Nuts & Saddles

[GeorgedeA]

Thanks all for an interesting and varied response on this .

[GeorgedeA]

& this ( rather terse ) response from the luthiers at Furch Guitars .... makers of my very splendid brand new OM35 !
I asked why it is that they use Tusq rather than bone ...

"All parameters and test of Tusq are better than by bone. That is the reason why we apply Tusq."

[StrumFu]

Of the guitars that I have heard with different saddle materials, I have liked bone better than tusq/nubone/ivorex every time. I do think Tusq is a much better product than cheapie plastics that came on so many guitars over the years. I will also say that the switch from the cheap plastic to either Tusq or bone will be a larger difference than the switch from Tusq to bone, or vise versa.

On a side note, I wouldn't expect Furch or Taylor to say anything other than what they use is the better product. Not many companies are going to say "we just wanted to save time and money on Tusq over bone, and tusq is decent enough, so that's why we use it on our multi thousand dollar guitars". But it sure does seem that 4/5 or maybe even 9/10 actual players prefer the sound of bone saddles over Tusq when they change/experiment. Even players of the aforementioned Taylor and Furch/Stonebridge.

[GeorgedeA]

Originally Posted by StrumFu

Of the guitars that I have heard with different saddle materials, I have liked bone better than tusq/nubone/ivorex every time. I do think Tusq is a much better product than cheapie plastics that came on so many guitars over the years. I will also say that the switch from the cheap plastic to either Tusq or bone will be a larger difference than the switch from Tusq to bone, or vise versa.

On a side note, I wouldn't expect Furch or Taylor to say anything other than what they use is the better product. Not many companies are going to say "we just wanted to save time and money on Tusq over bone, and tusq is decent enough, so that's why we use it on our multi thousand dollar guitars". But it sure does seem that 4/5 or maybe even 9/10 actual players prefer the sound of bone saddles over Tusq when they change/experiment. Even players of the aforementioned Taylor and Furch/Stonebridge.

I'm very tempted to give it a try just out of curiosity .
It seems to me that the cost differential is absolutely minimal so I dont think this is behind their choice .
I can get one hand made here in the UK for around the same cost as a replacement Graph Tech Tusq saddle - difference being that the guy will copy what I send ( yes, like Bob Colosi ! ) .. and as a bit of work has gone into getting the height of my existing Tusq saddle just right this is appealing ... if only as a spare ... as a trial ... or whatever ... a bit of fun with the snake oil !
I'll get my ears well washed and scrubbed ready for the experiment in a week or two !

The plastic they put in those Yamahas has to go. Putting in anything else only improves the already good tone. I tend to worry a lot less about the nut material. I've rarely experienced much difference in tone by changing out the nut. 90% of the time I find that a bone saddle improves how a particular guitar sounds. Tusq is OK in that it's consistent in how it sounds but it's not quite as good as how bone sounds - to me.

[GeorgedeA]

Originally Posted by Dominus Mortem

The plastic they put in those Yamahas has to go. Putting in anything else only improves the already good tone. I tend to worry a lot less about the nut material. I've rarely experienced much difference in tone by changing out the nut. 90% of the time I find that a bone saddle improves how a particular guitar sounds. Tusq is OK in that it's consistent in how it sounds but it's not quite as good as how bone sounds - to me.

Yes, its extraordinary that they put plastic nuts and saddles on their top of the range Japanese models back in 1998 & on for a few years when the " handcrafted "LL's and LS's were made . Tusq has been a big improvement for me .... even if its not Liverpudlian Walrus from Strawberry Fields !
I believe the new Chinese L series guitars come with parts made of Urea !! ( Isnt that some nasty excretion from the kidneys ? ) .
I plan to give the boner a try in my Furch ... should be interesting .

[StrumFu]

Originally Posted by GeorgedeA

I plan to give the boner a try in my Furch ... should be interesting .

Bahahaha....oh man....be very careful of splinters!!!!

[wrathfuldeity]

Its boners for me...ime

My 2 electrics the bone nut...makes a stratier tone to my ears.

In the harmony H165, it came with a bone nut and plastic saddle. First replaced the saddle with a compensated tusq...definite improvement and then did a blank compensated bone saddle...still more improvement...though not as significantly with plastic to tusq. Anyway with the cheap cost of bone nut or saddle...its kind of a no boner not to give it a try and do an A/B comparison. Diy just using a little belt sander and digital caliper and about 20 minutes of time...ime very easy diy.