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String Maintenance & Installation

PIRASTRO RECOMMENDATIONS ON STRING MAINTENANCE

Changing of strings

Procedure

Only change one string at a time! To prevent the tension across your instrument from changing significantly, please only begin to change one string after you have completely changed another. By doing this you will prevent the bridge and the sound post from falling over. The order in which you change strings makes no difference at all.

After mounting the strings each one of them will lose tension unequally. You should therefore continuously ensure to keep each string tuned to the correct pitch. On no account should you over-correct the string.

Quality and position of the bridge

Please make sure that the grooves on the bridge and upper nut are not too deep and that they match the string’s gauge. Sharp edges can damage the string; especially at the bridge. We recommend that you lightly cover the peg and upper nut with a thin layer of graphite each time you install a new string. Use this as the opportunity to check that the grooves at the peg are equal in size and are not too deep.

Please check the position of the bridge. The position of the bridge has an important impact on the sound quality of your instrument. During string mounting, the bridge can tilt towards the scroll. When you have mounted a new string it is especially important that you pay attention to this and correct the position of the bridge, if necessary. If the bridge itself has been crafted correctly, then the best results will be achieved by tilting the bridge slightly in the direction of the tail piece end.

 Already-used strings

Newly installing an already-used string can adversely affect the sound and playing quality. It is certainly possible to freshly install a used string, however this is likely to lead to a loss in sound and playing quality. This is particularly true of synthetic strings.