Do Nuts Wear Down?

[cytania]

Am I imagining that the black plastic nut (graphite?) on my bass has gotten lower? I think the strings have gotten deeper/looser in their slots over the last few years. It's the one I play 99% of the time.

How can I tell if it's graphtech or just plastic?

[merello]

[quote]Do Nuts Wear Down?, Looser and Lower[/quote]
Such a promising title........

The answer is 'yes' due to friction.

[waynepunkdude]

They have to when there the size of mine.

[Doctor J]

[quote name='cytania' post='1298778' date='Jul 10 2011, 09:27 AM']Am I imagining that the black plastic nut (graphite?) on my bass has gotten lower? I think the strings have gotten deeper/looser in their slots over the last few years. It's the one I play 99% of the time.

How can I tell if it's graphtech or just plastic?[/quote]
I can't see a nut wearing down from just the force of the string sitting in the slot on its own. If you maybe tuned up and down aggressively for an hour ever day so the string acted like a file, then maybe, but that's highly unlikely.

[Lfalex v1.1]

[quote name='Doctor J' post='1298823' date='Jul 10 2011, 10:47 AM']I can't see a nut wearing down from just the force of the string sitting in the slot on its own. If you maybe tuned up and down aggressively for an hour ever day so the string acted like a file, then maybe, but that's highly unlikely.[/quote]
But wouldn't fretting do the same to a lesser effect? It stretches the string, causing windings to be drawn through the nut, as you release it, it goes back again.
Sure, the impact on the nut is minimal, but over time it might open out the nut slots.
Things that will mitigate against this issue;

Just-a-nut
Flats
Nickels
Coated Strings
Zero frets
Harder Nuts (!); Brass and so on.
And finally... The Pencil graphite trick.

Edit for- And maybe locking nuts?

Edited July 10, 2011 by Lfalex v1.1

[Doctor J]

Well... my most played bass, I've had and played for almost 20 years, I filed the nut down so the strings were as low as a zero fret and it's still the original nut with - I would say - entirely unnoticable wear after all this time.

[3below]

[quote]Do Nuts Wear Down?, Looser and Lower[/quote]

Just a male thing with age I am afraid. Learn to live with it, or get a young thing.

[Grand Wazoo]

Does the Pope wear a funny hat?

[3below]

Serious answer now, depending on the plastic, several years under tensile stress may cause compressive creep. The plastic will deform and flow even though the forces (hence stress) are well below the yield stress. So lowering of nut slot is quite possible irrespective of any frictional wear.

[Dave Vader]

Yes.

Unless it is a decent bone one, in which case...

Maybe.