how to change acoustic guitar strings for beginners

How to Change Your Acoustic Guitar Strings | Fender - YouTube Secure the String … Plus, once you master this method, you’ll be in good shape to adapt your new skills to whatever instrument you run into that needs a restring. It takes practice to get a feel for doing this and, if you don’t get it right, the bridge pin will pop out when you start to put tension on the string. Loosen the bass strings - 6th (Low E), 5th (A), and 4th (D) - by turning the tuners clockwise with your left hand while holding tension on the string with your right hand. Throw the old string away and insert the ball end of the new string into the hole in the bridge. Once the string is tight enough to make a sound, you can release the tension and slip the string into its slot in the nut. Pull up on the string and push down on the bridge pin to set the ball end into the pin’s slot. Position yourself in front of the instrument, with the guitar's sixth string closest to you. This is plenty to keep your tuning stable and hold your sound together. Begin by finding a flat surface on which to lay the guitar. Attach the string winder to the peg and start winding. If you meet resistance, use the little notch in your string winder that’s there to assist you with this exact task. Push it down a little farther than it needs to go and reinsert the bridge pin on top of the ball end with the slot in the pin facing the sound hole. As long as the strings end up wrapped on the tuning gear the right way, all is good. Once the pin is securely anchored, insert the free end of the string into the hole in the shaft of the tuning gear. Knowing how to put a string on the right way does you no good if you don’t have any spare strings handy. Use the pliers or the String-winder with a notch to remove the tapered bridge pin and the string fully. Cutting New Acoustic Guitar Strings Just leave a little bit of the string sticking out of the peg. Loosen the string and unwind it from the tuning machine. Make a 90-degree bend in the string right at the tuner to help it lock into place. Repeat this process with each of the remaining strings. If your wraps overlap and get crazy-looking, the string won’t grip the shaft properly, and your tuning will slip. Start turning the tuning gear with your string winder while using your other hand to put backward tension on the loose string and keep the windings wrapping neatly around the post one on top of another. Read our full earning disclaimer here. Hold the string down onto the guitar, when you wind the string start at the top and work your way down and finish at the bottom of the peg. Scaredguitarless.com participates in various affiliate programs, and we sometimes get a commission through purchases made through our links at no extra cost to you! Unless you’re cool with doing neck adjustments on your own, stick to changing one string at a time to maintain the tension on the neck. Push it down a little farther than it needs to go and reinsert the bridge pin on top of the ball end with the slot in the pin facing the sound hole. Aim for getting two or three wraps around the shaft of the tuning gear. All that remains to do is to play your new strings for 15 minutes or so to finish stretching them and to make sure they stay in tune. You will, however, be confronted with a broken string during a playing situation sooner or later and you’d best be able to install its replacement on the spot or your day of jamming will be over. Once all six strings are installed, tune up to pitch and give each one a couple of pulls with your picking hand to stretch them out a bit. You don’t necessarily have to learn to do wiring, fret filing or any of those bigger jobs if you aren’t comfortable with them. A workbench is ideal; sitting on a sofa and resting the neck of the guitar on the sofa arm is another viable option.