Mike's Oud Forums

I'm slipping!

hpakeman - 11-16-2009 at 08:31 AM

I am completely frustrated! I have a beautifully redone Oud, (by Najib Shaheen) and yet my oud strings slip horribly! I am so frustrated, as the moment I get one string tuned, go to the next, the first ones are again slipping!

any ideas? The guys from the Middle East/North Africa just seam to 'deal with it' but it completely frustrates me.

thanks.

Hatshepsut

Aymara - 11-16-2009 at 11:48 AM

Hi,

if the string are not brand new and have settled a few days, the pegs are slipping.

Let me quote from THIS lute FAQ, because on oud it's the same:
Quote:
If the pegs are sticking, use light pressure to back the peg out of the pegbox while lowering the pitch of
the string, then proceed to tune up to pitch. If the pegs continue to stick, apply a generous amount of dry
hard soap such as Ivory to the peg shaft where it contacts the pegbox. An alternative is to use a very small
amount of W.E. Hill’s peg compound.

If pegs are slipping, use light pressure to push the peg farther into the pegbox while tuning up to pitch. If
the peg continues to slip, rub a small amount of chalk on the peg shaft where it contacts the pegbox. Make
sure that the chalk does not contain wax.

katakofka - 11-16-2009 at 12:27 PM

If the oud is well done having good pegs and the latter cannot be hold in place the main problem would be related to the humidity level. If you have no ideal humidity conditions for the oud put in in the bathroom for a while (like overnight) and then try to tune it.

Brian Prunka - 11-17-2009 at 06:02 PM

I think you may just need to get used to manipulating the pressure of the peg in the hole as you tune the strings. Have you shown the oud to Bassam? What did he say?