Refinishing A Roller Nut?

[~Maxx]

I just ordered a replacement roller nut for my Strat. It's the pre-LSR Fender/Wilkinson roller...

Trouble is these didn't seem to come in black. It's fairly important, however, that this match the rest of my guitar. So I'm wondering how some of you might suggest I go about refinishing it. Is there some particular spray paint that would work acceptably (or better than others)? Or would spray paint tend to bind up the rollers and ruin the nut? I got the brushed finish, by the way, not the stainless.

I thought long and hard about upgrading to the LSR, but decided against it in the end. (See my previous thread here for more on that subject.)

Thanks in advance for any advice!

[soapbarstrat]

Silver strings, silver frets : It'll blend in well enough with some essential parts of your guitar.

[~Maxx]

Silver strings, silver frets : It'll blend in well enough with some essential parts of your guitar.

True enough. But still... It would seem like such a shame to have mostly black hardware as opposed to all black.

[Andronico]

You can put black vinyl in the top area leaving the sides with the original colour. You can test and if you don´t like it, simply remove the vinyl.

[Hizodge]

If it is able to be disassembled and it is aluminum, it can be anodized black.

[Cobalt Fall]

I would protect the slots/rollers and go ahead and paint it.

Just make sure the slots and all moving parts are protected from paint and you should be fine. Perhaps just run some toothpicks into the slots.

[westhemann]

Powdercoating...

At one point someone posted a link to a powdercoating kit and I bookmarked it,but I lost that computer since then...

There are places you can send your parts to for powdercoating.

http://www.ihdpowdercoat.com/Services.aspx

[~Maxx]

You can put black vinyl in the top area leaving the sides with the original colour. You can test and if you don´t like it, simply remove the vinyl.

I thought about elec. tape or some heat shrink tubing. But I'm pretty sure that stuff won't stay put well enough given the finish of the nut.

If it is able to be disassembled and it is aluminum, it can be anodized black.

It doesn't seem to come apart (without a hammer anyway )

I would protect the slots/rollers and go ahead and paint it.

Just make sure the slots and all moving parts are protected from paint and you should be fine. Perhaps just run some toothpicks into the slots.

I think painting might be the best bet. Would anyone recommend a certain type or brand for this application? Or is my best bet to just go to the hardware store and pick out something that says it sticks to metal?

Powdercoating...

At one point someone posted a link to a powdercoating kit and I bookmarked it,but I lost that computer since then...

There are places you can send your parts to for powdercoating.

http://www.ihdpowdercoat.com/Services.aspx

Just a guess here, but wouldn't that present problems with the rollers freezing up as well?

Thanks so much for all your replies.

[westhemann]

You have to disassemble it to powdercoat..My guess is that there is a small diameter rod that is running through the rollers from one side to the other...

[Tim37]

i dont think i would go with powder coat is pretty thick and get in to every crack and crevis.

whe ya do a motorcycle frame, when you get it back you have to run a tap through every threaded hole, run a die over any studs. clean out any through holes becaue it will build up enough the bolt wont go through. clean off any matting surface where theres a tite fit. now its a great finish but i just dont think i would use it in this situation. i have a feeling you will be ordering a new roller nut by the end.

[soapbarstrat]

I'm fairly certain each roller is an individual needle bearing. The main shell is supposedly brass and plated with either chrome or the satin plating.

Those things often have enough trouble working properly as it is. Add paint or another coating to the mix, and be prepared for more problems with the thing working as smoothly as it should.

Show us a picture of how out of place it looks not being black. All black hardware is so freakin' 80's (Ok, maybe early 90's too, as if that helps)

[~Maxx]

The rollers are indeed individual. At least the top ones are (closest to the tuners). Not sure about the fretboard side.

I'm finding myself back on the fence about this thing now. I canceled my order for the replacement nut until I figure out for sure what I want to do. I'm thinking now that it may just be better to switch to some different strings and upgrade to the LSR nut, which comes in black, and apparently works fine with 10g strings (despite what I've read on "official" sites). Less hassle, but I'd have to find some strings I like. That could be a difficult task. I've grown very accustomed to my 20g wound G string. I haven't researched yet, but if anyone has any suggestions for bronze-wound electric strings I'd be all ears...

For the curious - here's what I'm working on...

This guitar was completely torn apart and stripped down when I got it, so I wasn't entirely sure what it was until fairly recently. From what I've read it's an '87 or early '88 Strat Plus. It had the TBX tone control, gold Lace Sensors, and micro-tilt neck. All of which have been removed per my own preference. It also has a "Tremsetter"-like device in the back cavity which is marked with the "Rockinger" brand name. I've yet to research this, but I've never seen one like it, and haven't decided weather or not to keep it. The body and neck have been stained, but I'm waiting on the Tung oil until I finish switching out the hardware.

As far as the black goes - it's just what I do. I'm not metal or goth or emo or anything like that. More a blues/rock n roll player. In my bachelor days I started wearing black clothes so I wouldn't have to sort my laundry. Then I bought black furniture so it would match the walls and carpet no matter where I lived. Things just sort of snowballed from there, and before long I had an unhealthy obsession. It was a real stretch for me to go with the black pearloid pick guard. And I'm still not sure weather or not I like it. But I'm waiting to see the finished product before I decide.

Anyhow... Sorry to have gone on so much. I really appreciate and welcome the wisdom and criticism you folks have offered. Feel free to chime in with more if you like!

