The Zero Glide Replacement Nut System borrows the "zero fret" concept to reduce string contact in the nut by up to 93%, increasing tuning stability, playability, and open string tone. It only takes a few minutes to install with absolutely no permanent alteration to your instrument. For 12 String Guitar (For Taylor Guitars).
Also available in Black Delrin.
I've used this for over a month and I'm more happy now than when I first installed it. The intonation on my acoustic is better than it ever was...you can fine tune the saddle almost dead on for intonation. One suggestion.....be sure to glue in the zero fret with a few drops of glue once you get the guitar right. I was working on my guitar on and off for a month and didn't glue in the zero fret. I was taking the strings on and off. Every time you reinstall the zero fret it will be in a slightly different place. String against fret will cause a slightly different indentation in the zero fret. You want the string to stay in the same spot on the zero fret.
I bought two of these, one Gibson-style and one Fender-style for two of my favorite project guitars, an Epiphone LPX and my Jazz-O-Caster parts guitar. The Gibson was a near drop-in, needing only some trimming and shaping for a perfect fit. The Fender was slightly more challenging, as the neck on the Jazz-O-Caster never saw the inside of any Fender-approved factory! It required a 1/32" shim underneath for a proper fit, and some sanding to make room for the tang. There was a marked increase in the brightness of tone for both instruments, as well as improved intonation. This is MUCH easier than installing a traditional nut, and nearly foolproof IF you follow the instructions. Thanks, Stewart-Macdonald, for stocking such a well-engineered product.
My third build and first time I used the zero fret, made filing the nut slots easier. The sound is markedly clearer than the other bone nuts I've used.
I bought the mandolin version and fitted it to my Gibson. There's a lot of extra material to remove, but the result was great. Easier tuning (the old nut had tight slots for the A strings), better intonation. Later I used one of the extra frets in the package to fix a tenor guitar. For that, I simply filed the necessary ledges in the existing nut and widened the string slots. It would be nice if Stew-Mac would also sell the offset tang frets separately, for retrofitting to an existing nut.
My old nut was too high. And I didn't want to buy 6 nut files. This Zero glide was much, MUCH cheaper, and it was an easy instal. I taped some 400 grit sandpaper to a plank I had laying around. Sand sand sand, check the fit, repeat. I tried each fret it came with and chose the jumbo. I consider this a major upgrade to my home built super strat.
$39.99