Why do my acoustic guitar strings snap so easily?

Question:Assuming you're tuning your guitar correctly, there could be a couple of reasons for this:

1. You're playing with strings that are too light for your playing style: if you are a hard driving strummer, you'll need at least medium or heavy guage strings. Light guage strings won't stand up to that kind of usage.

2. Your bridge or nut might have some imperfections that are wearing down your strings. Bring the instrument to a shop to have them sanded down or replaced.

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Assuming you're tuning your guitar correctly, there could be a couple of reasons for this:

1. You're playing with strings that are too light for your playing style: if you are a hard driving strummer, you'll need at least medium or heavy guage strings. Light guage strings won't stand up to that kind of usage.

2. Your bridge or nut might have some imperfections that are wearing down your strings. Bring the instrument to a shop to have them sanded down or replaced.

cheap nylon strings.

I played guitar VERY briefly--and in that time, I went through 3 E strings. It's because we want to tune them sharp, I guess. And that's the thinnest string.

You have fat fingers.

They are wound too tightly.
You may have outgrown your mickey mouse guitar.

Any string wound too tightly above the normal pitch level for a guitar is bound to snap. Any string that is old and then tightened higher is also capable of snapping.

For me, it's almost always because I

1) get my strings wet/sweaty/nasty. Wipe your strings off real quick after *every* time you play. Invest in some elixirs if you're not playing nylon strings, they'll last slightly longer. My hands sweat pretty badly, and when I play live I start jumping and flailing about, and if I'm not drenched in sweat by the third song something's wrong - all that sweat corrodes metal strings. Even if you don't sweat like I do, better strings and wiping them off afterwards will triple the life of your strings.

I also use this stuff called GHS Fastfret, it lubes up the strings to make them nice and slick. I've heard good things about Guitar Honey as well. Either of those can help.

2) have a crappy bridge. Burrs and imperfections in a bridge will make strings break. Very carefully sanding down burrs in your bridge or filing them down just a teensy teensy bit can help. You may need to replace it. Take it to a tech, they can diagnose it properly.

...

If you are tuning too high, more than 2-3 steps, then you could snap your strings. Get an electric tuner and don't tune up more than a whole step.

Good luck!

Saul

lubricate the bridge and nut with oil (3in1 or similar)
check for sharp edge where strings contact guitar.
use unbreakable picks but strum cleanly without grabbing pulling strings.
use good, not cheap, strings.