Plastic vs. bone

[Monsoon1]

about the nut files, am I correct in assuming the edge of those are flat?

Originally Posted by Monsoon1

about the nut files, am I correct in assuming the edge of those are flat?

The flat sides are smooth.



The edges have the cutting surface -- some are single-edge and some are double.

[Monsoon1]

I meant the cutting edge. but I can see in the pic that it is rounded.
are most brands like that?

Originally Posted by Monsoon1

I meant the cutting edge. but I can see in the pic that it is rounded.
are most brands like that?

Yeah, it's supposed to make the bottom of the nut slot round, to mimic the cross-section of the string. This helps the string sit securely in the slot. The middle picture in this diagram shows it well:

[Monsoon1]

heh, my curiosity was whether the manufacturers put the effort into making the edge of the file follow the wire shape. that's why I asked if the edge was flat.

I was a machinist back in the day, and there's a good bit more involved in making multiple profiles on the file vs flat and square surfaces.

I like that graph though. good tutorial.

Originally Posted by Monsoon1

my curiosity was whether the manufacturers put the effort into making the edge of the file follow the wire shape. that's why I asked if the edge was flat.

Many manufacturers (but probably not most) now let a PLEK machine cut the slots:

[Fenderjunkie]

I've had 2 other guitars before my current one which both had plastic nuts and saddles. my current one though (A Fender T-Bucket 300CE V3) has as bone nut and saddle. if i were you i'd experiment with different materials (Tusk, Ivory, etc.) and see which one gives the best resonance!