Fixing sticky bass tuners
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- Опубликовано: 4 сен 2024
- The elephant-ear tuners on this '72 P-Bass are barely turning at all. Instead of installing new tuners, Dan Erlewine shows how to get the original tuners working smoothly again.
Guitar Grease
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Tri-Flow Pin Point Lubricator
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Micro-Mesh Soft Touch Pads
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Surrogate Body for the Erlewine Neck Jig
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Special thanks to our friend Dakota Dave Hull for the music!
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Dan is an international treasure.
I was just about to say the exact same thing.
National*
Agree Jamie 100%. He is one-of-The Best. I bought 2 of his books. Both are fantastic. (highly recommended) I've Learned so much from Mr. Dan . . . love this guy.
These videos brings me peace
Me to actually. Sometime I just put them on in the back round and let them play.
If he has kids they better come see him all the time. I could listen to him talk about guitars for hours and I don't even fix them.
Dan is unofficially my new grandpa
He will probably be the coolest and butt kicking, rocking grandpa in town.
For people in a previous generation he would be regarded as a prized grandson
No better teacher, hope you're doing well Mr. Erlewine! Thank you, RepairBrah.
RepairOfTheWeek
@@moonlightbuildscy4325 Luuuuuube review!
I just did this on my '76 P Bass and it worked a treat! Went from "about to snap" to "buttery" in about 25 minutes. The needle applicator on the Tri-Flo is worth every penny.
Glad to hear it!
This is great, thanks for posting.
If you don't have guitar grease, microcrystalline wax is a decent substitute. I use a hair dryer or heat gun (lowest temp setting with extreme caution) to flow the wax into the gear mechanism instead of letting it remain in clumps as applied. Heat source in one hand, winder in the other hand to spin the gear around as the wax starts to soften and flow.
I also like to lube the tuner post and the inside of the tuner post bushing, as those surfaces can bear against each other when the post is turning.
The full OCD method would include taking the tuner off the headstock and giving it a short immersion in a naphtha bath. I put a jar of naphtha in an ultrasonic cleaner to buzz out all the crud that's built up around the tuner key shaft inside the bent metal shaft bushings. Seeing the junk come weeping out of the nooks and crannies in the ultrasonic is pure magic.
I'm new to this channel. I watched just about every one of Dan's videos. I'm totally blown away with his knowledge and skills. Amazing guy!
Always a pleasure to watch Dan Erlewine!
I am the new owner of a 1973 telecaster bass. I'm back here again to watch the master. Just used triflow for the first time. Very nice. Thanks Dan.
Thank you, Dan! Your tips helped me get my tuners turning. One remained stiff after the steps, but I gave it some time, and by the time I restrung, it was working well. Good stuff.
slightly different, but i followed these steps to fix some tuners on an Engelhardt Upright bass. Not only were some of them too tight, some were slipping, not tuning correctly. 1 hours worth of work, and 3 years later, tuners are still holding up. going do this on my '87 Fender Jazz Bass Special later today. Dan is THE man!!
Chapstick and 3inOne.
Carpenter, cabinetmaker, boat finisher, yacht rigger, or around the house... my tool kit is never without
Of course, this shop trick can be used on almost any open tuning machine - guitar, bass, mandolin, banjo, whatever.
I have a 99 MIJ Pbass with the same issue. With Triflow now are like new. Thanks Dan!
Great vid as always. I also use a drop of loctite on the bolt. These are often loose. Plus a small smear of grease on the string post where it rubs on the headstock bushing. These press-in bushings will often also need to be pressed down again with a drop of glue. Dan (as always!) is spot on. Servicing machine heads is often all that's needed instead of replacement. But on bolt-ons, loose neck pocket fitment and neck screws are often also a cause of a guitar losing its tuning.
On some of those older tuners the two hoops that hold the shaft and worm gear are held in place by folded over tabs on the back of the tuner plate. These tabs stick out below the tuner plate and for a proper fit they seem to need small recesses drilled or carved into the back of the headstock. I have seen some Fender basses where these recesses were not cut, but the four tuner attachment screws had been tightened so hard that the tuner base plate had bent. The tuners were pretty hard to turn because of the distortion of the base plate.
Hey Terry. Did you make recesses for the tabs, and are your tuners easier to turn? The plates on my 1975 tuners look a bit bent. Thanks.
