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Hey guys. It's about time for another restringing job on my Jackson and I had a question for those of you that have used a Floyd and DR strings. I just recently tried out some DR strings for my Peavey and loved them, and I want to try them out on my Jackson. But I remember reading in the package that you should crimp the strings in front of your cut to make sure they don't unravel. This, of course, is impossible to do with a Floyd (cutting the balls of the strings to insert in the bridge). I was wondering if any of you had any experience with DR strings in a Floyd or if anyone had ever experienced the problem of them unwinding.

Also, if you have any other suggestions for quality strings in a similar price range that work well with a Floyd, I'm open to them.

Thanks guys.

My ernie ball regular slinkys work fine with my floyd. I havn't had any problems with them.

You can do like I and many others do. Put the ball end through the tuners, and install the pointy dangerous end into the saddles. It looks cool and saves your fingers from getting that very painful poke when you're dusting off the ol' headstock.


Originally Posted by TwilightOdysseyYou mean like this?
The only reason I wouldn't put the strings through the tuners is that the brass barrel on the string may eventually dig into tuner peg. I would be afraid that several changes of strings down the road may eat up the chrome plating on the tuning peg around the string hole. Just my 2 cents.


Originally Posted by TwilightOdysseyNever happened to me, and I've been doing it for 20 years.

Well I haven't been doing it for 25 years and it didn't do it to me either. :fing25:

I 've been puttin the balls at the tuner end for probably 10 years on all sorts of guitars. Never had an issue.


Originally Posted by h8red442I 've been puttin the balls at the tuner end for probably 10 years on all sorts of guitars. Never had an issue.

Check your tuning peg string holes and see if the chrome is getting scraped, dented, amp; chipped. I would bet most guitar manufacturers don't recommend this practice. quot;I've been doin' heroin for 15 years straight and look at mequot; Lane Staley.


Originally Posted by TwilightOdysseyYou mean like this? Right on, brother! BTW, has anyone ever told you your headstock's on backwards?


Originally Posted by LBeastWell I haven't been doing it for 25 years and it didn't do it to me either. :fing25:Let's play nice.

Thanks a bunch, guys. I'm going to give it a bump and see what the Europeans and early bird Americans have to say about it. Stringing it backwards actually sounds pretty cool. Do you trim anything off the end or just wind all the excess onto the machine? In the picture it looks like too little around the machine to be the whole string.


Originally Posted by JammerMattYou can do like I and many others do. Put the ball end through the tuners, and install the pointy dangerous end into the saddles. It looks cool and saves your fingers from getting that very painful poke when you're dusting off the ol' headstock.that's what I do with Dr's. Works great.


Originally Posted by TwilightOdysseyYou mean like this?
Er, no. You should have several inches of slack and the balls should not be resting on the tuning pegs.


Originally Posted by JacksonMIAThanks a bunch, guys. I'm going to give it a bump and see what the Europeans and early bird Americans have to say about it. Stringing it backwards actually sounds pretty cool. Do you trim anything off the end or just wind all the excess onto the machine? In the picture it looks like too little around the machine to be the whole string.

You can either trim the excess or knit the excess around the tunning buttons. That way, if you break a string near the bridge, you just unlock the nut, feed the string into the bridge, and then tune up.

for those of you that seem to think that the ball ends through the tuners is a bad idea, tell me what added stress you feel there is wit the ball ends there as opposed to the stress from the other way around. Are you suggesting there's more tension one way versus the other? i've done this on every guitar i've owned with a floyd for the last 15 years and never had an issue with tuning pegs, as have many of the other guitarists i know that use guitars with locking trems.

I do that on my Ibanez, I've had no problems so far, and the idea that you can unwind a bit of slack if you bereak a string at the bridge is great, saved me a couple of times.


Originally Posted by MattPeteThat way, if you break a string near the bridge, you just unlock the nut, feed the string into the bridge, and then tune up.

I have tried this a few times, and I can never get the strings to stay in tune that well. I guess this is down to the nut flattening/denting the strings. It might be good if you got a gig with only one guitar, though.


Originally Posted by TwilightOdysseyCan you tell me why this is bad? And why the (several inches) extra slack is needed?

(1) Ball ends on the tuners....um, no great reason, it just seems like a bad idea.

(2) Slack: the slack isn't needed, but rather than cutting off the excess string, I just wrap (er, weave) the excess up and over the tuning knob posts.


Originally Posted by JammerMattRight on, brother! BTW, has anyone ever told you your headstock's on backwards?

yes, people have told him that. People (me) have also told him its a hockey stick.(and then i go on about how ben makes me feel poor ect.)


Originally Posted by h8red442for those of you that seem to think that the ball ends through the tuners is a bad idea, tell me what added stress you feel there is wit the ball ends there as opposed to the stress from the other way around. Are you suggesting there's more tension one way versus the other? i've done this on every guitar i've owned with a floyd for the last 15 years and never had an issue with tuning pegs, as have many of the other guitarists i know that use guitars with locking trems.

I think the guitar manufacturers would have suggested stringing guitars this way if they thought it was a better idea than the tried true method of cutting the ball ends off. I replace all of the strings when one breaks. When I was younger, and had no moulah, I would just replace the broken string. These days I keep myelf supplied with many packages of strings. If I broke one string gigging, I might consider replacing one string if I did not have a back up guitar, and I do. See some of my collection below:

So you're suggesting that somehow the ball has a more detrimental effect on the tuners than say oh i dunno, wound wire?