How to Measure the Guitar String

Video Transcript

MATT GRAHAM: Okay. So we've inserted the string into the bridge and replaced the bridge pin, and we've also fed it through the properly aligned tuning post. And now, we're going to measure the string to make sure we have the right amount of slack to wind around the tuning post. Now, it's important that it's the right amount and not too much slack. Because the more excess string you have wrapped around that tuning post, the longer it's going to take for all that extra string to stretch out, which means your guitar is going to go out of tune a lot, possibly even days after you've put your strings on. And so locking the string off and having the right amount of slack in the string, those are the best ways that you can prevent that stretching and keep it at a minimum. So the way I like to measure for the appropriate amount of slack is to put my thumb on the nut at this end and then pull the string tight with my other hand and then you take--it should be three to four fingers at the 12th fret. Sometimes I like to do four just to be on the safe side, but three should give you just the right amount of slack. And again, you're going to do this for every string, and so putting that thumb on the nut is giving us consistency. So it's the same amount of slack when we put three fingers under the 12th fret. So just keep your finger on the nut as we move on to the next step where we'll actually lock off the string to itself.

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