jaguarcat311 Posted August 17, 2005 Report Share Posted August 17, 2005 i need to remove the cheap plastic nut from a guitar i have, im replacing it with a bone nut. since it is a cheap guitar, im assuming the nut is superglued or wood glued in (yes, the luthiers nightmare). thanks for any help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southpa Posted August 17, 2005 Report Share Posted August 17, 2005 (edited) Brute force. Lay a hardwood block on top of the fingerboard next to the nut and give it a sharp rap with a small hammer. Edited August 17, 2005 by Southpa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeavnerGuitarWorks Posted August 17, 2005 Report Share Posted August 17, 2005 A Vasectomy!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
criss Posted August 17, 2005 Report Share Posted August 17, 2005 I would score the bottom and sides first with a sharp hobby knife . Im no expert but this should help with removeing the nut cleanly , and help with not damageing the finish . Maybe do a search too , the experts here know a great deal of nice tricks . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gun Posted August 17, 2005 Report Share Posted August 17, 2005 Hey man, don't believe what kinda of strange weird trick you have to do. The advice Southpa gave you is one of the methods a lot of folks use. If it is a Fender like nut, give it some rap with a small chisel from the side. You should get rid of it easily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egdeltar Posted August 17, 2005 Report Share Posted August 17, 2005 Ive always just grabbed it with a pair of plyers and ripped it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stickmangumby Posted August 17, 2005 Report Share Posted August 17, 2005 Score the finish around the nut, so that the finish doesn't chip when you remove it. Tap it back and forwards with a small hammer hitting a hardwood block. It will loosen up until you can tap it sideways out of the nut slot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jer7440 Posted August 17, 2005 Report Share Posted August 17, 2005 A Vasectomy!!! ← Dude if you go in for a vasectomy and the doc takes a nut along with it, you have a problem! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marksound Posted August 17, 2005 Report Share Posted August 17, 2005 Ive always just grabbed it with a pair of plyers and ripped it out. ← I've done it this way too, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone else. Just in case something bad happened, I don't want to be responsible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gorecki Posted August 17, 2005 Report Share Posted August 17, 2005 (edited) If the wrapping and tapping isn't getting you anywhere. For stubborn nuts I jewelers saw directly down the middle of the nut [------------------------] <-- nut Stopping just short of sawing down to the wood of the nut cavity. Try the wrapping and tapping again, it'll be more likely to break free with less mass in the middle restricting it's movement. Even in the worst CA glue cases you should be able to get it out in two pieces this way. Edited August 17, 2005 by Gorecki Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frank falbo Posted August 17, 2005 Report Share Posted August 17, 2005 I use my fret pullers sometimes, and get a good squeeze on it while gently rocking it back and forth until you hear that glorious cracking sound. I prefer jiggling and rocking it to tapping it. With blunt blows you're more likely to take some wood and/or finish with it. Definitely score the finish if there is any around it. Some guitars are finished before the nut is installed so then it doesn't matter. But you can't expect a finish to crack right along the line of the nut unless you score it. I'll usually score it a little above the nut line. Then the nut breaks free, but I have a little finish bump I can file down to total perfection. So the new nut sits flush with the old finish. Dan Erlewine once illustrated the "saw in half" method and said to just pinch them together with pliers from the top. I can't see that working all that well. I'd think its more likely to break into pieces. If you do saw it in half, I'd say give it a sharp tap, instead of squeezing it together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaguarcat311 Posted August 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2005 (edited) Sweet, that came out very very clean! i removed the truss rod cover and the nut hangs over the truss rod hole which gave me a good spot to wiggle it with my needle nose plyers. it was kind of tough to grab from the side because one side is flat, the other curved, being a gibson style nut. i scored everything with the finest razor i could find just in case, even though the guitar was finished prior to the nut being put on. i taped a business card flush against the nut to protect the fretboard from anything. i grabbed the nut on either side and gently wiggled it free from the glue then went back to the middle and it came out really nice. Thanks for all the help! Edited August 17, 2005 by jaguarcat311 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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