My new (to me) BT6!

[Michele Caramazza]

Nut shim... please look at the first pic, Ken. Doesn't it look like there's a veneer of some sort at the bottom of the nut?

Also, look at the second picture. At the B string side, the nut is about 1 mm inside from the edge of the fingerboard (sorry, can't explain that any better in English..) On the C string side the edge of the nut is perfectly aligned with the edge of the fingerboard. So looks like someone messed with the nut and sanded 1 mm off that side of the nut (???). I already imagined the bass didn't left the factory that way 30 years ago...

Anyway, if I was in the States, even on the Pacific Coast, I wouldn't wait a minute to send the bass to you. But shipping costs from Europe to the States have gone crazy, not to mention the mess with customs..

Is purchasing a new nut from you a possibility? I have a local luthier/repairman which is pretty good and I would trust him replacing the nut.

[Ken Smith]

Making a Nut is like fitting a tooth or crown in your mouth. We need the mouth! Nut's are made from a small block of brass. No way to make one without the bass.

Making a new Nut TO a bass on the bench is a 3-4 hour job with the set-up included. Good work takes time and cutting, fitting and polishing brass is an art.

[Michele Caramazza]

Looks like I had to live with it. At least for now. Or until my next trip to the East Cost of USA..
Anyway, not a big issue... the bass is absolutely functional, just a little hard in the 1-4 frets region.
I guess the raised nut explains the fact that the bridge saddles are slammed down. Otherwise the overall action would be very high. Fortunately the neck is straight, very stable and trussrod works perfectly.
Anyway, just for information.. how much would approximately be the cost of a shipment back to Italy from the States? I guess I could send the bass to you with UPS for about 150 euros...
Just in case I get the itch for a full setup, new nut and the such

[Michele Caramazza]

... what about taking off the existing nut and getting rid of that shim? Doesn't that looks to you like there's a wood veneer of some sort in there (first pic)..

[Ken Smith]

I would need the bass here to make any kind of decision or estimate in reality.

[Michele Caramazza]

I made it!!!
Today I took the strings off to see what's goin' on with the nut and, to my surprise, the nut just came off as I lightly pull it! It was just seated in the slot without any glue... no harm done to the fingerboard or to the headstock veneer!



As I suspected a tiny strip of wood (about 0.50 mm) was glued to the bottom of the nut..



As Ken suggested this was probably done because the previous owner was a heavy handed groover and liked higher action in the first five frets region. It also explain the wear on those frets and the fact that the finish in that area of neck back is totally gone...

Anyway, I cut off the wood veneer with a razor blade and then sanded off any glue residual with a fine sandpaper. Here's how the bottom of the nut looked like as I finished the job..



A nice rub of metal polish and here's the nut in its all original shining glory...



Fitted the nut in its slot, strung the bass and... voilÃ*... PERFECT.
I also discovered that the nut wasn't damaged or sanded in any way. That small gap on the B string side was because it slightly shifted when it was installed. So I put under slight tension the outer strings first, perfectly centered the nut and then strung all the strings to pitch. Worked like a charm!



Now, the action dropped down of 0.50 mm and the whole thing plays like butter all across the fingerboard with no fret buzz at all! I'll probably wait a little and then will raise the bridge saddle a hair to better suit my right hand touch.
I'm soooo happy!!!

[Ken Smith]

Here, we spot glue the nut in with Elmers white School Glue. Easy to take off if needed. Also, after WE polish the nut by hand, we spray it with can lacquer or acrylic. This helps prevent oxidation of the brass over time.

Good job!