String changing helper

[TBman]

I have a tendency to move before I look and as a result I have sent many a bridge pin sailing across the desk, floor and room. I also found that using the same pin in the same hole actually makes string changing a little easier and this helps me with this. I got this idea from one of our members and I thought I would share it again here for the newer members who haven't seen it.

I bought a very inexpensive bridge and a chunk of rosewood, cut and sanded the rosewood some and glued the bridge to it. I then drilled the holes a bit into the rosewood block so the pins would sit better.

In between string changes it sits on my desk as a paper weight.

[sinistral]

Very nice! I made a bridge pin holder out of a scrap piece of ziricote that was left over from a guitar stand. I have one guitar where the pins are specific to each string, so it comes in handy.

[TheGITM]

That's slick! I like it!

[airborne1]

I don’t have a bridge pin holder, but I do install each pin in its original position.

I started that practice on the very first string change I ever did.

I believe it is a sound procedure.

[LAPlayer]

I just use 1-6 dots on my pins with sharpie. Always, keep them in the hole they fit best.

[nikpearson]

I use a small block of oak with 12 holes, for the times when I’m feeling masochistic and restring my Taylor LKSM.

Your block is so much nicer; I might even make one!

[zeeway]

That’s a really good idea. And it is an improvement over my ‘process’ that usually involves looking for one of the pins hiding on the floor…

[musicman1951]

Very clever, and a nice job! Mine are numbered (by the last owner), but I just watched a string change video where the pins were immediately put back in the empty hole after the old string was removed. I'm going to try that as I'm far too lazy to make a fine block like yours.

[PassingThru]

Cool idea for a "paperweight".

[seaveez]

Originally Posted by airborne1

I don’t have a bridge pin holder, but I do install each pin in its original position.

I started that practice on the very first string change I ever did.

I believe it is a sound procedure.

My process too.

[TheGITM]

I have never cared which hole the pin came out of... I just restring and whichever pin I grab goes in...

Never had an issue (that I know of, anyway).

I still think the pin holder is cool...

[tinnitus]

Originally Posted by TheGITM

I have never cared which hole the pin came out of... I just restring and whichever pin I grab goes in...

Never had an issue (that I know of, anyway).

I still think the pin holder is cool...

Same here. Cool pin holder and all. It's classy.

In a sentence or two, who can tell me what difference it makes to put pins back into the holes they came from?

[BlueBowman]

This is a very nice idea! The number of times I've lost the order...almost every string change! And I don't how important it is to get the same pin back in the same hole, but I know I don't like the feeling of getting them mixed up. Love this solution.

[sinistral]

Originally Posted by tinnitus

Same here. Cool pin holder and all. It's classy.

In a sentence or two, who can tell me what difference it makes to put pins back into the holes they came from?

In most cases, it probably doesn’t matter. Many factory guitars have straight-drilled holes and uniform pins (e.g., plastic), so other than wear, the pins are interchangeable. If the holes have a taper that was reamed by hand, and/or the pins are made of a material that is more prone to variation (e.g., wood, bone, etc.), some pins may fit in one hole better than another. In some cases—typically custom guitars—the holes in the bridge and the accompanying pin are slotted specifically to the thickness for each string (i.e., the slot for the 1st string is smallest and the slot for the 6th string the largest). In those and similar cases, the luthier typically marks the pins.

Here is a photo of the bridge pin holder I made out of a scrap of ziricote:



I love the idea of attaching a bridge blank to a larger block of wood. Even if one doesn’t keep pins in the same order, it’s a fun objet.

[abn556]

I just set my bridge pins on my work bench pad in the order they come off the guitar. That way I get them back in the same hole they came out of.

I guess if I had a pin holder that I would use it.