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Posts: 1708
Joined: Jan. 29 2012
From: Seattle, Washington, USA
Players (especially): Preferred Nut...
I have built guitars with 50.5, 51, 51.5, and 52 mm wide nuts. I have a 1971 Jose Ramirez Modelo Sabicas (beat up and not for sale; I study it) that has a 53 mm nut. What width do you prefer?
I find a wider neck is better for Flamenco and classical . I was used to a very narrow neck with the electric guitars but I think 52 is just fine , although I really have never tried a 53 , I would think it would be very good as well. As a standard most people will own a 52 mm nut...
You forgot to put the 54mm nut on the list. I prefer a 53mm nut but there are other factors involved. Shape of the neck and stringspacing. In general, if I like a guitar, I adapt to anything between 52 and 54mm and if I dont like the guitar, then I just dont care about milimeters
I voted tor "depends on the shape of the neck", because that seems the most logical to me. Being that I have a steel string background, I can live with a 50 MM nut just fine. I have played guitars with thin neck profiles and a 50 MM nut which just didn't feel right to me. If the neck profile had been thicker, then I would have been fine. By the same I have played a few 53 MM necks which felt killer good to me. All in all if I bought a guitar that was used or something, and I had no say on how the neck was made, I wouldn't hesitate about buying a guitar with a 52 or 51 MM nut. If it was a 50, 53 or 54 MM nut, I would have to play it first before I would consider putting in an offer... Like Anders, most times I can get used to anything if I like the guitar, but I don't see any 54 MM nuts in my future... Maybe I should vote again and just split my difference and vote for 51.5 MM...
I recently bought a cedar/indian rosewood guitar from Benito Huipe. Since he lives in Paracho, I had to buy it without playing it first. All I specified was a 660mm scale, and the rest I left up to him. As it turned out he made the nut 55mm. This wasn't what I expected in my mind, but even so I was surprised how comfy and playable it turned out. I do have fairly large hands, but others have played it as well since I got it and no one has complained about the nut width. I currently have guitars with 51.5mm, 52mm, and now this 55mm. I think I agree with Anders too, that if I like the guitar I can get used to the neck shape and width. But I think that given a choice, a wider nut is more comfy for me. My narrowest guitar requires me to pay more attention to my technique, mainly to avoid muting the 1rst string when I don't mean to. Although I think that little issue might have more to do with neck shape, I dunno.
Darn it Juan! Some time I would like to hear your thoughts on your Huipe. I had considered ordering this latest negra from him, and was even offered a big discount... I was afraid to take the plunge cause I had only played one of his guitars from years ago. Plus he never returned my emails, not sure if he got them or not though... I had to email with Alex, the guy who helps him sort out the money and shipping... He seemed like a good guy. Sorry for going O.T...
It seems for me, there has to be a balance between neck thickness and neck width. If a neck is 53 or 54 MM, I like for it to be pretty thin, (I should measure just how thick), but if a neck is 52 or 51 MM, I definitely want it to be on the thicker side. That's just me and my average size hands... It also seems that if I'm playing on a wider neck that I don't like as much graduation in how the neck is tapered. I have also noticed that I like a neck to be a little more on the flat side if its wider, and somewhat more rounded if its 52 MM or less.
All in all, it still seems that if a luthier is making a guitar, and he don't know who the buyer is going to be that he is still better off going with a 52 MM nut. But I'm just talking as a guitar buyer, not a luthier. As I said before, I have no reservations about playing on a guitar that has a 52 MM nut.
I just sold a 2008 Navarro which I had here for a short time, and I wish I had measured the thickness and taper of the neck, because that was hands down the best feeling neck that I had played. I don't know what it was about it, it didn't have a carbon fiber rod, it just had an ebony reinforcement strip, the neck wasn't to thick and chunky, and the string spacing was just killer. Aw yes, the lost opportunities...