How To Change Electric Guitar Strings

Have the strings of your electric guitar seen better days? Has the top string snapped or are they sounding a wee bit dead? Then it’s probably about time that you give your cherished instrument the love it deserves by gifting it with a fresh set of strings. Only … re-stringing a guitar for a beginner might be a little bit daunting. Luckily, we’ve provided this humble blog to guide you, step by step as you put new strings on your guitar – whether it’s a Stratocaster, Les Paul®, Ibanez, or in fact, any model! If you have any comments, feel free to add them below.

What to Expect…

• Intro
• What Kind of Bridge Do I Have?
• Video: Changing the Strings of an Electric Guitar with a Fixed or Vintage-Style Bridge
• Video: Changing the Strings of an Electric Guitar with a Floating Bridge
• Instructions:
•     Removing the Tired, Old Strings
•     Putting New Strings On Your Guitar
•     Once You’re Done…
•     A Few Little Tips
• See Also…

Intro

• If your weapon of choice is an acoustic guitar and you want to change the strings, then check out our dedicated blog: How To Change Acoustic Guitar Strings, or if you’re the proud owner of a Spanish or classical guitar with knackered strings, then you’ll find more appropriate help in the blog: How To Change Classical Guitar Strings.
• Before you start, you’ll need a new full pack of electric guitar strings. Make sure to use the same ones as those you’re replacing – so the same gauge (thickness) since your guitar has been set up for these.
• A lot of beginners go for ‘light’ gauge strings, like .010 – .046. An example of a ‘medium’ gauge set of strings is .011 – .048. There are ‘hybrid’ packs that fall somewhere inbetween since they have lighter gauge high strings and higher gauge low strings, like .010 – .052. If you need a little help in picking out the right pack of strings, you can find some advice in our electric-guitar string Buyer’s Guide.
• You’ll also find a few more general re-stringing-related tips at the end of this here blog.

What Kind of Bridge Do I have?

Before we go any further, it’s important to figure out whether you have a standard ‘fixed’ bridge (also known as a vintage style bridge – the best example of which you can see on a Fender Telecaster) or a ‘floating’ bridge. A floating bridge is a complicated looking bridge that can be tilted in two directions using a tremolo arm (also known as a whammy bar). A good (and very complex) example of a floating bridge is a Floyd Rose bridge, and the (Lo-) Pro Edge bridges made by Ibanez. You can see an example of a bridge like this in Photo 22.

Video: Changing the Strings of an Electric Guitar with a Fixed or Vintage-Style Bridge

Video: Changing the Strings of an Electric Guitar with a Floating Bridge

Removing the Tired, Old Strings

Ok, now we can start removing those knackered, old strings. Since you should now know what bridge your guitar has, skip to the set of instructions below that apply to your bridge.

Standard ‘Fixed’ Bridge

1. Reduce the tension of each string by turning the machine head button so that the string becomes loose. Using a string winder (Photo 1), this process goes ultra-fast.
   Note! Is your guitar fitted with ‘locking tuners’ (Photo 2)? Then loosen the strings using the tension dials of your tuners. This is a ‘wheel’ found on the back of head, and is different from the tuning button (Photo 3).
2. Cut each string in half, then remove the ends from the bridge and the machine heads.

Floating Bridge

1. Unscrew the backplate of your guitar (the cover, usually made of plastic, on the back of your guitar – Photo 4).
2. Flip your guitar back over then slot the removed backplate just under the bridge. This maintains the tension in the bridge as you remove the strings so that the bridge does not shift (Photo 5).
3. Loosen each string by turning the tuning button towards you. Using a string winder (Photo 1), this process goes ultra-fast.
   Note! Is your guitar fitted with ‘locking tuners’ (Photo 2)? Then loosen the strings using the tension dials of your tuners. This is a ‘wheel’ found on the back of head, and is different from the tuning button (Photo 3).
4. Cut each string in half, loosen the clamping screws of the bridge (Photo 7), then remove the ends from the bridge and the machine heads.

