Taller saddle?

I get asked on a pretty regular basis about the best saddle height for playing slide.  My answer has always been to get a tall saddle made and sand it down to find the best height...trial and error, each player is different.

Well, I found a fantastic work around for this issue a few weeks ago, mind blowing really...at least for those of us whose minds get blown by slide guitar related tricks and tips.

So, here it is.

Use a wound string under the saddle to raise it up!  Simple.  You have 4 strings to choose from, unless your like me and use an unwound third string, so you can find your best height based on the size of the string.  Just use the ends of the strings you've cut from re-stringing.  Cut the strings the length of the saddle, place it in the saddle slot, put the saddle on top, tighten strings.

Of course you can still get a taller saddle made after you found the height you like, but I can say from heavy use that the string under the saddle works just as well with no issues.  I should note that I have not used this method with an undersaddle pickup, or any other pickup system.  I would be curious to hear how it works for those of you with an undersaddle pickup.

Tip courtesy of Mr. Stefan Grossman.

Happy sliding!