the excess string

atofu

atofu

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hello!

i'm a beginner, but seriously,

how bad is excess string? i hear different things about it; good, bad, indifferent - what's the deal, uke underground?

15114957.jpg


should i just take it off? is it bad if i kinda like it?
 
Aloha Atofu,
Only looks except if it's a wound string, may scratch the headstock.I keep mine long for awhile to see if I like it on the uke, otherwise I replace the string and it's easier to reuse and restring the next uke..MM Stan
 
hi atofu

welcome to the UU too!!! you could go to the introductions board and say g'day to everyone...

I think I'm a little like you, because I like the look of the extra string hanging of the pegs, kind of makes me feel like a craftsman at work, au naturale, rustic, or something...and in a bizarre kind of way, though I am a rank amateur, it makes me feel more professional...go figure. Makes no difference to leave 'em there if that's your thing!

But Stan is very wise and makes a great point about the wound strings. Be careful leaving any length on those

Enjoy your Lanikai and the forums!!!
 
Excess string can cause buzzing. For that reason, if no other, I always trim.

There is an argument for leaving some length to make it easier to refit a string if you have to take it off, but I pretty much never put old strings back on a uke. I would normally replace with a new one.
 
Trim them, it looks so much better. I really hate it when I see guitar strings sticking out,
those steel strings really hurt when you spear a finger, an eye would be much worse.
The way a guitar or ukulele looks is important to me , I always trim my strings.CIMG3282..jpg
 
I coil them, they dont bother me, and if coiled well, dont buzz.

I do this for one very simple reason. If a string breaks at the bridge, I have enough string left to use it again (and again probably)
 
I prefer to give the strings a couple days to do their thing, and then cut the excess off. I find that sometimes the extra string can create a slight buzz. (at least it did for me)
 
I find with flouro strings that they stretch out so much that if one breaks at the bridge, I still have plenty of string wound on the spools on the headstock that its not a problem. I'm guessing some other strings might not do this as much, so then I might leave a little excess until they settle like others. I tried leaving excess once..... and it really really bugged me.
 
Usually leave them coiled for a couple of days until the strings
have settled,then cut them off.
 
I'm a cutter. I never liked the look of the extra string hanging there. YMMV.
 
I don't see any problem one way or the other. Never heard a string buzz on a headstock, or damage there either. I'll usually trim them off, but if I don't have clippers or scissors around they'll end up wound for God knows how long before I get around to it. Neat is neat, aesthetically, but I also like seeing deach's vids with the string ends all over the place. If that doesn't bother you, as Elvis Costello said, "Let 'em dangle!"
 
thank you so much, friends!

i decided to clip them, but now reading a lot of the comment, i'm feeling like i should have just waited a few days to let the strings settle.

:( poopoo
 
atofu said:
thank you so much, friends!

i decided to clip them, but now reading a lot of the comment, i'm feeling like i should have just waited a few days to let the strings settle.

:( poopoo
Click to expand...

Its a rare thing that this would be an issue. You should be fine, I cut them immediately after I put them on, usually I'll leave about an inch or so on, but that usually only lasts a day at the MOST.
 
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