How Do You Determine String Spacing On A Guitar? 

I’m a stew mac spacing ruler guy, with that said, I’ve also had to “re-make” nuts from time to time and I’m definitely interested in the Manchester calculator 👍🤘🎸

One I thing I have learned is that I should have gone into the string spacing ruler game. What Stewmac charges for those is obscene.

I don’t have a method lol 😂 came here for the answers

I've tried both methods and preferred the string spacing ruler since I bought it. Greetings from Finland!

This sounds a bit rough, but I cut my outer slots, then string up all strings under tension. I then visually space them. It is amazing how obvious it is if it is even. I then mark either side of the strings with a pencil. Then file the slots accordingly. 💜💜 Sarah

I have tried all the methods and own the StewMac ruler. In the end I have settled in equal string spacing based on center of the string. I got there as a player, not as a builder. The other methods appeal to me as a builder because of how it looks. But I play the center of the string, not the spaces between them. I don’t typically have a problem accidentally muting strings. Bridge is usually going to be equal on center spaced regardless of what I choose at the nut. In theory, that mean the portions change gradually as you move up the neck. Those changes are too small and gradual to matter in real life.

I'm a newbie and novice. Just wanted to point out that around 1:30 I think you say the calculation is the E/E distance divided by the number of strings (6). In fact it is, as @guitar_md said more eloquently than I can, the E/E distance divided by the number of *spaces* between the strings (5 for a 6-string instrument). Ask me how I know... it's so very disappointing to proudly complete your nut job, only to discover you've made an outstanding 5-string nut for your 6-string guitar!!! As for the rest of the nuances about string center vs accounting for string diameter... I don’t think I've graduated to that level of detail quite yet. Chris, thanks for the oustanding channel. We are immensely fortunate to have the mentorship of an experienced expert so willing to share. It is greatly appreciated.

I use the stewmac string spacing rule. I will admit though that I never thought of the fact that it's "generic" and now makes me rethink this method.

Man killer video once again. Love your channel makes my day I see a new upload pops up🙏

Omg being somewhat O.C.D and A.D.H.D you just made my year i tell ya. I guess i was.too headstrong to actually search and seenif there was a calculator or formula for perfect nut spacing but im so glad i found this channel . Thank you very much for this i needed it so bad . You can always tell a great confidant luther when they are willing to pass on the things that can really make a difference in someone else's craft. I know its not rocket science but how many people have made nice bone nut that the guitar plays great and sounds great but you know that little smidge of a hair would have made the perfect nut and u start over ,or u let it go out the door after the ownee says nope i love it but u know its just not rite ... i cant be the only one that this has happened . Not visible to the eye but shes off ... i hates to do this strat here now but im feeling assured . So thank you

You got me there. Use the safe slot system which includes a string spacing ruler. That and a digital string slotting gauge. Will have to give your method a try some day. Takes me a couple tries sometimes. String spacing usually. Me personally I like to leave an extra 1/32 on the high e side even if it looks funny. Because I like to feel free doing wide vibratos. Nothing kills the mood like slipping off the side of the fretboard.

I learn a lot about guitars watching this channel, even though I don’t have the intention to build a guitar my own

After havin' determined where the highest/lowest strings will sit, I'm basically eyeballin' for equal space between the strings. I may ask my caliper for approval before I actually start filin' away. That's pretty much it. No calculators, rulers, templates or other revolutionary StewMac gadgets... ;-)

It's very easy to figure out in a CAD program like Fusion360.

Thank you for your knowledge and wisdom, man. Bought a couple of Tusq blanks a while back along with a generic string spacing ruler on Amazon. I'm now realizing that it doesn't work for my seven string multi scale guitar, which is what I'm trying to overhaul. Sitting here with my calipers, nut, pencil, and paper wondering if I should do this first one with just my measuring and marking setup or if I should try for the print out guide and CAD like you. I wish I had a luthier nearby to teach me hands-on.

My favorite youtuber.

