Wide String Spacing on Epi LP Nut?

[The Angle]

I recently picked up a used Epiphone LP Classic, ~2007. Although the Epiphone's neck is the same width as my '74 Gibson, the string spacing is quite a bit narrower -- 34mm instead of the Gibson's 37mm. I much prefer the wider spacing, so I went looking for a replacement nut that would fit the Epiphone but with Gibson's more comfortable string width.

To my amazement, I can't find one. Lots of replacement nuts fit Epiphones, but all have stock Epiphone spacing. I can't just use a Gibson nut, because they're thinner than the Epis by almost 3mm. I can't even find an Epiphone-size nut unslotted. The only option seems to be a total blank, shaped and cut from scratch.

This seems like a natural mod for Epiphone LPs. I can't believe no one makes a swap-in nut with Gibson spacing. Is there one available that I'm just not finding? I've checked Tusq, Stew-Mac, GraphTech, AllParts, and the all-knowing Google.

Steve

 

[kevinkjs]

I bought myself a Tusq XL for my 99' Gibson LP Standard and love it. They're lubed right in
the material, so they never bind up. Graph Tech which makes them always make them taller,
wider etc. so you can custom fit it to your guitar. You may have to sand the length to fit or
sand material off the bottom to get the right string height. I even had to shave a bit on the
width to slide into the slot from the factory nut. Look at their guide and take measurements
on your guitar to see what model will work for you. Disregard the mention of either Gibson
or Epiphone "Style" and select by the dimensions and you can't lose. Good luck.

 

[chasenblues]

.

 

[kevinkjs]

I guess I didn't mention yesterday that I meant a Tusq XL pre-slotted nut and not a bare blank.
They have a variety of string spacing's and I know they have one wide enough to satisfy your
needs.

 

[The Angle]

Thanks for the advice. I've reviewed everything on the Tusq list and narrowed the possibilities down to one.

The Epi nut has the following dimensions: 1 3/4 L x 1/4 W x 3/8 H

The thickness (W) is the tricky part. Other than blank slabs, only a few other nuts on the list are thick enough. The best candidate is PQ-6234-00: measures 1 3/4 L x 1/4 W x 11/32 H, and has string spacing of 37.6 mm. It's slightly lower than the Epi, but the current nut has the strings too high anyway. The string spacing might be bumping up against TOO wide, but I figure an extra half-millimeter isn't going to break the bank.

It seems worth gambling $14 on, anyway.

But I still can't believe no one makes this nut for a drop-in mod. It seems like such a natural. I don't have fat fingers by any stretch, and I find the Epiphone spacing crowded. Maybe GraphTech already considers this nut to BE the one I'm looking for.

Steve

 

[kevinkjs]

I hope you checked out the "Black Tusq XL's too. They seem to have a wider selection of sizes. There's
no difference in these from the others, except the color. You may get exactly what you prefer, if color
isn't an issue to you. I think you'll be happy in any case. When you're fitting the nut, 220 grit sandpaper
is all you'll need. The material is super easy to work with, so go slow and check your progress often.
I almost sanded a little too much off of mine, but when I set my string height and neck relief, I was
spot on. That's what you call luck. Cheers.

 

[The Angle]

I phoned GraphTech yesterday and had a very pleasant and informative chat with one of their reps. When I described what I was trying to accomplish, he immediately recommended the same nut I'd picked out from their list as the likeliest candidate. I wound up ordering that one, in self-lubricating black (bleached white would look awful on this guitar). Should be here in a week or so. I'm not sure if I'll get to this job immediately when it arrives, but in the meantime, I have frets to level and polish before this is going play like a Gibson.

I was surprised (again) when the rep said he seldom gets calls about altering an Epiphone to have Gibson string spacing. If it works out, maybe I'll turn this into a specialty. :hmm

Thanks again for the advice. Once the new nut is installed, I'll post again about whether it worked as I hope.

Steve

 

[The Angle]

So the work is finally all done, the new nut is installed, and the guitar is playable again. It spent a lot more time on the bench than I expected because the frets were in bad shape. Not worn, but very uneven. I wound up doing a complete fret job on it -- level, crown, and polish -- along with the nut replacement.

Long story short, the nut (Tusq PQ-6234-00) needed a bit of shaping to fit, but it was pretty close to start with. The first time I installed it, I learned two things. First, it was a bit too tall, so action at the first fret was too high. It was ~ .024" on the low E and ~ .018" on the high E. Second, my original placement of the nut was slightly too low on the neck. The string spacing on this nut is ~ 0.5mm wider than on a Gibson nut, so there's not much room to spare on the neck. I centered the strings visually, and that led to too little fret beneath the high E string and more fret than I needed above the low E string. The least bit of carelessness on my part would push the 1st string off the bottom edge of the fret board.

I was happy with the depth of the slots as they were, so to bring down the action at the 1st fret, I sanded the bottom of the nut. That was less work than deepening all six slots, too, IMO.

I'd left the nut a little wider than the neck during the first fit, so I was able to reposition it with the slots more toward the upper edge of the neck without leaving a gap at the bottom. I shifted it maybe 0.5mm; no more than that. Sanded it to the neck's width, light glue to hold it in place, and it was all done.

Was it worth it? The guitar definitely is easier to play now than before. Adjacent strings don't buzz and go dead against my fingertips when I'm playing near the headstock. It all feels much more familiar. If the string spacing on this nut was any wider, however, it would be too much. As it is, it's forcing me to correct a bad habit of letting the bottom edge of the neck rest against my fingers. When I do that now, the fleshy part of my finger deadens the open high E string. Any bends on the 1st string need to go upward; if I pull that string downward in more than a simple vibrato, it slips off the fret. But weighing the gains against the losses, I'm very happy I made the switch.

Photo links below.

Steve

 

[kevinkjs]

I'm glad to hear you've had some success. That spacing does look pretty wide, but I would
be more than o.k. with it. I never down bend the high E anyway. The next time you need a
fret "touch up", keep the file on a flatter plain and try not to roll it off in a downward motion
at the fret ends. This will "flatten" the 12" radius, but the string won't have a tendency to
roll off the fret board as easily. That's why many guitars now come with a "compound"
radius starting at 12" and gradually flattening to 16" or 18". Your in business anyhow and
I bet you've learned quite a bit about your guitar. P.S.; it's a sweet looking one to boot.
Cheers.

 

[The Angle]

Thanks for the tip. Always more to learn!

Steve