How to Remove Broken Strings From a Guitar

Removing broken strings from your guitar takes patience and must be done properly to reduce the risk of damaging the instrument. Follow these steps to properly remove broken guitar strings from an acoustic or electric guitar.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Needle nose pliers

1. Remove the bridge pin at the bottom of the string at the saddle on the guitar by gently pulling it upward.
2. Grab any remaining string on the bridge pin and remove it. It may fall down into the guitar before you can get a hold of it, in which case you will either have to reach into the guitar and grab it or turn the guitar over and try to shake it out.
3. Loosen the string by twisting the peg on the corresponding string until it is loose on the tuning post.
4. Unwrap the string from the tuning post on the headstock with a pair of needle nose pliers until the string comes off the tuning post.
5. Peel off any remaining string if it breaks as you unwrap it. Make sure you get the entire string off the tuning post.
6. Clean your guitar pieces thoroughly if you are completely restringing your guitar. Now is a good time to polish it as well.

Tips & Warnings

• Take your guitar to a music store if you do not know which string you need. They can tell you exactly which string to purchase.
• If the string falls into the guitar after removing the bridge pin, you need to get it out. The tip of the string has a piece on it that may cause a rattling noise inside the guitar as you play, especially in electric guitars.
• A broken string may indicate that your strings are getting old and in need of replacing. Some professional guitar players recommend that you change all your guitar strings when one breaks.