Marc1kim
New Member
For my Satin Special? Any experiences that you guys can share on your tuner upgrades etc. Any info would be appreciated
What's a good tuner upgrade...
- Thread starter Marc1kim
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Paruwi
Kraut-Rocker
Sorry, I could not resist....
RTH
Well-Known Member
Anyting is going to be an upgrade over the stamped tuners that it came with...even the generic diecasts, which I have always had great luck with.
BigMike55
Member
Grovers work good.
fuelish
Member
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Be certain your strings are wound properly.....improperly wound strings can make many good tuners seem like they don't hold tune....just sayin'
IRG
Member
How does one know whether their strings are wound correctly or not? Not sure I quite understand this statement.
RTH
Well-Known Member
I think it means to make sure there is no slack or overlapping string around the post that could slip. Too many winds with criss-crossong string could cause slippage. But if you have the stamped/covered style tuners, which are stock on those guitars, then they usually arent very good at keeping the guitar in tune.
Paruwi
Kraut-Rocker
RTH
Well-Known Member
I dont wind my strings like that and mine are fine. I wind more times around the post though. I'm not into the string locking style of winding because I learned to wind strings on a bass and that method is just not feasible.
Paruwi
Kraut-Rocker
I do wind them more, too
so the string is more down
so the string is more down
Marc1kim
New Member
It holds in tune pretty good, but when I go to adjust it, it takes a little longer, I think its due to there being slack in the tuners. I'm used to the smooth ratio of Gibby tuners. Is there a good drop in replacement, or will the headstock have to be reamed?
RTH
Well-Known Member
Here is what my strings typically look like. I do quite a bit of winding around the posts.
I've been stringing my non-Fender-style axes like this for 20 years or more. Works great.
For the 20 years before that I always found that the more winds I used to put around the posts, the longer it would take for the guitar to settle to stable tuning. There's not really any need to wind down so the string leaves the post near the bottom. The headstock angle on Gibson/Epiphone guitars gives adequate break angle over the nut even from the middle of the post.
If it were easy to find the right orientations for 3-a-sides I'd use Fender vintage style tuners (with the slotted post and central hole) as my machines of choice. I love them.
RTH
Well-Known Member
I've been doing it this way for years. The only strings I ever have had trouble with settling are Ernie Ball. I'm a big fan of D'Addario because they settle so quickly - and I have yet to break one. I string my Kramer with the ball-ends at the tuners.
fuelish
Member
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RTH
Well-Known Member
Its uncanny, really. I bend the crap out of rusty, 1 1/2 year old D'Addarios and I cant break the damn things. This doesnt include acoustic bronze-wound strings. Those will break on me if I play them enough. I like new guitar strings, but I try not to like them too much because the bright tone and smooth feel is very fleeting. I dont like new bass strings at all and will play the same set for years.
cybermgk
Active Member
personally, I prefer 18:1 ratios on my tuners.
If your going to replace them, might as well get locking tuners. I.E. the kind that clamp on the string and need almost no winds. VERY easy to replace strings.
These are pretty good
If your going to replace them, might as well get locking tuners. I.E. the kind that clamp on the string and need almost no winds. VERY easy to replace strings.
These are pretty good
Lockers are ok. But the great thing about the method Peter posted the illustration of is that it locks the string as firmly as locking tuners so you only need one wind (if that) - but it works with any tuners so if you have favourites that happen to be non-locking you don't have to change them.
For Epiphones I quite like the Wilkinson WJ44s. I've used them on three projects and they've been great. I'm going to put a set on my G400 this coming weekend.
cybermgk
Active Member
Lockers are ok. But the great thing about the method Peter posted the illustration of is that it locks the string as firmly as locking tuners so you only need one wind (if that) - but it works with any tuners so if you have favourites that happen to be non-locking you don't have to change them.
For Epiphones I quite like the Wilkinson WJ44s. I've used them on three projects and they've been great. I'm going to put a set on my G400 this coming weekend.
No doubt, and agree. I was just saying, if your going to replace what's there, might as well replace with lockers (still faster restring for most).
DPaulCustom
Well-Known Member
Some idea of a budget might help, I personally wouldn't spend half the cost of the guitar on a set of tuners. JMO
