Is it easy to adjust string height at the nut and saddle?

mikhou

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First, I have never done a setup in my life. I have 2 ukes - both came "set up" from reputable dealers. One is an inexpensive Ohana laminate concert, and the other is an Ohana solid body tenor. So neither are extremely pricey. Frankly, I like the setup on the concert better. It's been a year and a half since I bought the tenor so it's way past time when I should have sent it back and that's because I just assumed that I was struggling with it due to higher tension of the strings on a tenor. But the other day it struck me that the string height at the nut is considerably higher on the tenor than the concert. I'm wondering if with a string gauge, some nut files, and some sandpaper, I could drop the string height at the nut down, check the string height at the 12th freight, and then sand the saddle down to equate the setup on the concert.

So is that pretty easy to do?
 
Yes , I think it is easy . Do a search here first and there is a bunch of info , do your research first .
 
It is not especially difficult, but possible to overshoot the mark. I spent a bit of time with somebody which helped my learning curve a lot!
Good luck!
 
Thanks for your vote of confidence. I ask because I am an American living and working in a 3rd world country in Central Asia as an aid worker. I think that (after this pandemic gets under control) that when someone travels this way, I could get them to bring me the proper tools. Otherwise, I'd probably send it to Mim or go to a local shop to get set up, but that isn't a possibility here. I'm encouraged by your comments to give it a try.
 
While I love Mim, it’s just never going to be worth it to send it to her and have her send it back...the postage will be tremendous. There are some great videos about setup on the Ukulele Site, and Joel in one episode of the podcast shows how he does a setup with just some sandpaper. That said, a string action ruler would be of great use to you...any chance you can get one of those where you’re at?
 
Just take it slow, especially at the nut.
And tenor tension doesn't have to be high. Tuning down a half step or two or three can really help. And some sets are lower tension than others
 
The good nut action test
http://www.frets.com/FretsPages/Musician/GenSetup/NutAction/nutaction.html

This video shows how Ken sets his nut action using a reciprocating saw blade with a layer of masking tape on the back as a depth stop. I use a jigsaw/sabresaw blade. You can check if the blade is thick enough bridge placing it between two frets and checking if it is slightly higher than the frets using a fret rocker technique using any handy short straight object.

https://youtu.be/O1Z5i7-tAnQ

I started out just using a hack saw blade to cut/deepen nut slots. Adjusting the saddle can be tricky, especially if the ends of the saddle are trapped in the bridge and is more a personal preference. I shoot for look and feel and don't measure, usually finishing up at 2 to 3 mm at the 12th fret. A high action in very cheap ukes sometimes masks problems with uneven frets.
 
For less than $20 you can buy a 3 piece set of nut files from China. Youtube videos abound educating how to lower the action at the 1st and 12th frets.
 
Thanks so much for all of the replies and suggestions. I'm now encouraged to give it a shot. Very slowly, of course. :D
 
Thanks for your vote of confidence. I ask because I am an American living and working in a 3rd world country in Central Asia as an aid worker. I think that (after this pandemic gets under control) that when someone travels this way, I could get them to bring me the proper tools. Otherwise, I'd probably send it to Mim or go to a local shop to get set up, but that isn't a possibility here. I'm encouraged by your comments to give it a try.

Not necessarily pertinent but where are you?
 
For what it is worth I will make another suggestion....

Were it me in your situation, I would not worry about nut files and just take the extra height off the bottom of the nut by useing a flat surface and some sandpaper...(The more truly flat the surface the better. A piece of glass (or glass cutting board), some tiles, a level, cast iron table, etc.....get creative I am sure you have something that is flat)

Go very slow and tell yourself before you begin that you will likely have to slacken, make changes and bring it back up to pitch many times before you get there. (no matter which way you choose to do it)... The best way to screw up is to think it will happen in one or two tries or be in a hurry.

-Get some precise measurements (with the instrument(s) up to pitch) so that you know approximately how much you need to take off. DO NOT try to take it all off in one go!

