel for the final step,it`s like anything ,are you sat comfortably .

[Grant Harding]

For me the nut height is a pretty precise measurement, so I know it's going to be exactly right for a given playing style. I never use feel for that.

 

I use feel to lightly tweek once I've got it to the required specs.

[Grant Harding]

For the OP, the real answer is don't do it. Clean up the guitar, get new strings put on and sell it. Then buy a left handed guitar. Trying to convert one isn't smart.

[Freeman Keller]

Cats, if it works for you, great. I set up a fair number of guitars and I have target values for a whole bunch of things on each guitar but I can change them as required to fit a given player and her style.

[Freeman Keller]

. if you drive it like an old banger it `s gonna feel like an old banger.

 

I drive an old banger. And, will you look at that, its a righty/lefty. Grant, what do you think of this?

 

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[Grant Harding]

How come the steering wheel is on the correct side? Looks awesome.

[catscurlyear]

ha ha the old car and guitar pics ok u win

[Freeman Keller]

For the OP' date=' the real answer is don't do it. Clean up the guitar, get new strings put on and sell it. Then buy a left handed guitar. Trying to convert one isn't smart. [/quote']

 

Best advice so far. I did a full on conversion a few years ago for a HCAG forumite's daughter. Back when we used to do capers. It was a special guitar for a special young lady, but it was also a heck of a lot of work

 

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[catscurlyear]

i`m sat in one of them in my avatar

[Freeman Keller]

Truce, eh? However, I don't know if you work on cars or not, I do, including the Moggie. I set the valves using feeler gauges, set the timing with a strobe light, adjust the carbs with a manometer. There are other ways, but that's how I learned to do it and the old buggy runs pretty darn good.

[catscurlyear]

i hope she enjoyed playing it

[Freeman Keller]

Grant, in an upside down country like yours I can still drive. Shift with my left hand and yield to the left. In fact when I started riding motor bikes I owned a very old Triumph. It took me years to stop shifting the brake pedal on all the new bikes I would ride.

 

Cats, can't really see what is going on in your avatar, here is the front of the wooden car

 

[DeepEnd]

A bit late to the party but the simplest thing beyond buying a left handed guitar is to take it to a good shop. Years ago our daughter, who is left handed, expressed an interest in learning guitar. A local shop, Music Folk, does conversions on acoustics for a flat rate. But the guy I spoke to also said they normally just teach lefties to play right handed. YMMV. As for cutting nuts, I have a partial set of nut files that usually serve but I've also used a knife blade wrapped in sandpaper. It actually gives a nicely rounded bottom. For narrow slots, a folded piece of sandpaper will do in a pinch. I start by stacking a set of feeler gauges for 0.020" or so higher than the height of the first fret, bend the gauges along the curve of the fretboard, and make a pencil mark on the nut, then I cut the slots to that height. I continue to measure the height above the first fret as I go and cut a bit more if needed. I want the string to be 0.010" or so above the first fret when fretted between the second and third. My first nut replacement job was on my Fernandes Strat, which is outside the scope of this discussion, being electric. I will say the curved bottom on that nut was interesting.

[garthman]

I'm a bit like Cats: I don't use any measuring instruments. I just take it slow - lift the string out of the nut slot, file the slot a bit, pop the string back and see if it's "right". If not, continue until it is. Same with the saddle. Slow and steady - works every time.

[t_e_l_e]

and now comes another lefty and tells the complete opposite

 

first of all, freeman is right, a pro who does the conversion, fixes/replaces the bridge and puts a new nut in, is best.

 

but i'm a lefty, i'm cheap, i had not the money (at the time) and had no tech by hand who would do it for me, so i hendrixed 3 accoustic guitars so far. didn't change the bridge on any of the 3, and kept the original nut in them. i just used a file to make enough space for the e and a string.

somehow we call it the "russian" way, cheap and improvising

 

what can i say i played my washburn over 15 years as my one and only guitar, i was happy with it, didn't care about intonations (whats that anyway? )

 

so it works, it not perfect and its reversible, so if you don't like it you can undo it again and sell it to a righty, if you replace the bridge you need to replace it again, if its a "cheap" guitar i would try it first my way, instead of investing into a full conversion.

 

 

and to all who suggested buying a lefty accoustic guitar:

there are some ok beginner lefties out there (<$300)

and there are some really nice high end/expensive lefties out there (>$2000)

 

but there is almost nothing in between

as righty there is so much choice and different stuff to choose from in the $500-$1500 market, almost every flavour, every size, every colour etc

and you can only get one or two different lefties, world wide, from all brands together,

 

almost nobody makes lefties in this "mid"-price segment

its annoying but ok, thats the reason i bought a $570 righty reording king guitar and hendrixed it my way, cause i don't want to spent >$2k on a martin, gibson or guild guitar and i don't want to play a $200 cheapo anymore either...