Should I change 1998 CU22 Nut?

[Shuggie92]

I grew up in MD and developed an obsession for the storied local guitar maker back in the 80's so It was a dream come true when I finally got one. (Now my brother lives a couple hundred yards from the PRS factory. Lucky fellow.) I have owned and treasured a 1998 CU22 stoptail for about 23 years. I've always kind of loved the winged tuners, but recently it seemed like the tuner on the G string was "hesitating", for lack of a better word. Last night the light bulb went off for me - after learning a lot lately about my guitars, setups, etc - it's the nut, stupid! Sure enough I put a little graphite there and it seems to have helped. When I change strings I always clean everything very thoroughly, but never the nut grooves! For some reason I never thought of it. But lesson learned. My questions are these:

•What is the original nut made of and is it different from the current ones available from PRS?
•Do nuts wear out over time and need replacing? (Remember this is a stoptail)

If the current nuts are superior, I probably want to put a newer one in - despite the fact that I may have solved my problem. I like tweaking and upgrading. But if the old nut is the same material and maybe just perhaps needs a little cleaning, then I may as well leave it alone. Curious about your thoughts.

Thanks!

 

[Bowtiefanatc]

Not unless it’s broken, slotted poorly or messed up in some fashion.

 

[Shuggie92]

Definitely not broken and the slotting has always seemed fine. Not sure how much it matters but I am not a pro, the guitar doesn't tour or get excessive wear. Just playing at home all this time.

 

[bodia]

The original on your guitar is the same as the ones they use today (on the models that don't get a bone nut). They are made of some "unobtainium" proprietary material that is infused with brass. I wouldn't change it unless there was a problem.

 

[Mark Ray]

Just use a little Nut Sauce next time you change strings. All should be good.

 

[Shuggie92]

Awesome, thanks guys! It took me a while to stumble on what is now so obvious but I'm really happy that I didn't change these tuners, which I was considering.

 

[DISTORT6]

Awesome, thanks guys! It took me a while to stumble on what is now so obvious but I'm really happy that I didn't change these tuners, which I was considering.

Good man.
Save the Wings.

 

[Senor Verde]

If the string height at the nut is good, I'd just put some lubricant in the slots when changing strings. Even with the PRS nuts, I notice a dab of Big Bends Nut Sauce helps the guitar stay in tune even better. All my PRS guitars are stoptails.