I just removed the back plates of my 1975 P bass machines. You could see the four impressions made by the tabs on each plate. I used my small japan made 'U' gouge chisel. made a quick pass on all 16 impressions. Tuner plates lay flat, and the machines turn more freely. Thanks Terry.
@@telecasterbear Excellent! Yes I always check any basses I get in for repair with this style of tuner to see if the base plates are bent because of these tabs. It seems to be an oversight on Fenders part that they put out instruments without 'dimples' cut for these tabs. I normally have to take each tuner apart as well and straighten out the plates.
Agreed! My unofficial Grandpa too! Love your videos!!!
Nice! Gotta try this on my old 70’s Mustang Bass...
We use that 'wax/grease' for drill bit work at our shop. Any machine shop wax will do this same magic...also I've used sewing machine oil for my tuners. Works like a charm
Love you Dan
This man is a national treasure.
Great video StewMac!!
3:25 OptiVisor cameo. Thanks for the video.
Gotta try this on my old EBMM Stingray 5. Thanks Dan!
Been playing 50 years. Never knew that! TY
A great video. Very helpful to actually see the process. BTW, StewMac support has been absolutely fantastic!
Dan the man with another great video 👍
As usual, Dan does a very thorough job here. But if your tuners are not that bad, or you're not comfortable taking things apart; simply use a cordless drill with a peg winder to spin the tuner while adding a few drops of machine oil to the gears. Works very well, quickly and easily. Don't forget to remove the strings first, haha.
Really nice to know, I just got a classical guitar with a stiff tuner, now I can make it work like new
Dan - you're the man! Many thanks.
Great video, i usually just use a pencil and put some graphite on the gears when changing strings. I also use it on the nut and bridge saddles. Seems to help.
Thanks Dan. My new to me 1975, in mocha, with rosewood fingerboard thanks you very much.
Cool great video. You are the man. I always look forward to your videos. I hope you have a Blessed Week.
This looks great! Did StewMac get a new camera?
Beautiful work!
You're top-notch, Stewart!
Great work, and thanks for the excellent lesson.
I need to get some of those products.
Thanks so much. The tuners on my 68 Jazz bass, that is in constant use were getting worse and worse.
what if you have the opposite problem, where you don't have too much resistance but rather not enough?
Thanks for more great content dan. I’ve been watching all your videos 👍🏻
My friend's bass was like this too. I think it must be a buildup of years of cigarette smoke. I guess that's one con of open gear tuners.
Good to know that there's an easy fix, though!
Dan The Man. I love these, thanks.
Dan shop tour please
Dan always makes the difficult to simple.
Dan, you are the bomb!
Love these videos!
Super vidéo and nice advice; merci !
If I don't have guitar grease will peanut butter work?
My hipshot tuners are grindy and squeaky, along with a little sticky. Will this trick help with that?
Just what I need. Thanks a lot.
Off subject. I was watching another channel and the guy was building a guitar and he stops and says "I thought our files were good but I got this Stewart McDonald one and it is at a much higher quality than I thought a file could be....". Makes me want to go buy one even though I don't need one!
Amazing
do you have advice on how to fix a tuning head which won't grab? it will wind but only a couple of times before it pops out of the barrel. the string length is fine as i tried it with the last string i had on it. but it just doesn't want to tune up properly. thanks..
would this help with it jumping off gear when tightening it up? I can't get my D string tension high enough, it just jumps back and slips when it get's close to pitch
Keep your machine clean...know what I mean? Thanks, great tip.
Guys, the same thing's happening to my Telecaster copy's tuners(split shaft). Does the method here apply to split heads? I'm not yet adept with fixing tuners.
Great!
Thank You, great!
Top man.....top trick
Hello everybody
Someone knows why the reissue vintage bass tuners have 6 dents in the barrel mesh ?... And In the original 50s 60s 70s basses have 3 dents ..
How would you do this on a sealed tuner?
Can you use petroleum jelly?
chef souffle id use an oil and squirt it inside the tuner, clean it up and reinstall it. Triflow dry Lube is the best for this, it’s a liquid Lube that dries up to a wax consistency and stays where it supposed to without dripping everywhere and getting your guitar dirty
Or beeswax?
Alternatives to Guitar Grease?
Thanks for this tip!!!
On my 2022 American Fender they are threaded and compress against both sides of the head stock and never a problem.
