Question:

I would like to file the nut notches on my new bell bronze Les Paul bridge myself and am looking for suitable nut files.

Could you please indicate suitable files, as the prices for files are quite high and a wrong purchase would be expensive and above all unnecessary?

Here are the string gauges I would like to notch: .010, .013, .017, .024, .032, .042"

 

Answer:

Thank you for your question - unfortunately there is no short answer. Please let me explain. If you already know all that, you can skip straight to the end.

There are some “cheaper” alternatives on the known platforms - I'm glad you want to do it right away.

Nozzle needle file sets or cheap files that look like the expensive ones don't work in my opinion and you're doing it twice.

 

The files are made of spring-hard steel and hardened, which suggests good durability with normal saddle material.

But “normal” is bone and my own saddle files have lasted for decades.

I've broken one before because it broke and I've replaced one or two.

 

Note: For deep notches and when it has to be done quickly, I take a 130 mm fretsaw with the appropriate blade and saw ahead, then do the rest with the saddle file.

I only use the saddle file for the notches I really need. This also means that the blank is first filed down to 90% of the shape and the slot is not filed into the blank at full height. This is exactly what breaks the file.

 

Why do I say that?

You asked about “suitable” and I don't just mean the thickness.

Because you should also bear in mind that bronze/brass is a copper-tin alloy and much harder than bone or plastic.

So if you work carefully, regularly remove the shavings from the notch and work in stages to the correct width and depth, you can also notch (upper) saddles with it.

 

For the right depth:

I notch about 2/3-3/4 of the string gauge deep. The thin strings deeper than the thicker ones (E).

 

And am I ruining the file by working on brass or bronze with it?

In a way, you have more wear and tear. How many saddles can you file with it?

A lot if used carefully - but not as many as with bone...

 

How precisely can you actually file? And measure it? How practical are such specifications?

It makes no difference whether you work with 0.009 or 0.010" files. That's 2.5 hundredths of a millimeter....

It's complete nonsense to try to do it the same way by hand.

The notches on the bridge are not really as precise as the nut on the neck. The strings need a defined break-off point and they must not jump out when struck and they should not jam (i.e. return to the same pitch after bending).

You can check whether your string notches fit like this: After you have finished, tune the string so that it shows “zero” on the tuner.

At the top saddle, press the string in slightly towards the machine head to raise the pitch and then release it again.

The tuner should be set to zero again (a few cents back and forth don't matter - but they do if the tone is no longer right from 4-8 cents.

Then the strings are still stuck and you can tighten the string a little (bending) to get it back to zero.

In principle, the same procedure applies to the bridge. The only difference is that you press behind the bridge.

 

My advice:

If your string sets are based on 0.010s and go up to 0.042“, buy a 0.009-0.042” 6-piece set from Ibanez.

I think the manufacturer for this file (whether Hosco or Ibanez) is the same and therefore the quality is identical.

 

In general, if you hold the file slightly to the side while filing, you make the notch wide - this allows you to achieve intermediate sizes that are not available as a single file. You can't file any narrower :-)

 

Now to what is probably the initial question:

If you want to buy individual files, the replacement files start at 0.010" (press on the number for link).

.010 Art. Nr.: 19050032 

.013 Art. Nr.: 19050033 

.016 Art. Nr.: 19050034 

.024 Art. Nr.: 19050031 

.032 Art. Nr.: 19050036 

.042 Art. Nr.: 19050038 

 

The matching set of 6 from Ibanez is this one:

Ibanez .009-.042 6-pc set Art. Nr.: 19050027 

 

If you have different guitars (electric, acoustic, classical) and want to set up your own guitars in the long run, buy a set of 10 or 11 files. It's a purchase for life.

Hosco .010-.056" 10-pc set Art. Nr.: 19050001 

Hosco .010-.056" 11-pc set (+.050") Art. Nr.: 19050042 

 

Best regards from Upper Bavaria