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Putting New Strings On Your Guitar

Again, make sure to follow the right instructions for your specific bridge:

Fixed Bridge

Lace the end of each string through the corresponding openings at the back of the bridge. Can’t find any holes in the back of your bridge? Carefully flip your guitar over, and you’ll find a set of holes (also known as ‘ferrules’) on the back. Lace each string through each corresponding ferrule so that they poke through the bridge on the front. Flip your guitar back over to the front, then follow the steps below for each string.

Tip! Start by putting the outermost strings on first (so the top and bottom E strings). This helps balance the tension through the neck of your guitar and bridge as it’s gradually raised by re-stringing.

1. Once threaded through the bridge, hold the other end of the string at its corresponding string post, then make a slight bend in the string at the height of the next string post (Photo 10). If it’s the last string post at the top of the head, make an educated measurement and make the slight bend there.
2. Follow the steps as shown in Photos, 11, 12, 13 ,14, and 15. Take your sweet time!
   Tips!
   – Don’t hold the string too tightly at string post, making sure there is a little slack, or winding room so that when it comes to winding the string, it can revolve around the post a few times, keeping it secure (Photo 16).
   – If you have locking tuners, this bit is actually a lot quicker and easier since you can immediately pull the string tight as soon as it’s threaded through the hole in the string post. Then, secure the string by turning the tightening wheel on the back of the machine head clockwise (Photo 17).
3. Turn the tuning button of the machine head away from you to tighten the string and wind it neatly around the string post.
   Tips!
   – As you tighten it around the string post, hold the string down just after the string nut at the top of the neck. This will help to wind the string neatly (Photo 16).
   – While you’re at it, make sure the string is slotted into the correct groove of the string nut.
   – Don’t tighten the string too much yet. Just tighten it enough to make sure that it doesn’t slip out of the string nut.
   – When initially tightening the string around the post, you could speed things up by using a string winder. But make sure not to wind too fast since this may apply too much tension too quickly and break the string. Whether you’re using a winder or not, once you feel the string start to tense, slow down and wind gradually.

Floating Bridge

For each string, follow the steps below …

Tip! Start by putting the outermost strings on first (so the top and bottom E strings). This helps balance the tension through the neck of your guitar and bridge as it’s gradually raised by re-stringing.

1. Cut the ball-ends of the string off (Photo 18).
2. Thread the string into the bridge (Photo19).
3. Secure the string by tightening the clamping screw on the back of the bridge.
4. Pull the string towards the corresponding string post.
5. Hold the other end of the string at its corresponding string post, then make a slight bend in the string at the height of the next string post (Photo 10). If it’s the last string post at the top of the head, make an educated measurement and make the slight bend there.
6. Follow the steps as shown in Photos, 11, 12, 13 ,14, and 15. Take your sweet time!
   Tips!
   – Don’t hold the string too tightly at string post, making sure there is a little slack, or winding room so that when it comes to winding the string, it can revolve around the post a few times, keeping it secure (Photo 16).
   – If you have locking tuners, this bit is actually a lot quicker and easier since you can immediately pull the string tight as soon as it’s threaded through the hole in the string post. Then, secure the string by turning the tightening wheel on the back of the machine head clockwise (Photo 17).
7. Turn the tuning button of the machine head away from you to tighten the string and wind it neatly around the string post.
   Tips!
   – As you tighten it around the string post, hold the string down just after the string nut at the top of the neck. This will help to wind the string neatly (Photo 16).
   – While you’re at it, make sure the string is slotted into the correct groove of the string nut.
   – Don’t tighten the string too much yet. Just tighten it enough to make sure that it doesn’t slip out of the string nut.
   – When initially tightening the string around the post, you could speed things up by using a string winder. But make sure not to wind too fast since this may apply too much tension too quickly and break the string. Whether you’re using a winder or not, once you feel the string start to tense, slow down and wind gradually.

