Nut and Saddle Shaping Files

Great tool, handle comfort, working with wood and nut.

If you're the kind of person that wants to do everything the traditional way, this set is for you. It will let you try them all to discover which one you like best.

"The Lone Star Special", a brand new, hand-made parlor guitar which I helped design and a friend built, looked great but sounded buzzy and was hard to keep in tune. The nut had not yet been shaped, so I ordered StewMac's Nut and Saddle Shaping File Set (4556) and went to work. Thanks to StewMac's wonderful on-line fix-it tips, I used an old credit card to protect The Lone Star's headstock as I filed away on the bone nut using both files. About 15 minutes later I was done. The nut was nicely shaped, there was no damage to the headstock or fingerboard, and my parlor guitar sounded terrific--buzz free and in tune. I'm not a craftsperson or builder, but I now have the chops and confidence to re-glue ukulele bridges and shape guitar nuts!! Thank you, StewMac!! A great File Set for shaping stringed instrument nuts.

These files work great with both bone, and the synthetic nut and saddle materials. Low chatter, very little cleanup needed.

The files are sharp and comfortable to use. They are 7mm wide on the cutting face. I would prefer if they were 9mm or 10mm so you could notch for a b-string on a saddle with one stroke; and a wider files is less likely to slip on the corners. Also the fine file is more than adequate. Roughing should be done on a much larger file and/or a belt sander.

These things cut a bone nut down in a hurry and have it ready for polishing in no time.

Had to wait on these for a while because they were out of stock. It was definitely worth the wait! They make it almost impossible to screw up with the cool filing surfaces adjacent to smooth sides. Go, Stewart MacDonald!!

These are very high quality files that are just perfect for working on nuts and saddles. Cheaper files wear out, and aren't always straight. Stew-Mac's files are top-quality, and they'll last a lifetime with proper use.

I only use the course/medium file to carve the nut. The finer file is good for a few other things, but is generally too fine for any nut work. I go through them and have drawers of unused fine files. We just don't use it. I wish stew mac would offer them separately. Oh well, you can't have everything, where would you put it?

Quality tools which work well. What more can you ask for?