Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by John Sawyer on October 5, 2015 at 6:39pm

It looks like your middle tuner... the string is coming off the outside edge?  This is backwards from how guitars are normally done...  Try wrapping the strings from the outside in... with the ball-end of the string coming off the middle...

Just a thought...

Permalink Reply by John Rivers on October 2, 2015 at 2:16pm

Ditto

Permalink Reply by John Rivers on October 2, 2015 at 2:18pm

And that black screw is tighten down pretty good?

Permalink Reply by T-Gripped on October 2, 2015 at 2:30pm

I will double check, thanks!

Permalink Reply by the anonymous pick on October 3, 2015 at 1:43am

some good suggestions  here  , if all  else  fails  ,   enclosed  tuners  like  these are  more "forgiving"  with  imperfect drilled  holes  .  you  could always  redrill  bigger  and swap  em  out  .

Permalink Reply by Jim_N on October 2, 2015 at 2:49pm

T-Gripped >

At least in part, your problem could be your wrapping of the strings around the tuning posts..
Maybe try a “pro wrap,” keeping the strings as neatly & tightly wrapped as possible:

http://www.fretnotguitarrepair.com/repair/acoustic-guitar/string-ch...

Gibson:
http://www.gibson.com/News-Lifestyle/Gear---Tech/en-us/There-s-More...

Martin:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIzVdvzn8d8

Permalink Reply by MadGomer on October 3, 2015 at 1:58am

Jim's suggestion on the string winding is a good one. Personally I like the PRS approach.

Permalink Reply by ChickenboneJohn on October 6, 2015 at 7:14pm

It looks like your only problem is that you are not fitting the strings right - you only need 2 or 3 wraps around the post. You don't need to lock them off when wrapping them, just leave around 1 inch extra when starting to wind them on and always coil the string down neatly towards the headstock with no overlaps. I've never had a tuner that "slips" - on really poor, sloppy  ones the gears will actually skip a tooth, and you can hear and feel that happening. In my experience, 90% of so called "slipping tuners" is due to problems with incorrectly installed strings.

Permalink Reply by T-Gripped on October 8, 2015 at 4:05am

Thanks John [and all]

My sloppy stringing is an issue I'm sure. But when I removed the strings and simply turned the pegs with no tension they alternated between binding and smoothly turning. This leads me to believe that a major factor in this case is improper mounting of my tuners: either my hole for the bushing is not at a perfect 90 degree angle, or my hole for the peg is not, or the surface of the back of the headstock is off. :(    

My neck is formed from a hand-tooled leftover piece of oak flooring so it was not a perfect rectangle to begin with. 

Permalink Reply by MadGomer on October 8, 2015 at 4:19am

I'm not sure if this is possible, but it sounds like your peg/pin is bent. Did you check out the black screws holding the gears to ensure they're tight?

Permalink Reply by T-Gripped on October 8, 2015 at 4:25am

The black screws have been checked and they are indeed tight. However, I can 'wobble' the pin just a bit relative to the base plate. 

Permalink Reply by ChickenboneJohn on October 9, 2015 at 7:26am

I've just had another look at the tuners you are using -  these sort of cheap Chinese tuners with stamped baseplates are often dreadfully sloppy and inaccurate. You can get lucky and get decent ones, but often they are very inconsistent, and are either loose, or bind..or if you are really unluck they do both. I've bought (and thrown away) my fair share of junk machineheads in the past, so these days I'm a bit more selective as to what what I buy.

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