Need Mandolin 'Quick Fix" !

[8STRINGR]

Hey folks! I just walked in the door Thursday night from rehearsal and had in some way caught my case in the door way just enough to have it drop out of my hand and onto the floor....no, I wasn't drinking. #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

It had fell maybe two feet from my hands but it didn't look like any damage was done to my mandolin. I had just had time Saturday to get it out to play and noticed that my open "D" strings slightly buzzes and suddenly sounds DEAD. My local luthier is unavailable to look at this problem but I need this mandolin for SUNDAY MORNING! Any suggestions that I can do myself for getting to "dullness" out. I don't think any local dealers has a bench tech on hand to fix it right away. # NEED HELP!!!

[fatt-dad]

When in doubt change the strings and try again. Check to see if the nut is loose. If the problem remains (i.e., the buzz) you can always use a thin slice of aluminum foil to raise the string in the groove to get rid of the open buzzing. No a luthier wouldn't do this, but you may be able to play buzz free in church.

Too bad and good luck.

f-d

[John Flynn]

I am not a luthier, but I have been in this situation before and successfully done a "field repair." If you do this, I take no responsibility for the outcome whatsoever! I am just reporting what I have done. If it is only the open D, and not any fretted notes on the D string, the suspect would have to be the nut slots. The slots are either low or not cut properly. The fact that they worked before and don't work after you dropped the instrument is a mystery, but that kind of thing happens and that is not your immediate problem.

I have had luck filling the nut slots with "powder" and superglue, and then re-filing them. The powder I use is micarta dust left over from a nut fitting I did once, but I have heard you can use baking soda. I loosen the strings, remove them from the slots and get them out of the way. I tape off the area around the slots with masking tape. I protect everything I don't want superglue on! I fill the slots with the powder and then use a flat toothpick to level it off. Then I take liquid superglue, not the gel, and just get the powder damp, no more. I make sure I put the cap back on the superglue immediately! That stuff can escape on its own! I let it dry. Then I take an Xacto knife and lightly cut a starter slot, making sure that it is angled down from the fret board side toward the tuners. Then I will take a jeweler's triangle file and just do a light stroke to widen the slot a little. On wound strings, I will then use a short length of the string as a file to dress the slot up. Then I string up and see what I've got. If it works I'm done. If it is high, I will re-loosen the strings a deepen the slot slightly. I am always careful, though, to not file too much each time. It is very easy to get back where I started.

I have had the above get me through a gig. However, I consider it a temporary repair. The problem usually returns at some point, so I get to my luthier as soon as I can.

[John Flynn]

Carl:

I like the foil idea. I will have to try that!

Another "quick fix" I remembered I have used is heavier strings. If you have access to just the D strings from a heavier set, often installing those heavier strings will cure the problem for the moment.