Strings without balls

FenderBender

Bought a set of D'Addario classical strings today, opened the pack and; like a pool table in a fairer gender only saloon, they have no balls!!

Do I tie knots in the things?

Manfred-Klose

Dont worry, ihad the same reaction when i restringed my classical guitar for the first time.
Here is a tutorial:

http://www.mangore.com/stringing_guitar.html

Or go watch a video on youtube:

dee

haha, yes, you have to tie them with a little loop... ?

I take it you've never done this before?

check this out, I did a quick google search for some pics: http://www.frets.com/FRETSPAGES/Musician/Guitar/Setup/Classical/ClassicStr/classicstr1.html

//Edit: Damn, Manfred beat me too it...

Vintage-Vibe

Hi G

U can alsp get nylons with ball ends - E Ball do them !
Although the plain strings' balls tend to come off too easily sometimes !

FenderBender

+1 VV tks

So maybe if the packaging had a "ball end" or "plain end" logo, my teenage daughter would not be next door with my strat ?

Thanks Manfred and dee, the kids have a C40M so that will help. This was an el cheapo Johnson with bridge pins, bought in china, with, as my woman has just confirned, nylon strings.

deanBailey

Strings without balls are Stringtresses.

lol sorry I couldn't resist that lame-poorly-thought-of-probably-not-even-funny joke.

lightspeedchili

if its a cheapie like u say, make sure the knots on the wound strings dont cut into the bridge once tensioned. my cheapie doesnt hold up after the years

p.s string winder...best investment! ?

FenderBender

lol I'll keep em and buy a steel set today ?

AlanRatcliffe

Graeme Parfett wrote: So maybe if the packaging had a "ball end" or "plain end" logo, my teenage daughter would not be next door with my strat ?

Plain ends ends are by far the norm for nylon strings, so they don't bother mentioning it on the packs. Much the same way as Steel strings do not say ball-ended on the packs - no need to. The nylons with ball ends will say so, because it is out of the ordinary.

Still, it's quite strange that the guitar has bridge pins if it's supposed to be a nylon string. The ball ended nylons are made to use on a conventional nylon bridge, not a steel-string design. I think there's a possibility that it's supposed to have steel strings on. The pinion posts that the strings wind around on the tuners - are they narrow metal posts, or are they fat plastic ones? If it's the former, it's a steel string guitar, if it's the latter, it's a nylon.

FenderBender

Alan Ratcliffe wrote: I think there's a possibility that it's supposed to have steel strings on

and that the spouse is nuts? Possibly ?
Exactly what I thought at the outset, but assured it had nylons. I then found the remains of a wound end, complete with ball, inside the body. Steel core!

The pinion posts that the strings wind around on the tuners

- narrow and clearly made for steel strings.

Thanks Alan, I learn lots of new things every day and I really enjoy the experience. Learning on this forum is the most fun I've had in years, yet is accessible and free to all. Shot to the Top Brass and all the other Top Notch members on GFSA! 8)