Bone bridges, saddles, and flourocarbon strings. Help :)

New question: Worth strings.

So, I'm pretty sure I'm going to go with Worth strings. First Question: What I found is going to end up costing about $25.00 (total) - is that about right, or am I not looking hard enough?

Second question: what kind to get? I see that there are several types, and they all designate that you *could* use them on a soprano *if* you wanted >insert various sound<. So, what to get?

Ideally I would like to string both my ukes with one package, since I just spent on nuts and saddles yesterday.

I really don't think I want "mellow" strings. One is a Luna Honu, and she has a nice bright sound, the other is a Kala Ukadelic,and he is already pretty dang mellow, so I guess I would like "bright" strings overall. Think I can get away with one type, and which ones? Thanks!

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Ok, I want to replace the saddles and nuts on two ukes, with bone.
Question #1: Where should I buy them?
Question #2: The ones I have are not compensated. Is there any reason that I should consider replacing them with compensated ones?

Strings. *I* think that my Aquilas sound "sour" to me. I would like to try some of the flourocarbons that I've seen mentioned. I'm flying blind here, Brand? Type? Source? Etc.

Thanks!

Replacing nuts and saddle may require some tools to ensure a good final fit and proper action. To help understand what might be involved, please read these walkthroughs. They are focused on guitars but they apply to ukuleles.

MAKING A NEW SADDLE
http://www.frets.com/fretspages/Musician/Guitar/Setup/MakeNewSaddle/newsaddle01.html
LOWERING SADDLE ACTION
http://www.frets.com/fretspages/Musician/Guitar/Setup/LowerAction/loweraction01.html
ABOUT NUT ACTION
http://www.frets.com/fretspages/Musician/GenSetup/NutAction/nutaction.html
MORE ABOUT NUTS
http://www.frets.com/fretspages/Musician/GenSetup/Nuts/nuts1.html
MAKING A NEW NUT
http://www.frets.com/fretspages/Luthier/Technique/Setup/NewNut/newnut1.html
SETTING NUT ACTION
http://www.frets.com/fretspages/Luthier/Technique/Setup/SetNut/setnut.html

eBay seller taisamlu in Taiwan sells pre-shaped ukulele nuts and saddles. These can be fitted with minimal work and all you might need would be sandpaper and a hard flat surface. I recommend that you measure your nut width and saddle width carefully to ensure that the specs of his nuts and saddle are not smaller than yours. It's okay if they're a little wider, thicker, and taller since you can sand them down to fit. It's not a bad idea to buy a set since, if this is your first replacement, you might want to have spares for a 2nd or 3rd installation to refine your action (in case you set it too low).

http://stores.ebay.com/Taisamlu-Mus...lele+nuts+saddles&submit=Search&_sid=40037081
http://stores.ebay.com/Taisamlu-Musical/_i.html?_nkw=ukulele+nuts&submit=Search&_sid=40037081
http://stores.ebay.com/Taisamlu-Musical/_i.html?_nkw=ukulele+saddles&submit=Search&_sid=40037081

If he has a "Best Offer" auction, he will typically accept an offer that is about 2/3rds of his "Buy It Now" price.

I'll let someone else advise you on carbon strings. I haven't yet found a set that I really like.

I think more players should learn to do nuts and saddles. IMHO, it should be part of basic instrument maintenance skills like changing strings, oiling fretboards, and replacing tuning machines. Knowing this stuff will empower you to make your instruments play their best in accordance to your own technique. Nobody knows your playing technique better than yourself.

I forgot to discuss compensation.

Compensation may not be critical but I do micro-compensate my saddles. Here is a good video by luthier Michael Thames about how to do compensation on a classical guitar's saddle. It can be applied to ukulele saddles as well.



The key is to first know on which strings you might need compensation. Play and test your ukulele a lot and then decide if you need compensation on the saddle.

Good luck!

Not taking anything away from GVlog (Frank Ford's site is great, and those are excellent links) - you may get more responses from the Luthier's Corner or Tech Support, than here.

That said, if you want a compensated saddle, you should make it (or have it made) specifically for your instrument and setup, unless you have a Kamaka, then you can order a Tusq saddle, compensated, straight from them (doesn't look like it from your avatar, though). David Hurd's site has the left-brain methodology to do this - if not, its in his book, Left-Brain lutherie.

BTW, the best Carbon based strings for my instruments are Savarez Alliance. I also like D'Addario T2's, but I'm not sure carbon is in the "composite" base, though its supposed to feel like it.

-Aaron

Thank you GVlog, I'll dig into all of that information this evening.

Thank you, and I will look at those strings.

Nevermind....

You can get bone blanks from stewmac.com for a few bucks. Shape them yourself. I generally use a belt sander for all the heavy shaping and do the detailed work and polishing by hand. Saddles are really easy to make and will make the biggest difference. The nut doesn't make nearly that much of a difference for sound so if you don't have a lot of experience, I'd just do the saddle. As for a compensated one, if your uke doesn't already have one, you may not want to worry about it if it sounds fine to you. You can check your intonation with a chromatic tuner and if it's off, then a compensated saddle may help.

As for fluorocarbon strings... I just picked up a couple sets of Worth strings. It's nice that they come long enough for two sets. The brown ones sound a bit muted and mellow on my Uke, but the clears sound quite nice on my tenor. I had Aquilas before and the Worth strings sound a bit more clear and defined. My uke is a low g and the wound low g of the Aquila set was a bit brighter sounding than the nylon Worth low g. On the other hand having all nylon strings sounds a bit more even across all the strings.

Thanks I just bought some preshaped ones, for a first go. I'm good with making them myself, I work with wood, and have no issue with shaping bone, but I do generally like to feel/see/hear something before I go at it.

As for fluorocarbon strings... I just picked up a couple sets of Worth strings. It's nice that they come long enough for two sets. The brown ones sound a bit muted and mellow on my Uke, but the clears sound quite nice on my tenor. I had Aquilas before and the Worth strings sound a bit more clear and defined. My uke is a low g and the wound low g of the Aquila set was a bit brighter sounding than the nylon Worth low g. On the other hand having all nylon strings sounds a bit more even across all the strings.

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Ok, thank you, good to know. So, one of my inexpensive ukes here, has a very bright sound. The second one, is *very* mellow - almost muted (but I like it, I'm glad that they sound so different). So, perhaps I should strongly consider stringing them differently to be most complimentary?

Edit: Truth is I only think the strings on my first uke sound "sour", but since I'll be replacing the saddles and nuts, I figured I may as well get the "right" strings on them in one go.

bumpety-bump thump

CurlyKoaWithKonaCoffee said:

bumpety-bump thump

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Slow weekend.

I keep forgetting that it is Easter. Silly me.

But then, everything is a blur, since I'm driving 30 miles, twice a day, to milk goats that belong to a friend of ours. *And* my kids are sick. That's another great thing about the ukulele, it can really help keep you awake.

Hope your kids feel better soon!

Thank you so much. I think they are much improved today. I think the worst of it was over the weekend.