Fremont low G / slot bridge

igorthebarbarian

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Does anyone have advice on how to get a Fremont low G into a slot bridge? I have only used Fremont low G through the normal tie bar bridges and love them/ works well/ easy to tie. But knotting them into a skinny little slot bridge opening (Fluke/ Bruko for example) how would you accomplish this?
 
Does anyone have advice on how to get a Fremont low G into a slot bridge? I have only used Fremont low G through the normal tie bar bridges and love them/ works well/ easy to tie. But knotting them into a skinny little slot bridge opening (Fluke/ Bruko for example) how would you accomplish this?

I'd try "squaring off the edges" on the rounded knot with a file or sandpaper.
 
Well if you're sure you want to use low G in the future on that uke I would just file the slot wider to accommodate the greater width of the Fremont string. If you don't want to do that you could just gently enlarge the forward edge of the slot with an appropriately sized drill bit, slide the string down through the hol3 and out to then tie a knot (a simple overhand knot will be enough). In either case you may have trouble if you revert to high G, though you ought to still be able to create a large enough stopper knot even in a high G string to still hold in the enlarged slot.

I had to enlarge the slot in my Klos when I got it as they had not prepped the slotted bridge for low G as I requested. I chose to just file it wider.
 
I just pull the tail end hard with a needle nosed pair of pliers to get the knot nice and tight before I install and it fits ok. I wouldn't want to mess with the slot.
 
I just pull the tail end hard with a needle nosed pair of pliers to get the knot nice and tight before I install and it fits ok. I wouldn't want to mess with the slot.

Same advice as above and it has worked for me.
 
The ball end/knotted end part isn't the only potential issue, it's the part of the string past that too. I've never had trouble getting a knot into a bridge opening, but have had the slot itself too narrow.

I have widened a slot before by folding a small piece of fine grit sandpaper and carefully working it up and down...checking often to get it just wide enough to comfortably fit the string. If you ever go back to high G you'll probably have to tie a bigger knot at the end of the string to hold it in place at the now widened slot. If you try to force a fat string into a too narrow slot, you could end up cracking or damaging the bridge.
 
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The ball end/knotted end part isn't the only potential issue, it's the part of the string past that too. I've never had trouble getting a knot into a bridge opening, but have had the slot itself too narrow.

I have widened a slot before by folding a small piece of fine grit sandpaper and carefully working it up and down...checking often to get it just wide enough to comfortably fit the string. If you ever go back to high G you'll probably have to tie a bigger knot at the end of the string to hold it in place at the now widened slot. If you try to force a fat string into a too narrow slot, you could end up cracking or damaging the bridge.

I have done that for unwound low G strings, too, but I don't think it's necessary for the soloist.

What I do is I use pliers to get the knot nice and tight and I apply a drop of super glue to the knot and let it dry before putting it in the slot. Letting it dry first is very important.
 
Glue is an idea I never considered- thanks!
I also need to try out the Pliers as that sounds like the most popular option
Thanks everyone!

I have done that for unwound low G strings, too, but I don't think it's necessary for the soloist.

What I do is I use pliers to get the knot nice and tight and I apply a drop of super glue to the knot and let it dry before putting it in the slot. Letting it dry first is very important.
 
......If you try to force a fat string into a too narrow slot, you could end up cracking or damaging the bridge.

This is the reason I went to the trouble of widening the slot, as I thought it would be a pretty silly way to crack part of the bridge off. Of course if that happened I suppose you could just drill a hole through the top and have a string through bridge instead!
 
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