-Slacken strings enough to remove the nut (count how many rotations you turn the tuners as it can help you get close to pitch quicker)

-(Optional) make a pencil mark on the nut for the amount you want to remove. then take the pencil in your hand, put your middle finger on the bottom face of the nut while laying the sharpened point on the mark. Use your middle finger to keep the line the same distance from the bottom face and slide the nut across the pencil to strike a line that is level. Do this on both sides of the nut. Some people have a hard time using the finger to guide a line but it is really easy for most with some practice so feel free to get some wood with a flat edge (watch for splintery wood) and test it out. If you cannot get this to work it's ok, just go slow and do not take off too much at once. If you do get it to work do not take it all off at once anyway as it is just a ballpark and if you do not want to take too much off.
***I hope this makes sense. I am just trying to describe an easy way to strike a line by using the edge as your guide so that you can visually see your line is still straight while sanding. ***

-Run the bottom face of the nut across the sand paper (120 - 220 grit will work nicely) just a few strokes at a time, then rotate the nut 180 degrees and do the same number of strokes (this will help with the fact that there is always uneven pressure and help keep things level), just try to stay consistent on pressure and technique. I find that the more pressure you use while sanding the more out of "true" you get. So go easy on it and take your time. Since it's you first time doing this only go about half of what you think you need to take off. and check you progress each time....once you sand it off it is not going to go back on.

-Reinstall the nut & bring up to pitch (remember how many rotations you slackened? It will help you get close before turning on the tuner)....

-Check both feel and measurements...

-Repeat until you get where you want to be.

The key here is to not take off too much and not get too uneven or out of square.

Also know that the numbers from your measurements are a guide. If it feels fine and is .5 mm more that is fine no need to push it and risk going too low. Feel is always more important than numbers when it comes to action.

I hope this helps....

You got this!
 
For what it is worth I will make another suggestion....

Were it me in your situation, I would not worry about nut files and just take the extra height off the bottom of the nut by useing a flat surface and some sandpaper...(The more truly flat the surface t

You got this!

This is good advice and I've done it. Do the same with the saddle... Advice: sand perpendicular to the nut rather than longitudinally or as is said, the bottom of the nut will start to become concave and will not lie completely flat in the nut slot. Same with the saddle. This is not good as you obviously need good contact here especially with your saddle.
 
Sanding the bottom of the nut to get the proper clearance at the first fret can cause a lot of problems. It may seem like a a simple solution but it's really quite difficult to sand the bottom of the nut flat and square while getting all the slots to yield the same clearance of a couple of thousandths of an inch at the first fret. You could assume that all the slots are the same depth originally but that is often not the case and sanding the bottom of the nut won't address that.

The Timms video will get you to a safe starting point. Then what you want is the kind of clearance for each fret that you see on Frank Ford's Frets.com site. Sandpaper wrapped around a feeler gauge can help you get there if the slot isn'y too far off.

Often the nut is glued in so you can't easily sand the bottom anyway.
 
"sand perpendicular to the nut rather than longitudinally or the bottom of the nut will start to become concave"

Good advice, but I think you mean convex. Pedantic, I know, but that's me!

John Colter
 
Sanding the bottom of the nut to get the proper clearance at the first fret can cause a lot of problems. It may seem like a a simple solution but it's really quite difficult to sand the bottom of the nut flat and square while getting all the slots to yield the same clearance of a couple of thousandths of an inch at the first fret.

I am glad you brought that up Ken as I now realize I neglected to mention the fact that this will only work if the strings are high by the same amount. I also agree that it is not the perfect solution.....but either is a novice cutting their teeth on a nut they cannot replace. Though I think it is just as difficult (if not more) to properly cut each slot for someone who has no experience. The method I presented was just more attainable because they're not needing outside tools they seem to have limited access to.

In a perfect world I would recommend they take it to a pro or at least get a nut blank and proper files, vise , measuring device, etc. and start from square one so they have the original as a back-up should they mess up. But let's face it, this is expensive for a one off project.

In the end the fact is that the nut is a simple thing to make when you have the right tools, mindset and experience, but can be a nightmare if you do not know what your doing and are trying to piece it together with the wrong tools, with no experience.

With all that said if the slots are fine in relation to each other and all just need to come down a bit (the same amount) I still say carefully sanding the bottom will work just fine if you are careful about keeping things flat and true. However, if there are only some of the strings that need to be adjusted you need to work on those slots.

Sorry for the confusion.....
 
"sand perpendicular to the nut rather than longitudinally or the bottom of the nut will start to become concave"

Good advice, but I think you mean convex. Pedantic, I know, but that's me!

John Colter

I stand corrected John, I meant convex... Maybe just "rounded" would have been a better word.
 
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