URGENT - HQ Lefty Nut Needed!

[reynoldbot]

Howdy gang,

I just received a brand new bass from Atkinson basses, but unfortunately the nut was cracked in the A string slot and needs to be replaced. Dan and I are both looking for alternatives, but I thought you guys would probably know for sure where to get a high quality lefty replacement nut. I need this nut ASAP so Dan can order and ship it over here before my next gig. Please help!

[Rodent]

nuts are cut from nut blanks. in the case of a Fender clone like yours, you're looking at a 1/8" wide nut blank that's 1-3/4" long or longer. since it's a USACG neck, you could have a flat or radiused slot bottom depending on what Dan ordered. you can get nut blanks at any Guitar Center or on-line at places like Luthiers Mercantile Internation or StewMac

personally I would have real concern about a nut that's pre-cut on an instrument other than the specific one it's intended to be used on. it only takes a few thousandths of an inch for a nut to be too high/low for optimized playing, or too wide/narrow for the nut slot. this can only be fit on the exact neck the nut is to be installed on.

my recommendation would be to get a warranty agreement from Dan to cover the cost of taking your bass to a local shop and having a new nut cut. it's cheaper than r/t shipping, and you'll end up with a nut that's right for your bass (vs. something that's close enough to probably work good enough)

all the best,

R

[pjmuck]

+1. Replacing a nut is a relatively inexpensive process. I think my repair guy charged me $10 for a new nut slotted properly for my P, including the blank nut. I was getting additional work done, however, so he may have cut me a deal, but I generally wouldn't expect it to cost more than $30.

[Frenchy-Lefty]

My repair guys charges $30 for a nice custom fit bone nut.

[bugsy]

I think there is plenty of Lefty nuts on here to go around