PS - forgot to mention... I'll be changing out the bridge and tuners on the above axe. It might also be worth mentioning that the toggle switches that are currently in place of the tone knobs are temporary while I audition tone capacitors.

Edited May 2, 2010 by ~Maxx

[Tim37]

As far as the black goes - it's just what I do. I'm not metal or goth or emo or anything like that. More a blues/rock n roll player. In my bachelor days I started wearing black clothes so I wouldn't have to sort my laundry. Then I bought black furniture so it would match the walls and carpet no matter where I lived. Things just sort of snowballed from there, and before long I had an unhealthy obsession. It was a real stretch for me to go with the black pearloid pick guard. And I'm still not sure weather or not I like it. But I'm waiting to see the finished product before I decide.

i kinda under stand that i have a bad problem with over doing the black also. some times i have to force my self to go another direction.

[~Maxx]

As far as the black goes - it's just what I do. I'm not metal or goth or emo or anything like that. More a blues/rock n roll player. In my bachelor days I started wearing black clothes so I wouldn't have to sort my laundry. Then I bought black furniture so it would match the walls and carpet no matter where I lived. Things just sort of snowballed from there, and before long I had an unhealthy obsession. It was a real stretch for me to go with the black pearloid pick guard. And I'm still not sure weather or not I like it. But I'm waiting to see the finished product before I decide.

i kinda under stand that i have a bad problem with over doing the black also. some times i have to force my self to go another direction.

Heh... Maybe we should start a support group.

[psw]

I got a thing for yellow

Still...my guitar is blue...I do have a yellow one in the works though

I kind of like the normal finish on these things, I think they are a bit textured like the LSR and so could take paint. Maybe get some model paint for instance...if in a hurry, nail varnish can often be effective...it works on nails for a start and can be fixed in a jiffy if chips...comes with it's own brush.

I would be extremely careful with keeping the rollers and slots clear...use PVC tape on it to see if it really is the look you want...the nut matches the frets.

I would also just paint the one you have and already modified successfully for the thicker strings.

Bronze strings were never meant for electric guitar...it can work (people put mag pickups into acoustics) but the pickups only sense the cores of the strings, not the non-magnetic outer wrappings.

Jeff beck has used these nuts for years on his signature strats and is certainly not known for super light strings. How think his bass strings are I don't know. The newer LSR's I use with 10-46 no problem...but an unwound third. Most probably consider this a medium gauge these days, especially on the longer scale of a strat.

But perhaps the wound third and bronze strings are your signature sound. My guitars, particularly the tele I play these days, people might have trouble with. The action is higher than most would like it and the strings pretty tight....but that's what I need for the kind of rhythm guitar I play which is the bread and butter. It certainly isn't a fast guitar, but light strings and low action just won't get the sound and feel I need. With lead playing, it makes you work and that is not always a bad thing...horses for courses!

I use the kind of strings you use on my acoustic I guess...10-52 I think with a wound third. Bending the G string accurately in standard tuning is a tricky and dangerous business (you can break them) so I avoid that kind of thing. If you want that bendability you might consider lightening up a touch.

Not sure what these "official sites" are, but I have no problems with 10's...it has been for years the standard gauge and I doubt anyone would make a product that prohibits the use of such strings. They might string them up in the factory with super lights, but real players tend to go heavier. Which reminds me, if you do change gauges, you will need to redo the intonation of course.

Oh...I don't know if the LSR's come in black, but mine have always come with a black plasitc adaptor to replace these older style wilkonsons.

good luck with it.

[~Maxx]

I got a thing for yellow

"My name is psw - and I'm a yellow-holic."

"Hi psw!"

I think I've convinced myself that it's just time to move on from these strings. I use a tapered string action so that the bass strings are higher than the others, and I angle my pickups weird too. This helps make up for the fact that the pickups are only responding to the core of the bass strings. But setting up my guitar is a real pain. I'm sort of looking forward to not having to deal with it anymore. The wound G I use is a 20 gauge, which is quite light for a wound G. I've gotten used to working for the bends on it, but it is the string that breaks most often.

The LSR's do indeed come in black. However, during my Google searches for info, I did come across one blurb from a user who had ordered the LSR and did not receive the adapter. Upon contacting the seller and Fender as well he was apparently informed that the adapters were no longer available even though they are pictured with the nut on Fenders website. I neglected to note the date of this post, but it's the only info of that nature I've seen so far. Hopefully a misunderstanding and an isolated incident.

After doing a bit of reading I've gotten curious about the nickel strings. Especially the Eric Johnson signature set from GHS. They are gauged 10, 13, 18, 26, 38, & 50. Not a far cry from what I use now (10, 14, 20(w), 28, 40, & 50). My local shop doesn't carry them though, so I think I'm going to start off with a set of Dean Markley NickelSteels with my next string change. They come in both 10-46 and 10-52 gauges. They're both a 17g G though (I was really shooting for that 18g, but...), so I can see myself snapping a few of them while I get used to the lighter gauge.

Anyway... It turns out that I'm going to have to wait a couple of weeks before I order my nut, bridge, and tuners. Apparently Mothers Day is coming up, and I nearly forgot that my wife needs a nice gift from our baby girl. First time parent - I'm still getting used to these things! I'll definitely post some pics for my fellow blackaholics when I get the new hardware on and settle on some new strings!