Good morning from Blighty. I am gigging tonight and Sunday and then..........time to re-string my 660/12. I have read so many stories about this that I thought I would ask the advice of the forum. So, whats the option here, take them all off at once and give it a polish or as some say re-string individually or given the tailpiece, in courses...??????

Any advice would be appreciated.

Byrdbro, I really appreciated you getting in touch, however I could not get back to you.

Corwall

There are multiple threads on the subject; I suggest searching them out.

However, I have heard of using electrical tape to keep the strings in place (At the bridge), but the main two things I would suggest are: Removing the bridge plate (Which requires two screws, so the bridge is "naked." I keep mine off permanently because I think it makes for better tone) and making sure you wind the strings around the peg SEVERAL times before putting it through the hole.

Also, before you take the strings off, make sure every one of them is correctly intonated.

I've also heard a capo is a helpful tool in this task, to help loose strings stay put.

I don't have a 12, but I restring *all* of my guitars one string at at time - it keeps somewhat consistent tension on the neck at all times. Also, like you noted, with the Rick tailpiece the way it is, it's easier to restring one at a time anyway; otherwise, the whole contraption falls apart.

To offer a different perspective (also non-specific-to-12-string), I use a method somewhat different from that offered, that being (1) put the string through the tuning-post hole first, and leave slack, so that winding the tuning key takes up the slack, with the first wind going above the tail end, and all others going below (ending up with 3-5 winds around the post), and (2) intonate only on new strings - doing it on the old, dead ones before you remove them just means you're going to have to do it twice, since you'll have to do it again when the new strings are on; i've also heard from several guitar techs that the only reliable way to do it is on new strings.

Please excuse me if any of this is obvious.

AGNP, do you mean the bridge cover? Or the bridge baseplate, beneath it?

I remember there was a good post by flyingeagle in the original post'' So I restrung my 12 stringer last night''. There are a few different approaches to how to do it, it is probably best to have some planned method to do it. Don't go in there blindfolded.

Keep in mind to protect your guitar when doing a string replacement, be careful when cutting strings under tension as they will kickback and hit the finish. If you have never done it before
it is probably best attended to slowly and carefully, it can take longer the first time.
Some patients may come in very handy until you get the knack of it!

Goodluck

You will be pleased to know that the deed has been done and the beast tamed....!!!!

Because of the vintage tailpiece on the 660/12, ie 6 holes, I decided to restring in courses. I took the bridge cover off, unwound the first course, bass E and octave and cut the stings to let them through the tailpiece cleanly. The only problem was getting the octave strung in the headstock slot .... many a mumbled expletive relating to procreation!!! Having got the bass E up to tension I loosened the A which gave me access to the slot, cut the string to length and left a short amount protruding before winding to tension. All in all a mornings work which meant that I avoided doing anything else, mind you, halfway through the procedure when I was trying to ensure that the bass G was winding in the right direction in the slot, I was telephoned by a character calling himself Giles and from a call centre in Calcutta or somewhere very near. He assured me that he wasn't selling anything and wanted to talk about my computer...........He got a full broadside of the afore mentioned expletives and I felt much better.

So it's done and dusted, intonation is still ok and life is sweet. I have been restringing both 6 and 12 strings since God was a boy so I did not understand why I felt so nervous, however it was fiddly.

Does anyone know how they get Teflon to stick to the inside of saucepans..??????

Cornwall

I thought the entire saucepan was made of teflon? That's how it works with mine, or it's made of some special material.

You should get telemarkerers too upset, because then they'll put your name on lists you don't want on.

Make sure your G-String is intonated correctly. It's no fun when you're in the middle of playing something up the neck, and the thing goes sour.

Hi Steve-in-Cornwall

Restringing a 660-12 haha....never had so much fun NOT.

My biggest worry though was did the ball end go underneath or above the tailpiece. Spent ages looking around at photos to check this, felt too embarrassed to ask here.

Haven't restrung it for som time and know aim gonna have to bite the bullet soon.

BTW, I have at long last Private Messaged you

I've seen it both ways, in person and in photos of the trapeze tailpiece. I don't think it really matters--whichever you find easier to do, although I would think with a 620/12 that there would be so little room between the tailpiece and the bridge, that it might be easier just to string it from the outside. The "underneath" way looks neater, but would it be as easy to change a string if one broke? I put a trapeze tailpiece on my 1988 330/12, and decided to string it from above since it seemed easier to replace a string if necessary.

When I bought my used 330/6 there were a couple of Rick 12-strings in the shop also. I wasn't really interested in a 12-string, but the sales guy and I chatted briefly about them, and he (jokingly) said that all new employees had to re-string the 12-string Ricks as their initiation. ("R" tailpiece from underside)