Why would too many winds around the string tree be bad?

[Tony Raven]

As well, fewer turns around the post makes a busted string MUCH easier to change between sets -- a couple twists back around & it's off.

Now that I've checked a couple of my guitars, the norm seems to be 2-3 turns, whether stoptail or floater or acoustic pin. I don't divebomb much, but I sorta overwork the bends, & none seem particularly slippy.

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

No, it's a string "tree" or "retainer". Always has been, ever since Leo started slapping them on headstocks to compensate for slapdash nut work.

If you do a search under either, you will find the same thing.  In that sense it's just semantics and doesn't matter what it's called.  If that's what Leo called it, we can't argue then.  It's the tremolo vs. vibrato debate all over again.

But, a golf tee holds a golf ball. A string tee holds a string.  The profile looks like a "T."

 

[Cagey]

Whatever. Tee/Tree/Retainer - let's just call them "thingys". It's a nearly vestigial part whose only justification for existence is to resolve nut quality issues. If you have a crummy nut, you need a thingy or two. Otherwise, they're unnecessary/unsightly clutter that contributes to erratic tuning issues. Since a crummy nut also contributes to erratic tuning issues, it's better to get a well-formed nut than to install string thingys.