breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

tone4days

tone4days

Heel Whacker
help folks

this is my first strat ever ... for some reason, i am breaking D strings VERY frequently - about once every 8 hours of playing or less .... no other strings breaking ... they always break right at the saddle ... i am a little bit heavy handed (but not VERY much so) - and NOT playing hardcore 'chugga chugga' rhythm ... i do not use the trem ... i do not break D strings (or any other strings for that matter) on any of my other guitars

what can i do? what should i look for? anyone else having problems like that with an EJ strat bridge (or similar bridge)

any assistance will be greatly appreciated

thanks in advance
t4d
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

first check the saddle for anything sharp. it should have a nice smooth seat for the string.
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

thanks

i did that and it looked 'ok', but will do it again, maybe with a magnifying glass ... the odd thing to me (as a strat newbie) is that the saddle doesnt have a 'notch' for the string to sit in ... it just kinda lays on the saddle
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

I got some really fine oil at a hobby store, I oil 1x a week. My string breakage on string saddles has been eliminated. I do the nut, saddles and retainers on a 96 62 RI Strat. I used to break em all the time..... I do it for all the guitars, works great.
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

thanks, will look into that

do you know the brand name and product name for the oil you use?
t4d
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

Well no grooves....it is a matter of getting used to playing a strat....(I have broken tons of D strings in my life:D )
It is the string with the most tension, plus if you are used to LP's and such, the added scalelenght is alittle harder on strings, I think it is more of a get used to playing and get to know it thing??
 
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Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

good point, niels - thanks ... i might have to just lighten up a bit ... that's a little hard to do 'cus the guitar just begs to be 'dug into' when playing rhythm guitar
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

Is it breaking at the saddle or just on the bridge end of the string? Its possible it could be rubbing in the block or where it breaks over the plate before it goes to the saddle.
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

my D is .028 - d'addario

i will check again as to where they are breaking (the one that broke last night is still on the guitar) ... i am pretty sure it is right at the saddle, not the 'break point' where it pops thru the body
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

Hmmm... I think you should pack it up and send it here. I'll PM you my address. If I can't fix it I will just send you my MIM to replace it.
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

I know you probably don't want to hear this, but change your saddles out for Graphite. Try all the other suggestions first! I have graphite saddles on ALL my guitars. I was breaking a lot of strings and I use 11's. I changed to graphite string savers and I rarely break strings now and when I do its because the strings have been on the guitar to long.

As far as checking the saddles. Use a magnifier. A liny burr can cause all kinds of problems. Use a 600 grit wet & dry paper and work up to 2000. Then polish it with some metal polish. After that try a dab of nutsause on the saddle too. If this does not solve the problem try the graphite saddles.

I use the basic graphite saddles on most of my guitars. I just ordered a set of the Ferraglides in gold for a Strat project I am working on (almost doen). These are metal with a graphite insert. Check out the website for research, but I think you can get them a lot cheaper elsewhere. Musicians freind etc.

http://www.graphtech.com/
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

thanks bludave ... will do with the magnifyer and sanding/polishing/lube ... but switching it out for graphite is really gonna be last resort ... that's GOTTA change the tone in 'who knows how' ways ...
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

Heavy handedness is almost always the culprit for breaking D strings, because the pick is bouncing off the A and slamming the D string hard, during rhythm playing.

Don't be afraid of ruining the tone with Graphtech saddles. If anything, they remove some of the shrill treble of the plain strings, but don't sound too different from any other saddle. On your strat, I'd definitely pay a little more and get the Ferraglide saddles, if they make them for vintage trems. That way, you still have the look of metal, and only the bearing edge has a little block of graphite in it.
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

My 2 cents is its Sacrilige to put anything but stamped saddles on an EJ strat.
They contribute alot to the specific sound of that particular guitar.

Then again if ya dont care its cool, put whatever on them. I just think that it will change the tone quite a bit.

I still think that something is wrong here for you to be breaking them so easily. Switch it around with the G string saddle and see what happens. Just intonate it after you do the switcheroo.

I have a Callaham and do NOT break strings often at all. Mind you i am 6'2" and am a pretty big guy. I am not easy on my guitars. Something sounds wrong here. Before you go sanding any saddles switchem around.
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

thanks

yeah i really wanna stay with the stamped if at all possible

i am gonna investigate some more ... maybe try the swap or a little 600 grit

will report back

t4d
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

tone? said:
Something sounds wrong here. Before you go sanding any saddles switchem around.
Click to expand...

+1

The 'D' string could keep breaking because of a burr...that would be the most likely suspect.

Are the strings breaking where they first meet the saddle, or a bit farther back...where the string leaves the saddle and breaks into the trem block?

It might be hard to tell unless (and even if!) you examine the unwound part of the broken string & try to mentally piece it all together...

FWIW, the only string (that I can recall anyway) I've popped on my EJ in the year & change we've been together was an 'A' while literally BEATING the guitar into submission for an overdubbed feedback part of a song.
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

i checked the guitar again ... the string is most definitely breaking right at the saddle ... the 'core' part of the string is broken right at the point where it crosses the saddle .. the wound part was still 'in tact', but unraveled quite a bit ... the part where it emerges from the trem block is not disturbed

t4d
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

Do you have the D-string saddle pretty far forward (closer to pickups) than the other saddles? If so, it may be that instead of breaking right at the saddle, it maybe be breaking at the point where it comes out of the trem block. When the saddle is pretty far forward, the angle coming out of the block is much sharper.

I had the same problem with my Strat but on the high E. Somebody told me an SRV trick was to put some shrink tube or empty wire insulation on the string right where it comes out of the block to soften both the seat and the angle a bit.

I don't know if SRV actually did that or not. All I know is I haven't broken a high E since, and I do two-step bends on the high E.
 
Re: breakin strings on my EJ strat - help?

thanks zhang ... yeah - i read about SRV's "surgical tubing' trick too ... will try that if it seems to be rubbing there

t4d
 
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