You should also put a little grease where the post meets the bushing. Friction can occur there when the strings are to pitch..... Wait, I see William Young already mentioned that. Another finer point to consider is whether or not the crimped tabs holding the key to the tuner plate are flexing the tuner when installed to the headstock. I've had this happen before. Check for dimples in the finish where tabs would be when you remove the tuner. I had a set of tuners on a '51 reissue that bound up because the plate flexed when you tightened down the wood screws holding in the tuner. I carefully milled little shallow divots in the headstock to allow clearance. Problem solved. Granted, that might be a rare problem but I thought I'd throw it out there... Wait, I see Terry Relph-Knight already mentioned that. Some of you are on the ball!!! Have a nice day.
TLC ...tuner lovin' care
Can the screw liquid be substituted by some wd40?
Can you please do one for wobbly guitar tuning posts?
Jordan Williams that’s most likely wear, you gotta replace those
common sense and simple, just the way I like it. Thks
Wouldn’t it be better to grease the back of the polished get versus on the plate? That way you only put grease where there is metal on metal.
Dan applied the Guitar Grease on the plate and worm that make connection to the gear. Therefore, there will be more lubrication and smooth tuning where the grease was applied. Yes, your idea would be less messy, but both are effective.
Is that tri-flow the same as the bike chain lube? That's what I've used on my bike for a long time.
I’m a bike mech and also use it on my bikes lol
i have a 73p,, on the G -string Tuner there is some `Slack before it turns the gear .. what is that from ?
jeffrey bright most likely wear, that’s technically called backlash and it’s just what happens to old tuners, they wear out.
GREAT JOB DUDE..:)
Somebody level with me. I have petroleum, 3in1 oil and fine sandpaper. Would there be any harm in using those in place of this?
Totally unintentional ASMR
Do StewMac sell a tool that can fix a broken marriage?
Acled Maiden You could try with some hot hide glue, it really works for a strong bong
no optivisor!
👏👏👏😎 grato...
I guess you could say you gave it a little “tune up”
TLC = Triflo, guitar Lube, Cleaning
EFormance Engineering
😀
Be honest now, you just needed a diversion from the fretwork for a while. :-)
I'm always happy when I see one of your videos.
I don't get the appeal of open tuners. Especially those are a bad design.
Oh, really? Some of the finest tuning machines made are open machines. Check out the StewMac website if you don't believe me.
I think part of it is weight reduction. Especially on a bass, the longer neck adds leverage to every little bit of weight at the headstock.
@Chris Pile I didn't say that you can't make nice open tuners. I said they don't appeal to me.
This particular design is crap since the posts aren't in any kind of bearing sleeve. So even among open tuners, it's a crappy design.
A closed tuner will always be superior in the long run, cause the gears are fully protected from the elements. Most open tuners are still kept around for looks on acoustic guitars. The loads are a lot smaller. At least a somewhat half closed version would be an improvement for the post of those bass tuners. It's just all kept the same to keep it original fender. Original but doesn't work, focus on what really matters, right?
@Josh Starkey. That is always a problem, but it's still a bulky design as it is. There is still room for weight reduction and a housing, added to the original design can be very thin, since it doesn't see any load.
Somehow, in my experience, even cheapo vintage-style open gear bass tuners on Squiers or other even cheaper Fender-style bass clones like SX, Vintage, or Harley Benton, were always pretty good at keeping the bass in tune. Those smaller modern closed back tuners go out of tune way more often unless they're at least Gotohs. So you have to clean and oil your open back tuners from time to time, or spend 15 minutes per tuner if you neglected that for decades and they finally start acting up. Big deal. :)
I did it and my bass guitar exploded
Nathan Ovide you just NEED TLC
Tuner Lube Cleaning TLC
so Grease is your secret
Tuners and prison.
WD40
thumb up...but I noticed I'm the 666 ...but I cannot dislike, sorry!!
Comment of the Beast ermahgerd!
Grease attracts dust dirt grime I would never use grease on machine heads. I am not a tech and have zero experience but I have been using Hoppe's gun oil very very little on the machine gear if they tighten up and that usually fixes any tightness. Great idea to clean everything yes but I would never put grease on there.
Oh - you explain your ignorance and lack of experience, but poo-poo a guy who has done more to advance guitar repair knowledge than anyone on the planet. We should listen to you? NOT.
I have a 2013 Sandberg 4 string TT Panther Bass. Ive had it for about 6 months now.I changed the strings and the next day noticed.The caps were slightly pulled off the head stock. Tried using elmers wood glue. And let it dry for 36 hours. But after putting the strings back on. The caps pulled off again. Is there a special kind of Super glue thats used so these caps dont pull off the head stock?