changeing strings

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Rosspeterson1993

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first time changing strings on my uke and am having a bunch of problems my A string says its on tune but feels way loose and i can see it moving all over the bridge and my E string wont go in tune im afraid to try and tighten it any more without it snapping any ideas??
 
Aloha Rosspeterson1993,
Sometimes new uke players and stringers are a whole A down, that could be your problem.......try to see if your can go to the next A...but be carefull the tension is not too tight..you could damage your uke.
 
You probably already checked this, but are you sure you put the strings in the right order? Is it a low G or a high g set?

Knowing myself, I know this is something I could easily mess up in the excitement of changing strings the first time. I am still waiting for my strings to arrive.
 
Huna said:
go to a uke tuner on the internet and tune it to the pitch you hear on the tuner. http://www.get-tuned.com/online_ukulele_tuner.php then fine tune later with your electronic tuner but you can get it rough on the internet using that link.
Click to expand...

I would definitely start here. You need a reference point to start with so that you get in the ballpark of the right tension for the string. Then use the electronic tuner to fine tune.
 
What strings did you use, and what size uke. I know its probably obvious, but you could get problems if you fitted strings intended for one particular size uke on another sized one. If thats not the case, try tightening the A string, you might be an octave out, and similarly with the E, have you gone too far the other way. Just a thought
 
What kind of uke do you have? Some folks have to tighten the knobs on the tuning machines, especially on less expensive ukes. May have been tight enough when new, loosening them up when you first change strings may have caused some of them to need "re-tightened."
 
First time or two I restrung my 'uke, I was way below pitch when I starting worrying that I was going to overtighten/break something.

Here's a vid you can watch whilst plucking your 'uke to get close to pitch. Your A-string is probably an octave low.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fk_Ot02AUbc

Good luck! Take it to a music store for the definitive solution as a last resort.

EDIT: Before you watch the vid, loosen your strings some to be sure you are coming up from below pitch.
 
Last edited:
mm stan said:
Aloha Rosspeterson1993,
Sometimes new uke players and stringers are a whole A down, that could be your problem.......try to see if your can go to the next A...but be carefull the tension is not too tight..you could damage your uke.
Click to expand...

I agree with Stan. The A string should be extremely tight with no play on the bridge. The A string should be higher than the E string. If G and C strings are in tune then play the A and E note frets on those strings to get the right octave.
 
I like to take all my strings off and clean the uke well when changing strings.
I guess for a beginner changing strings one at a time might help with getting the new strings on pitch.
 
yeah so i have a makala kala concert size and i got martin concert strings and am still having problems. i cant figure it out :/
 
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