How long was it before you needed to replace the nut on your acoustic guitar / guitars due to wear?

[Freeman Keller]

Nuts usually don't wear out but they can break. I had one of the parlors back in for its 90 day check up (I tend to set them a little high, let them settle in and then go back over the setup). I had lowered the nut slots a hair, cleaned up some sharp edges and was buffing it when the wheel grabbed it out of my hand and threw it on the floor.

 

I said "nuts" and started making another one

 

[DeepEnd]

When I read ''the wheel grabbed it out of my hand and threw it on the floor.'' I thought just for a second you meant the guitar instead of the nut. Eeek!!

[Freeman Keller]

Had it been the guitar I probably would have said more than "nuts"

[Grant Harding]

You gotta be super careful when you're buffing your nuts.

[GtrGeorge!]

Never worn one out...EVER. More often.....the nut was made poorly and needed to be replaced. Cut way to deep...strings buzzed at first frets. Poor workmanship.

 

[GtrGeorge!]

Never ever wore a Nut out. But have met many a guitar that had a bad nut from the factory...almost always cut to deep...so strings buzzed at 1,2,3rd frets.

[Freeman Keller]

Interesting, in my experience most factory nuts are too high. Its always easier to take them down a bit, hard to go back up.

[GtrGeorge!]

Freeman,

maybe I'm weird, but I own 15 guitars currently and have ,in the past gone thru 30 more. Usually the nuts Ive dealt with are cut to deep. Maybe I like a low action, and that plays a role here....but still, the axes buzz. I live in an area with variable humidity that goes up and down, So that may also influence my evaluation, But still, I feel they are haphazardly cut at the factory. Getting the nut right is a skill, and it makes sense that factory workers going quickly are likely to get it wrong....way to deep or way to shallow. I find expensive guitars don't have this problem, and it reinforces my beliefs. Hope this explanation and extra info helps. btw: Come see me play at GeorgeBarry.net

[Mickey Maguire]

A good way to tell if the nut is cut too deep is to slide a credit card under the strings all the way to the nut. It should slide against the nut smoothly without binding. If it pinches, it is too deeply cut. I have recently checked out a lot of Taylor and Martin guitars on the wall at my local Guitar Center and there were both Martin and Taylor guitars on the wall with very high action. Why? Don't know. Maybe Guitar Center requested them that way. A couple of Gibson guitars were also outlandishly high. I found a Taylor with action that was just about perfect and bought it.