Keeping your electric guitar in top playing condition is essential for any guitarist, and a crucial part of that is knowing how to change your strings. Whether you’ve broken a string, or your whole set is sounding dull, replacing them is a straightforward process that can significantly improve your guitar’s tone, playability, and tuning stability. This guide will walk you through each step of how to change electric guitar strings like a pro, ensuring your instrument is always ready to rock.
How Often Should Electric Guitar Strings Be Changed?
A common recommendation is to change your guitar strings every three months or after approximately 100 hours of playing time. However, this is just a guideline. The lifespan of your strings depends on various factors including your playing style, how often you play, and even your body chemistry. Players who use picks, sweat a lot, or frequently perform live might need to change strings more often. It’s best practice to inspect your strings weekly for signs of wear and tear such as corrosion, fraying, or a dull sound. Even if wear is minimal, replacing strings regularly is a worthwhile investment for maintaining optimal tone and feel. Fresh strings resonate better, sustain notes longer, and provide a brighter, more vibrant sound.
Essential Tools for Changing Guitar Strings
Before you start, gather these recommended supplies to make the string changing process smooth and efficient:
- A Stable Flat Surface: Choose a table or workbench where you can safely lay your guitar flat.
- Neck Support: Use a guitar neck rest or a soft pillow to support the guitar neck, elevating the headstock from your work surface and preventing any potential damage.
- New Guitar Strings: Have your new set of electric guitar strings ready. Consider the gauge that suits your playing style and guitar.
- String Winder: A string winder, whether manual or electric, will significantly speed up the process of winding strings around the tuning pegs.
- Wire Cutters: Essential for clipping old strings and excess string length after restringing.
- Polishing Cloth: Use a soft cloth to clean your guitar and protect the finish from scratches during the process.
- Eye Protection: Safety glasses or goggles are crucial to protect your eyes from snapping strings, especially when cutting old strings.
- [Optional] Masking Tape: Blue painter’s tape can be helpful to secure the bridge and tailpiece in place if you are removing all strings at once, especially on guitars with floating bridges.
Step 1: Loosening the Old Strings
Begin by placing your guitar on your prepared flat surface, ensuring the neck is supported. The first step is to reduce the tension on the old strings. Use the tuning pegs on the headstock to loosen each string. Turn the tuning pegs counter-clockwise to decrease the tension. You don’t need to completely unwind them at this stage, just loosen them enough so they are slack and easy to handle. This will make them safer and easier to remove in the next step.
Step 2: Removing the Old Strings Safely
Safety First: Always loosen strings before cutting them. Cutting a string under full tension can be dangerous and potentially damage your guitar.
Replacing a Single String:
If you’re only replacing one broken string, use wire cutters to snip the string somewhere over the pickups. Carefully set the longer portion of the string aside. Then, gently pull the shorter piece of string from the tailpiece or bridge. To protect your guitar’s finish from scratches, position a polishing cloth underneath the tailpiece while removing the string ends. Once the tailpiece end is free, you can unwind and remove the longer portion of the string from the tuning peg on the headstock.
Replacing All Strings:
For a complete string change, repeat the single string removal process for each string. When removing all strings simultaneously, be aware that the bridge and tailpiece may become loose without string tension. For guitars where the bridge and tailpiece are not fixed, using blue masking tape to lightly secure them to the guitar body is a smart preventative measure against accidental movement or damage. Alternatively, you can change strings in pairs or in a sequence, for example, replacing three strings at a time while leaving the other three on to maintain some tension and keep the bridge and tailpiece stable. This “half-removal” method achieves the same stability as using masking tape.
Step 3: Installing the New Strings
Installing a Single String:
Take your new string and thread the ball end through the corresponding hole in the tailpiece or bridge, ensuring it is seated securely. Guide the other, bare end of the string up towards the headstock, ready to be threaded through the tuning peg.
Installing All Strings:
For a full set replacement, some guitarists prefer to remove the tailpiece entirely for easier string threading. Remove the tailpiece, then thread the ball end of each new string into the correct hole in the tailpiece. Gibson string sets, and most string sets from reputable brands, are labeled to indicate their position (e.g., 1st string – high E, 6th string – low E). After threading all strings into the tailpiece, reattach the tailpiece to your guitar. Now, guide all the bare ends of the strings up towards the headstock.
Step 4: Restringing at the Headstock: Two Proven Methods
There are a couple of effective methods for winding the strings onto the tuning pegs. Here are two popular techniques:
Simple Stringing Method:
- Measure and Cut: Hold the new string taut and extend it about 2.5 to 3 inches past the tuning post. Use wire cutters to trim the excess string.
- Insert String: Align the tuning peg hole perpendicular to the guitar neck. Thread the string into the hole from the inside of the headstock outwards, leaving a small amount (about 1/16″-1/8″) protruding from the hole.
- Wind and Tighten: Bend the string slightly at the point where it enters the tuning peg hole. Use a string winder to turn the tuning peg, winding the string.
- Maintain Downward Pressure: As you wind, apply gentle downward pressure on the string. This ensures each new winding sits below the previous one, creating a neat and stable wrap around the tuning post. Criss-crossing string wraps can lead to tuning instability as they can slip and shift. Aim for a uniform, downward winding pattern.
Master Luthier Jim DeCola demonstrates the simple string winding technique with downward pressure.
The Secure Z-Wrap Method:
- Insert String (No Pre-cutting): Align the tuning peg hole perpendicular to the neck and thread the new string through the hole from inside to outside. Do not cut the string at this stage.
- Create the Z-Bend: Pull about an inch of string slack through the tuning post. Then, bend both the incoming and outgoing string ends clockwise around the tuning post, forming a “Z” shape.
- Wind and Tighten: Apply downward pressure to the string as you use a string winder to turn the tuning peg and tighten the string. Again, ensure each wrap is below the last for stability.
- Trim Excess: Once the string is tightened to pitch, use wire cutters to snip off the excess string extending beyond the tuning post.
Master Luthier Jim DeCola illustrates the Z-wrap string locking method.
Step 5: Stretching the New Strings for Tuning Stability
The final, but crucial step after restringing is stretching your new strings. Stretching helps to accelerate the settling-in process and improves tuning stability. To stretch your strings, use your thumb and index finger to gently grip a string. Pull upwards along the length of the string, moving from the bridge to the neck and back. It’s important to pull gently enough that the string can slip through your fingers if excessive force is applied, preventing potential hand injuries. After a few gentle stretches, tune the string back up to pitch. Repeat this stretch-tune process multiple times for each string until the pitch remains stable after stretching.
Congratulations! You have successfully changed the strings on your electric guitar. Regular string changes, combined with proper technique, will keep your guitar sounding its best and playing beautifully.
Need More Guidance?
If you’re looking for more in-depth assistance or personalized advice, Gibson offers resources like virtual guitar techs. These experts can provide free online video consultations to help with any questions you might have about your Gibson instruments and maintenance.