I measured some guitars: Taylor - equal gaps Godin (semi-acoustic) - wider gaps towards the bass, sounds weird and looks weird PRS - equal centers Ibanez (and all floyds, etc) - equal centers Fender - equal centers (strat and jag) Gibson LP - equal gaps Notes: The guitars with equal center saddles all have equal center nuts. So my question is, would you ever want equal gap nut with equal center saddle? Surely that would be a bit weird... I dare say, acoustic guitars tend to use equal gaps. Re the Stewmac ruler, a very rough calculation says that thing would have a bass center only 1/2 of 1/64 larger than the treble center, so it is nowhere near close to equal string gaps, in fact it basically gives equal centers. (could someone measure this precisely please)

I've got the Stew Mac Ruler and it's good. Well wishings and all the best furthermore.

Doing it visually is definitely the easiest way and that's what I'll usually do when working on my own guitars. If I'm working on a customer's guitar or making custom nuts in my spare time, the Manchester calculator and a proper marking ruler is a must. It takes a small bit of prep work to get the measurements but marking is a breeze and I know I won't botch the nut. Plus, it's what I would want my luthier to do for me. It's nice knowing the nut was precisely cut according to the gauge of each individual string. I used to have a string spacing ruler, and it was super simple to use but I found that it's not quite the best thing in certain scenarios where someone is using heavy bottoms or unwound Gs, things like that. Not to mention the amount of people that like to have more "freeboard" up at the top.

I don't build guitars, I build bows. But I do play guitar and do some of my own work. I have started making my own bridges and nuts for myself and friends, poor's guys. I watched a few videos and just started screwing them up right from the get go. Hopefully this video will help me. Anyway I make my acoustic bridges and nuts and electric nuts out of a piece of slippery elm that was struck by lightning after it already had dutch elm desease really bad. Well I found out that when that happens sometimes the heart wood of the trunk and some branches goes absolutely nuts and grows huge. Like there's only about half an inch of soft wood on a power pole sized trunk. It not only grows really big, it gets harder than a Chinese algebra exam. It will ruin anything you cut it with. Ax, chainsaw, crosscut. It even ruins quality handsaws amd knocks the edge off of chisels and draw knives. But even though it's already hard I still heat treat it by covering it in peanut butter, putting it in a piece of pipe and roasting it with my heatgun Then I fire harden it while it's still one long piece before I cut it to length. Same way I do some of my bows and bow staffs. The first 2 are ugly as homemade soap and need to be replaced but the ones I make now really are quite beautiful. Dark brown with bitchen grain and almost as hard as marble. I'll leave the guitar making to y'all. I'm just a bored house painter man.😁

I never think about it, but since all my guitars are equipped with floyd rose systems I am used to that spacing, and because I am planning to build my first guitar I will use the same spacing I all ready know

I order one online and hope for the best!

I never built a guitar, but after this video I hopefully try it

I use the stew Mac string spacing rule. Simple easy and accurate

I think equal 'space' between strings is important on an acoustic because of how hard I play. The lower strings travel further, are wider, and have higher action. I need the space. With that said, I'm making my first nut (trying a compensated one) with a Stewmac rule. The spacing on the original (Yamaha) is quite different than what I'm getting from the rule so it could take a little adjustment. First time on your page. I would love to hear thoughts on tuning, compensated nuts, bridges, and Buzz Feiten.

As a player I think so long as they are somewhere near it doesn't matter as after playing for half an hour we adjust without knowing it , tis not a problem

I'm confused because that stewmac string spacing ruler says it has proportional slot spacing that compensates for the diameters of the individual strings.

I must say, my nuts look great whether I StewMac them or free form them. I leave enough material on the blank to correct spacing before I go to town with the files. Not a single customer in 47 years has had any issues with my creations.

I made a wooden tool with string slots and handle that can be slid under the strings and turned to lift the strings off the nut so it can be removed and replaced while working on it.

If I’ve understood the vid correctly, the installed nut was cut using the stewmac string spacer ruler (which is what I have used) and the paper template was made from the Manchester guitar tech calculator? This is not something I have previously questioned and I thank you for reminding me of the old maxim - question everything. I will add this to my list of things to look deeper into!

This seems like it would feel weird under the fingers, especially for a 5+ string bass. On bass, your fingers only really "feels" the peak of the string and if you're compensating for string width, the E and B strings would be unnecessarily far apart other than it "visually" looks nice. I'm more concerned about it feeling right than it "visually" looking right which you keep bringing up.

