The 5 most common causes of strings breaking

This is a topic that can be quite confusing for a lot of people. Strings break for a number of reasons, but if you have some of the reasons it will make it much easier for you to avoid string breakage

1. playing too hard

When I first started playing guitar I used to break a lot of strings, but I noticed recently that even though I play guitar everyday I rarely break a string (and trust me we have a lot of guitars !). The difference is that as I have been playing for a longer time I have started to play softer and with more control. It also allows me to get a better sound as a guitar will sound its best when the player has control of his dynamics and volume. I wouldn't say I was a great player, but the experience has helped

2. Old strings

If your strings are rusty or dark then its time to change them !

3. Nut too tight or creaky

Do you ever hear your strings creaking as you tune ? This is caused by the but grabbing the string as it tunes up. You can fix this problem by rubbing a little pencil into the nut slot, or by using some Graphitall which we sell on our site (Graphitall is a white graphite lubricant)

4. String Gauge is too light

It's much better to use a gauge that is a little heavier, on an Electric we would recommend 10-46 or 11-52 for an acoustic (if your a good player go for 12-53)

5. A bad saddle

This can happen on older guitars, sometimes the saddle section will become sharp or rough. This is pretty bad for your strings and will caused them to break, if you have this problem its best to get your guitar repaired as soon as you can.

6. Bending or reusing strings

A lot of people do this one, as they tighten up the string it will get bent a little, once its bent or out of shape it will very easily break. Also, strings are best used once, so don't take a string from another guitar to fix one that has broken (and we have sets from $5 you don't really need to steal a string).

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