Help! how well stocked with replacement parts is Guitar Center?

[nicolasd]

the nut on my 2006 LE Stingray 5 broke this very moment.

and i'm leaving for tour wednesday afternoon.

going to bring her in to GC first thing tomorrow but i'm wondering if anyone knows how likely they might be to have a replacement. the compensated nut for a five string is probably not the most common part to have around.

thanks.

little panicked.

-n.

 

[bovinehost]

Just a guess on my part, but - not very likely. I'd get on the phone 1st thing tomorrow with Customer Service.

BTW, I broke the B side off one of mine (string too big, my own fault) and super-glued it right back together....still holding after six months.

Something to think about.

Jack

 

[nicolasd]

that's exactly what happened. a 135 gauge string on the low B. i kept the piece. i'll superglue tomorrow and get a hold of some 125's.

-n.

 

[bovinehost]

Clamp it if you can, and you might have to sand it if it feels rough along the edges, but yup, mine's working fine. (I wouldn't mind replacing it just so it's perfect, but it doesn't keep me up nights or anything.)

Jack

 

[Ken Baker]

Gotta agree with Lord Bovine.

I busted the G string side out of a nut when filing it. My fault - too much side pressure. It was a fairly clean break that I didn't have to clean up before gluing. Once glued, it hasn't budged.

Be sure to carefully mask both the fretboard and the headstock on either side of the nut (I used smooth blue painter's tape). Maybe wear latex gloves so you don't glue you. I used slow setting CA glue that I have for pen turning. Apply a small amount of glue to one piece then press into place. Hold it with one hand while you wipe off excess (wipe with a fast swipe). Continue to hold until the glue goes off, then remove the tape. You may have a tiny bit of tape to clean off afterward. I used a fresh razor blade to score along either side of the nut, then a wooden sandwich pick to clean off the leftover blue tape. You may be able to avoid the tape cleanup by removing the tape immediately after the wipe before the CA sets, but you then have to be extra careful holding the piece in place until the glue does go off.

Ken...

 

[nicolasd]

thanks. i did my ham-handed version of a superglue job. i'll make some calls tomorrow.

do you know whether i call the Coachella office or the S.L.O. office?

thanks for the help
-n.

 

[Ken Baker]

SLO.

Ken...

 

[ronnyG]

Not to seem like a 'know it all" but crazy glue///super glue etc all sux. But it can sure stick well to your fingers.

Well sarcasm aside..apparently it has worked for others and that's fine. But since I play old beat up instruments that often have hard to find parts I have become more or less an expert on determing how to fix stuff in a pinch.

A 2-part epoxy will be alot more reliable in my opinion..after all if super glue was so great why doesn't it stick inside it's container? A 2 part needs to be mixed to activate and is really strong stuff if not messed with until fully cured (depends on a few factors but it's fast).

I apply it to broken nuts with a q-tip (use a q tip to mix it as well) and there will be enough leftover to last years. Can be got at any hardware or autoparts store. I have even used it to "build up" nut slots that have worn to eliminate buzzing and reset the height but use masking tape carefully on the headstock/fretboard and all areas in the vicinity that you don't want glue on..the stuff when cured will not come off without damaging stuff. Once you attach the broken piece quickly wipe any excess epoxy from the area devise a way to hold pressure on it for a couple of hours at most. It won't come apart after that until you want it to..and it will be difficult.

Best of luck on the tour.

EDIT: Sorry, I noticed Kens post above prretty much describes the procedure I posted. CA glue works great as well but sometimes it is too thin or dries too fast (the slower the cure time the thicker it is..can get it at hobby stores)...but regardless it is 100X better then any conventional crazy glue in my experience.

 

[INMT]

I can tell you this.....gum does not work

 

[Ken Baker]

As a note of reference, and to be technically correct, CA glue is a generic term used in reference to any brand or type of cyanoacrylate adhesive. Krazy Glue is but one brand.

There are various sub-types of CA glue within the home/hobby category, from very thick and relatively slow acting glues to watery thin very fast types that literally go off in a puff of smoke. Household Krazy Glue and Super Glue are somewhere in the middle.

More info than you probably want can be found here.

Ken...

 

[Caca de Kick]

I've never seen any GC's (up and down the entire west coast) to carry any EBMM parts, let alone anyone carrying the compensated nuts.

Just glue it for now, it'll be fine.

 

[TheStiffness]

You won't find a shop that carries a lot of, if any, MM parts. We don't manufacture parts in bulk for resale - hence, we don't sell them in bulk to retailers. We try to sell them as replacement items only. The best way to order a replacement part is to contact your local, authorized MM dealer and have them order the parts for you.

Or just gorilla glue it. Or duck-tape it. Or just pretend it's a 4-string.

 

[ronnyG]

As a note of reference, and to be technically correct, CA glue is a generic term used in reference to any brand or type of cyanoacrylate adhesive. Krazy Glue is but one brand.

There are various sub-types of CA glue within the home/hobby category, from very thick and relatively slow acting glues to watery thin very fast types that literally go off in a puff of smoke. Household Krazy Glue and Super Glue are somewhere in the middle.

More info than you probably want can be found here.

Ken...

Yes that is correct. However the CA or "Cyanoacrylate, hate big words" I was referring to is the "industrial grade" high quality 2-part..the only type I would consider using, and more expensive then off the shelf "crazy glue", I should have made that clear...the glue itself comes in various "setting times" ie: 5 sec, 10 sec 15 sec etc. and the longer setting times are thicker..the quicker setting CA is almost like water in viscosity so I wouldn't consider using that for anything (as you stated also).

The activator comes in a spray bottle...you apply the CA to one part..spray the other with activator, join, spray more activator over the connected peices..wipe off excess, keep pressure on the pieces for a few minutes and done. I have a friend that is a distributor of custom supplies and he sends me it for free when I need..but it's not cheap. And not has easy to find a hobby store (the stuff is primarily used for model plane construction) in a pinch then a hardware or auto parts store..hence I prefer the 2 -part epoxy.

As well the 2 part epoxy (they make some designed specifically for plastics) is what I use to fill slots..the 2 part CA in that instance would not really do the trick. But for holding stuff together it is awesome.

On a side note CA can work without activator..but I would not trust it for reliabilty on any load bearing job..it is too similar to crazy glue in that case. Learned that the hard way.