For the past 45ish plus years, I’ve always used the old strings to visually place them with tension where I want them, then tap on each string with my fret hammer to make a dent in the bone nut or bridge saddle to mark them. I prefer this method over pencil marks cuz the notches guide the file and less chance of running off the first few strokes. I now have double vision in my old age and want to try a string spacing ruler because of my failing eyesight. Got one yesterday and can’t find anything on it that works. When I find both E’s that match, there are 5 string slots in between them, not 4 like there should be. I’m sure I’m doing something wrong.

I use a string ruler. I know you can calculate it more precisely, but I think the limiting factor is how accurately you can cut the slots with a saw/file. Precision without accuracy in other words.

Thanks for another great video tutorial. Just one question should bass string and treble string end gaps be equal?

The matter of space between for fretting & vibrato is crucial for the nut- where spacing is about the string edges, for this reason having their inbetween dimension consistent is best- so a nut visually compounds with gauging but are edge to edge equal... These are also spaced from fingerboard edges. The bridge spacing as point to point for even plucking & centering on pickup polepieces is best- so being center to center equidistant, this isn't so visually aesthetic but functionally ideal... Though some state that the plectrum feels the edges not centers and these should also be compounding with gauges. Where gauging is especially dramatic -as thicker vibrate wider and thinner much less, it may be better with such compensating to all being spacing compounded.

I am interested in "playability" more than "visually correct" and I am new to guitar. My question is this: Would it make a guitar easier to play if you provide more space around bass strings because you have to press them harder and your finger gets wider? Or maybe there's a reason to leave more space around the higher strings?

How would you add space between the strings for easier finger placement like the zagar brand does?

For an idea for the video how could you explain why people want old guitars and how everything should be made like it was made 50 years ago. Why it is not so with cars but is with guitars?

I just use the Stu Mac ruler, like every god fearing luthier has always done! And because I'm not a lunatic, I use 10-46 strings ! ;-)

In my mind, it seems like keeping the space between the strings equal would be good. Really should measure a few guitars to see what's best, or if it makes a difference to you. Maybe also depends how the bridge is?

I have a Taylor Mini which is a 1 11/16 nut width. My 326ce is a 1 3/4, which my fingers prefer. I have new blank Tusq nuts and want to slot the strings at spacing half way between the two knowing my E & e strings will be slightly closer to the edges of the fretts. Your thoughts please? Thanks

Eyes are my way .i start with the 2 outside strings. I guess you could put a. Set of strings over the un skotted nut then mark the nut after getting a visual too. Or maybe have a small thickness of wood or plstic and use it to make all strings equal distance .

I use the method that I learned from this channel of using a string to determine the position of the outside strings. Then use the Stewmac spacing rule.

How did that guitar play before you fixed the spacing? How does this make a difference? I ask, because of Randy's comment, looking at it from a player's viewpoint. Excellent video and approach to the presentation. Thanks.

will it work if you use the bridge as a reference for spacing the strings?

Am I wrong to conclude that what you're doing is making the space between strings equal (string edge to string edge) regardless of the string diameter?

I think you need to calculate the spacing between the string, not to the middle of the string.

What about the effect of a wider nut? I am thinking of building a 1-7/8 or even a 2" wide neck for my thick fingers. I am a fan of Django Reinhardt so I don't make excuses for not being able to play regardless of problems with my fingers being short and thick - and I can overcome virtually all challenges by adjusting how to shape chords and even leave a duplicative note out of a chord, but I would like to try a bit wider neck, too. But a wider spacing actually changes the length and the scale length - technically shortening by a couple millimeters assuming the same spacing at the bridge end. Does anyone have any experience or the math to figure that out? Can I get away with a standard 24.75 or 25.5 scale length or will I be better off calculating a custom scale length and cutting my own fret slots?