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Once You’re Done…

Standard Fixed Bridge

1. Tune up your guitar! Begin with the two outermost strings (so, the thickest and thinnest, or the top and bottom E strings). Then work your way into the middle until each string has been tuned. To find out more about tuning your guitar, take a look at the dedicated blog, How to Tune Your Guitar or Bass.
2. Since the strings are brand new, they’ll need gently stretching in. To do this, hold the string down with your thumbs (Photo 20), and pull gently up either side with your fingers.
3. Tune your guitar again and repeat these first 3 steps until your guitar no longer falls out of tune after stretching.
4. Trim the ends of the strings that are sticking out of the machine heads and poking out all over the place. Leave around a centimetre of space between where you cut the string and the string post (Photo 21).

Floating Bridge

1. Tune up your guitar! Begin with the two outermost strings (so, the thickest and thinnest, or the top and bottom E strings). Then work your way into the middle until each string has been tuned. Still not in tune? Maybe do a little reading about tuning up a floating bridge by doing a little search for the particular model you have.
2. The backplate can now be removed from where it was slotted just under the bridge.
3. Trim the string ends that are sticking out of the machine heads and poking out all over the place. Leave around a centimetre of space between where you cut the string and the string post (Photo 21).
4. Since the strings are brand new, they’ll need gently stretching in. To do this, hold the string down with your thumbs (Photo 20), and pull gently up either side with your fingers.
5. Tighten the ‘fine tuners’ at the bridge. This will give you enough slack when it comes to fine tuning if needed later on (Photo 22).
6. Securely tighten the locking nuts at the string nut. Note! Secure is secure! Don’t tighten it until it breaks!
7. If needed, tune the strings with a little more precision using the fine tuners at the bridge.
8. Re-mount the backplate by screwing it place on the back of your guitar.

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A Few Little Tips

• Change your strings once your instrument starts to sound dull. If you play a lot, this can happen quickly, and regularly. But, even if you don’t play that much, the strings will still lose their quality over time. Of course, you could just wait until a string breaks, but this often happens at the wrong moment!
• It’s best to just change all your strings at once, not just the broken one. This makes sure that the sound of your guitar remains balanced. Also, if one breaks, the others are probably heading the same way soon anyway.
• Play around with different string gauges to find out what feels best and sounds best for you. A lot of beginners will prefer thinner strings, since they’re a little easier to play and require less pressure. The advantage of using a set of thicker strings, however, is that they can sound more full and offer more sustain. Strings made of various different materials, like that used for the core, or the winding, or even special coating are also available. For a little advice on this, check out our electric guitar string Buyer’s Guide.
• Printed on every string or pack of strings you’ll come across, you’ll probably see the name of the strings or a list of the string gauges so that you know in what order the strings need to be put on your guitar. The order runs from thick E, A, D, G, B, to thin E (or simply from the highest gauge number, so .046 is the thickest, to the lowest gauge number, so .010 is the thinnest) . If you got a little overexcited and have already pulled the strings out of the pack, don’t panic! Just lay them out from thickest to thinnest to know where you’re at. Of course, if you have a set of strings that have been colour coded, then all of this is made even easier.
• Once you’ve removed all the old strings, it’s a good opportunity to give your fretboard a good clean. Some good maintainence kits or purpose made agents and cloths can be used for this.

Got a burning question or comment? Feel free to add it below!

See Also…

» Electric Guitar Strings
» What Are the Best Electric Guitar Strings for Me?
» How To Tune Your Guitar or Bass
» How To Change Acoustic Guitar Strings
» How To Change Classical Guitar Strings

How to Change the Strings of your Classical Guitar How to tune your guitar or bass How Many Strings Does a Guitar Actually Have? Ordering a Guitar Online: Why Hasn’t It Been Set Up Already? How to Tune a Floyd Rose Tremolo How to Change the Strings of Your Acoustic Guitar