Winding Martin Soprano Strings

Jerryc41 · Aug 18, 2019

Martin thinks it's best to wind the G and A strings on the outside of the tuning posts for some reason. Most used Martin sopranos that I've bought have had the strings wrapped in the traditional way. I doubt that I would notice a difference in sound, but I like to keep them looking "correct," so I rewind them.

Jerryc41 · Aug 18, 2019

Bill1 said:
Maybe the Martin designers think the strings are too close if wound the normal way? Its a great talking point anyway.

Sad, but true - people could spend hours debating this.

Ragtop232 · Aug 18, 2019

Jerry -

With regular friction tuners, winding direction can be changed at will. However, I know you have a Konter with PegHed tuners, remember those tuners have to be installed directional, so the strings will need to be wound in the orientation Martin installed the PegHeds.

Jim

Bill Sheehan · Aug 18, 2019

I guess it's possible that the theory is that if the first and fourth strings are wound "to the outside" as shown in the photo, it's less likely that they'll get hung up or "snagged" in the nut on their way through; in other words, this method makes for a "straighter shot" from nut to tuning post.

Jerryc41 · Aug 18, 2019

Ragtop232 said:
Jerry -

With regular friction tuners, winding direction can be changed at will. However, I know you have a Konter with PegHed tuners, remember those tuners have to be installed directional, so the strings will need to be wound in the orientation Martin installed the PegHeds.

Jim

Right! But I bought it used, and the red strings are wound the wrong way. Whoever wound those strings didn't consider the PegHeds. Still, I can't imagine the string tension unscrewing the PegHeds out of the wood.

Ragtop232 · Aug 18, 2019

Jerryc41 said:
Right! But I bought it used, and the red strings are wound the wrong way. Whoever wound those strings didn't consider the PegHeds. Still, I can't imagine the string tension unscrewing the PegHeds out of the wood.

View attachment 120579 View attachment 120580

I've been told these are normally installed with a small spot of glue. The Luthier also stated under the right circumstances, winding the strings in the opposite direction that the Peghed was installed could loosen the tuner itself and require a reinstallation by a professional.

Winding Martin Soprano Strings

Jerryc41

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