I'm going to cut my nuts - need advice

[AwakenTheSkies]

Ordered a Stewmac nut seating file, hopefully that helps me flatten any imperfections in the nut seating slot. I really want that perfect fit

 

[Asdrael]

Any ideas how make the slot 90 degrees to get a perfect fit?

I will repeat myself but the only question is: are the string length and the respective fret positions correct for the instrument to play in tune? If yes, then don't mess with it and live with the micro gap it won't do a thing. Unless you really know what you are doing, chances are you will mess up the nut slot by trying to fill/sand when the frets are already in.

But if you really want an answer: to do it cleanly I would need to first see what is actually good (bottom of the slot parallel to fretboard, or fretboard side perpendicular to the fretboard), and fix the bad part by sanding it flat, gluing in a piece of wood, and reshaping said peace of wood hopefully better than what it was.

 

[AwakenTheSkies]

I will repeat myself but the only question is: are the string length and the respective fret positions correct for the instrument to play in tune? If yes, then don't mess with it and live with the micro gap it won't do a thing. Unless you really know what you are doing, chances are you will mess up the nut slot by trying to fill/sand when the frets are already in.

But if you really want an answer: to do it cleanly I would need to first see what is actually good (bottom of the slot parallel to fretboard, or fretboard side perpendicular to the fretboard), and fix the bad part by sanding it flat, gluing in a piece of wood, and reshaping said peace of wood hopefully better than what it was.

How much do you need to file off the fretboard end until you start messing up the intonation? With the nut seating file that I've ordered I won't be touching the fretboard side anymore. But the first mod I ever did on this guitar was changing the nut 10 years ago and I was a teenager then, so obviously I wasn't as careful as I am now I've filed all over the nut seating slot a bunch of times with different sandpapers and files that aren't meant for wood in these 10 years, but nothing too coarse, it never felt like I was doing anything more than scraping off glue..

I can stick the nut flat against the fretboard or the bottom, but not both. So then I should be able to stick the smooth side of the nut seating file against the fretboard side, let the file do it's thing and it should make a 90° slot, also smoothing out any imperfections on the bottom. That's what I'm hoping for anyway. Ahhh I'm so impatient now

 

[AwakenTheSkies]

Phew got a bit scared there

Fuck yeah we're good to go now I just need that file to get here and I can fit this right