How long do you let a guitar sit after changing strings

Question

changing strings acoustic guitar

Answer 1

You don't let it sit all all.  Start playing and enjoy the new strings.  They will stretch a bit more and require some additional minor adjustment but that's no big deal.

Answer 2

I let it sit for half an hour or so, since it will go out of tune when you play it right after you restring it.

Answer 3

Why would you let it sit? Don't you want to stretch out the strings?

Play it immediately!

Answer 4

Don't let it just sit, but don't expect to play anything that sounds good.  After changing them, strum the strings and bend them, basically just work them.  The more you work them, the sooner it will stay in tune, but it still make take a day or so.

Also remember to not remove more than 3 strings at a time (the best thing to do is remove one string, replace it, remove the next one, replace.....)  Removing all the string at one time takes all the tension off of the neck. And when you replace the strings, then the neck is under tension again.  This fluctuation is bad for the guitar.

Answer 5

30 seconds. About as long as it takes for me to throw away the old strings and find my pick and tuner. =)

New strings go out of tune. That's a fact of life. The only way to get them to stay in tune is to break them in.

There are actually a few really good tips on how to change your guitar strings correctly - if you tie them off and wind them the right way you end up suffering far less problems with tuning. You can try googling it ... "how to string a guitar correctly" or some such.

Here's a free tip - take a #2 pencil (the wood kind, not mechanical) and use it in the grooves of your nut before you put new strings on your guitar next time. Don't be sparing - really try to coat those slots with as much graphite as you can. Wooden pencils use graphite, not lead, and graphite is a lubricant. If you ever hear "ping" or really bad squeaking sounds when you're tuning, you need to do this.

Taking all of the strings off of your guitar is not "bad" for it. Does a baseball bat warp after hitting a ball? Wood is not as fragile as you might think it is. Changes in temperature and humidity do far more damage to a neck than taking your strings off.

Saul