Guitar Strings - Tips and Tricks to Keep Strings from Breaking

Since picking up my first guitar 28 years ago, I've had a myriad of guitars that have had strange appetites for breaking strings. No two have ever been the same, so I've put together some ideas for you guitar tech troubleshooters. Maybe the following ideas will help in trying to figure out what the best course of "action" (any guitar pun people out there?) would be in stopping so much string breakage. So, here are some tips and tricks for figuring out why a guitar breaks strings.

Where'd it Break?

First off, when your strings breaks (again!), rather than ripping the broken string off your guitar in a crescendo of frustration, take a deep breath and calmly lay it back down over the neck/body and see where it broke. A lot of times that will give you an instant clue as to the problem location to be investigating. Once you've done that, then go back to venting!

Pain and String Gauges

When I first began playing, I would buy the thinnest, lightest strings that I could get my hands on. Why? Simple, really. I was avoiding the pain of those thicker, stiffer strings. Oh, sure, I could bend notes real high with those .009 E strings, but it was really the pain factor that I was trying to avoid. It's true that lighter strings do make it easier on string bends, but they can also bring string breakage into the picture. (and after all, do you really need to try that three octave bend?) So, after trying my other tips, if string breaking keeps occurring, then try buying a good quality string in a slightly thicker gauge. (.010 E strings?) Two octave bends, here we go!

Too High Strung-- Avoid the BOING!

Tuning. I used to think that this problem would never happen to me. Yeah, right. Turns out that even though I've been strumming guitars for nearly 30 years, my ear can still be off when I don't use a guitar tuner. Here's what happens: Guitar feels out of tune. So, I attempt to tune by ear (you should see the calluses on my ear lobes). I usually have to tune up, and inadvertently I would always end up tuning the strings higher than they should be. The next thing I know, I'm winding that string, winding that string -- BOING! -- replacing that string, replacing that string.

You can find guitar tuners now fairly inexpensively. Why, you can even find apps for your iPod/iPhone/cell phones that'll help you tune your guitar. So, if you're trying to go it by ear, try checking your strings against a known frequency or tone. Avoid the BOING!

The Nutty Factor

Would you believe that eating too many peanuts can break guitar strings? (I know what you're thinking: "Come on, Ron, you can't be serious?") Ok, so I'm only kidding. When I mention nuts, I'm talking about the little separator between the fret board and the tuning head. I have had guitars that had a sharp area in this location. Consequently, the string gets agitated at that location and breaks. Sometimes some string lubricant in this location, or even a small amount of baby powder can ease breakage if this is a trouble area. You could try a fine sandpaper, but be careful. If the nut is made of plastic you could end up filing off too much and change the string action, giving the guitar an annoying buzzing string. Try a lubricant first.

Saddle Sore?

Similar to the nut problem, especially on an electric guitar, is the area down near the tail stock called the saddle. Acoustic guitars usually have a fixed saddle, so there's not much you want to do to those. Electrics - and this is very notable on Gibsons and Epiphone style guitars -- will incorporate a string saddle with adjustable sliding string "grooves". These are used to set a guitar's intonation. (Intonation is the fancy term for adjusting the guitar so it stays in tune while playing all the way up the neck on higher frets). One of my oldest guitars, a Hondo II (Les Paul style), would break stings over and over again. And it was always the second "B" string. So after getting sick of always having to buy B strings, I laid the broken string back across the neck. Guess what? It lined right up on one the intonation saddles. I took a tiny bit of very fine sandpaper and ran it through the groove. Sure enough, I could feel an edge, or burr, in there. A gentle amount of pressure was all that was needed. With the burr gone, so did string breakage. That was 20 years ago, and they no longer break. (BTW, anyone want to buy around a hundred 25 year old B strings?)

Tuners

There is a right way and all the other ways to wind the strings around a guitar's tuning pegs, winders, or, whatever you want to call them. Take a look at some of the diagrams on the web on how to put a string on. Make sure that you're not unnecessarily stressing things out when you wind the string up. This was particularly true when I first started playing. I would put the string through the winder hole and forcefully yank the string, almost in a "tying the knot" kind of fashion. I've since learned that if I'm a bit more gentle, making sure that the string overlaps properly, the string ends up with a longer life. So go slow and use a good technique.

Too Old?

Yep. The older you get, the more your guitar strings will break. Just kidding. No, I don't mean you being too old. After all, look at how long Les Paul kept picking. When I say old, I mean the strings themselves. Have you had them on there since before the iPod was invented? (You do know that iPods haven't always been with us, right?). If those strings are rusty and dull and can turn a white cloth orange when you slide it across them -- then it's time. Or if you're using B strings bought from 25 years ago (Hmmm. Sort of reminds me of someone I know....) It's time. Go get some new strings!

Conclusion

Sometimes just using some common sense can go a long way to figuring out why guitar strings break. Take notice of where they break, and you're one step closer in making the why they break a thing of the past.

Stay in tune, and happy picking.