How to Restring a Classical Guitar

If you’re accustomed to changing strings on an acoustic or electric guitar, a classical guitar is a whole different experience, and a lot harder to replace strings.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• A classical guitar
• Nylon strings

1. First determine if the strings need to be changed. Classical strings don’t break as often as steel strings so you’re going to have to change them when the time comes. You can tell aurally if the strings don’t sound as bright. You can also see a buildup of black marks on the strings.
2. Purchase nylon classical guitar strings. Steel strings can damage a classical guitar so never use steel strings. Coated strings sound better but are more expensive. Non-coated strings will sound fine as well if you’re on a budget.
3. Get yourself a string winder—much easier than winding and unwinding by hand. Loosen the string that you want to replace. Important: only replace strings one at a time. Don’t remove every string at once as this can potentially warp the fretboard.
4. Now, thread the string at the bridge. This is harder than an acoustic guitar where pegs will hold the string in place. Thread the string through the corresponding hole in the bridge and loop it around so it’s tight.
5. Thread the string through the tuning head. Thread it through the hole at the roller and loop the slack around the string twice so it is tight—this locks the string in place when you use the string winder to pull the string tight.

Tips & Warnings

• Use classical guitar beads to help keep the string in place at the bridge.
• Prolong the life of your strings by washing your hands before playing, keeping the guitar free of dust and moisture, and wipe down the guitar and strings with a cloth.