Issue with Strings On My Hardtail Guitar

[JustinRhoads1980]

So this is about the second or third time this has occurred to me and I can't explain what exactly is causing it at all whatsoever.






So what seems to happen is that at the bottom of the string where the little ball is, the string at the end I guess begins to unwind?? I have no idea what is causing this at all. I am using Ernie Ball 10-46s so it is nothing real tight, action is low, and I am not doing anything crazy on the strings.

The last time it happened which was two days ago, I was tuning it up to pitch and I noticed that I heard a kink and it went down in tuning and I brushed it off. I then continued in trying to tuning it up again hearing the same kink and it being downtuned.
I looked at the bridge and i'm like shit it happened again.

Any idea of what is going on??

 

[Mathemagician]

When you are tuning up a new set, do you “spread” it out so you tweak each string a few turns and then go to another one letting the prior string settle some or are you tuning up just one string from cold to in tune?

It shouldn’t happen either way but if you’re tuning up one at a time it can cause breaks on occasion. Also sometimes you just get a bad set of strings.

 

[JustinRhoads1980]

When you are tuning up a new set, do you “spread” it out so you tweak each string a few turns and then go to another one letting the prior string settle some or are you tuning up just one string from cold to in tune?

It shouldn’t happen either way but if you’re tuning up one at a time it can cause breaks on occasion. Also sometimes you just get a bad set of strings.

No I am actually not doing that and never have. These strings had been on for maybe a month? I don't play the guitar that much so like I don't understand why it would happen. I will try doing that when I restring that now

 

[IGC]

Did you try loading the strings from the front so they wrap 'over the top' of the tailpiece, then over the saddles down the neck etc. ? I'm thinking that's your issue. Maybe even thread the strings through their eyelett end, then over the T.O.M. bridge.

 

[spudmunkey]

Did you try loading the strings from the front so they wrap 'over the top' of the tailpiece, then over the saddles down the neck etc. ? I'm thinking that's your issue.

Er, that shouldn't cause the issue, and shouldn't be the solution. I've tried that on two guitars, and the lack of downforce at the saddle meant that more than a couple of times, each time i tried, I apparently strum too hard and the strings pop out of the saddle grooves.

Instead, I'm wondering if you've got a burr inside the tailpiece? I've seen strings get fucked up in a similar way over the saddles, but yours seems to be happening behind the saddles....but check both for burrs in the metal. It might be just sharp enough to nick your strings.

It could also just have been a bad batch of strings. if you bought them at the same time, they might have been from the same production run that maybe had some sort of issue.

 

[JustinRhoads1980]

Did you try loading the strings from the front so they wrap 'over the top' of the tailpiece, then over the saddles down the neck etc. ? I'm thinking that's your issue. Maybe even thread the strings through their eyelett end, then over the T.O.M. bridge.

I have never thought of trying that at all.

Er, that shouldn't cause the issue, and shouldn't be the solution. I've tried that on two guitars, and the lack of downforce at the saddle meant that more than a couple of times, each time i tried, I apparently strum too hard and the strings pop out of the saddle grooves.

Instead, I'm wondering if you've got a burr inside the tailpiece? I've seen strings get fucked up in a similar way over the saddles, but yours seems to be happening behind the saddles....but check both for burrs in the metal. It might be just sharp enough to nick your strings.

It could also just have been a bad batch of strings. if you bought them at the same time, they might have been from the same production run that maybe had some sort of issue.

Well I had Ernie Balls and a set of dunlops in there. Maybe both were bad? I dunno, could be a coincidence even though I doubt it.

I will definitely check for burrs since that seems to be very probable and I didn't even think of that as a possibility. If I find one then I guess it is time for a new tailpiece

 

[spudmunkey]

Not necessarily. Sometime just a small file is enough to smooth it out. There might be other methods, too.

 

[IGC]

Pretty sure that's the original way they were designed. Guess not all though

edit- ok yeah I was thinking of another les paul style bridge where the strings do front load and wrap around the top but don't go over a T.O.M. my bad. Sincere apologies.