I use equal distance between the strings, not equal distance between the string centers. I don't have any opinion on the latter as I've never tried it, but would be more than open to seeing what it feels like. As for my method: (A - B) / C = S, where A = the distance between the outermost strings, B = the sum diameter of the remaining inner strings, C = the number of spaces on the nut between each string (5 on guitar, 3 on bass, etc.). S = the space between each pair of strings. I set my digital calipers to that number, lock it in place, *and then use the caliper jaws themselves as a fence for the nut files.* I started doing this many years into making nuts, whereas before I used to do them purely by eye, as I was taught by my longtime good friend and mentor. As for the outside strings: these days I use a 4" double square. I set it to 4/64" from the bevel of the fret, lock it, then hold it up against the edge of the fingerboard and use it as a fence. The nut file rides along the double square ruler and cuts a slot in the nut that will be 4/64" from the fret bevel. I flip the double square over and repeat on the other side. I always leave the nut a little proud on both ends so I have room to move it in or out as needed to get both outside strings equally far away from their respective fret bevels. This method works great, and is only one I started doing a couple years ago after first getting into guitar work about 17 years ago. I've used the Stewmac ruler before a few times, and I still own mine, but I much prefer my caliper method. The main reason being that with the Stewmac ruler, you have to make pencil marks, and when you go to *cut* those marks, it can be very difficult to do so accurately. With calipers, I can use them as a fence and then immediately double check my work to make sure I'm within a few thousandths of my target spacing. As for the original 'by eye' method I used, and the one my friend still uses (he's been a full time tech since 1969), it's just as it sounds -- by eye. However, when he gets the strings spaced where he wants them, he carefully holds them down one by one and marks either side of them with a pencil. Then he uses the thumbnail on one hand as a 'fence' for the nut file, placing it right in the middle of those two lines. If memory serves, he starts with an Xacto razor saw, then uses a larger nut file to widen that 'set mark.' I still use a razor saw on the high E and B strings, though the razor saw won't work when using caliper jaws as a fence. For that you need to use nut files, which almost miraculously just perfectly fit. Big proponent of "find what works for you." Mix and match from other methods, or just use methods other people use, whatever works. What really matters is that the end result is good and that *you're* happy with it, and *you* can get repeatable, reliable results with your chosen method. Also, great video! Always enjoy your content and the discussions you get started in the comment section! One of the things I love most about this channel is the viewer engagement, absolutely great to get people talking about this!

Can anyone give the detail in cm

From a player's standpoint, I like to have the same amount of space on each side of my fingertips when pressing down the different strings on the first fret. The reason for this is that I don't want to be accidentally muting an adjacent string. Obviously, different fingertips are different sizes, and the angle they touch different strings varies. I checked several of my guitars, and the spacings vary from center to center, edge to edge, and variable. I think the main takeaway should be a wide enough spacing so accidental muting can be avoided. How the spacing looks is not as important as how it feels and performs.

Equal spacing only works for a given set of string gauges. Surely you would not want to swap the nut, just because you're using another set of strings than what it was designed for?

Important question: bridge How do the makers of the bridges handle this? Does it make any sense, if it is handled differently at the nut than it is handled at the bridge? Any player would find this really confusing, I think.

I take a photo of the bridge with strings installed and then scale that for the nut. Why would you not? This problem is way overthink IMHO.

There is another way. And that is just doing it by eye. Not measuring it at all. Don't laugh. Years ago I worked for a very well known bass guitar builder who did it this way. Personally I like to do it centre to centre, even though it looks slightly off, especially with a 5-string bass.

Equal center is the correct way. When You play your fingers search the CENTER and then will be more comfortable if strings are center spaced !!!!!!!!! AND WHAT IF You decide to change from a 011 - 048 string set to a 09 - 42 ???? Center space will work the same . Equal distance will turn in garbage............

You're trying to solve the wrong problem. As a player, precision matters, and I want the centers of the strings to be equidistant. Play some fast passages and see if you can play more cleanly with even spacing, or if you play more cleanly with variable distances. It doesn't sound like a lot, but precision matters for clean playing, especially faster passages.

Ukuleles are not that complex as the nylon strings are all rather skinny. Even on my ukulele with a thick nylon low G string the spacing looks fine and plays well with evenly spaced centers. I ask the customer about nut width preference. Folks with big hands tend to appreciate wider fretboards. And smaller hands like them a bit more narrow. The “piccolo” tiny ukuleles (solid wood) I have made for grandchildren (11” scale length) got narrow fretboards as 2 & 3 year olds have small hands. But they do love to play so I encourage them…