Replacing Tuning Machine Heads

[about2]

Well I did it! My first adventure into changing out machine heads is complete. Here's what I learned:

1. It can be done.
2. Patience is key. What might have taken some 30 minutes, took me 4+ hours.
3. Cheap parts are cheap for a reason.

So I have a vintage Favilla baritone and the tuners were driving me crazy. They were the original friction tuners. They needed to go. So I did tons of research and watched lots of video's. Purchased my tuners (I opted for closed gear tuners, 15:1 ratio), got my tools ready, and launched into the process. Removing the old friction tuners was pretty simple. Then came the challenging part . . . I had to enlarge the hole for the tuners. I used a hand reamer to enlarge the opening to about 10 mm. This took some time. But I put on an old British Mystery, Inspector Linley, and began. I ended up watching three episodes.

Once the holes were enlarged, the rest was pretty easy. The screws that came with the tuners are very cheap. One of the screw heads broke off. But once I replaced the screws, the final result is quite nice. Even a cheap set of closed geared tuners work better than the original. I may replace them down the road, but for now I'm very happy. And I learned a lot in the process!

I learned not to mess with the Inspector! He is one smart cookie (although he has a lot to learn about being a husband).

 

[oldjazznut]

One time only, I replaced frictions. On my Vineyard, with Grover 8N open gears. The post holes are critical, luckily I had access to a drill press and the exact bit specified. The bushings were a perfect tight fit. I used a bit stop for the tiny screw holes.

I got the number 1 tuner a tiny bit out of square, maybe 1/32 off. Didn't bother me as all of my other ukes have one tuner visibly off from perfect. Seems to be a requirement!

 

[Jerryc41]

Well I did it! My first adventure into changing out machine heads is complete. Here's what I learned:

1. It can be done.
2. Patience is key. What might have taken some 30 minutes, took me 4+ hours.
3. Cheap parts are cheap for a reason.

So I have a vintage Favilla baritone and the tuners were driving me crazy. They were the original friction tuners. They needed to go. So I did tons of research and watched lots of video's. Purchased my tuners (I opted for closed gear tuners, 15:1 ratio), got my tools ready, and launched into the process. Removing the old friction tuners was pretty simple. Then came the challenging part . . . I had to enlarge the hole for the tuners. I used a hand reamer to enlarge the opening to about 10 mm. This took some time. But I put on an old British Mystery, Inspector Linley, and began. I ended up watching three episodes.

Once the holes were enlarged, the rest was pretty easy. The screws that came with the tuners are very cheap. One of the screw heads broke off. But once I replaced the screws, the final result is quite nice. Even a cheap set of closed geared tuners work better than the original. I may replace them down the road, but for now I'm very happy. And I learned a lot in the process!

I learned not to mess with the Inspector! He is one smart cookie (although he has a lot to learn about being a husband).

So you replaced the entire tuning machine, not just the button/knob. I prefer geared to pegs, and I've replaced the tuners on most of my Magic Fluke instruments and some others. For a good uke, I would use Gotoh tuners, although they are expensive. If you drill a hole for that tiny screw, or if you use an awl to enlarge the hole, the chances of breaking a screw are reduced. Some lube - bee's wax - can help, too. Also, screw it in a bit and back it off; screw it in a bit and back it off.

 

[Pissodes]

I find that tuner replacement isnt that hard with the right equipment. I bought a several year old Famous soprano that came with the original Gotoh entry level friction tuners. I put on Grover 6 friction tuners but had to bore out the holes to get them to fit. I bought a relatively inexpensive luthier reamer ($15) to open the holes. I went slow but the new tuners went in without a hitch. Work much better than the old tuners.

 

[about2]

I find that tuner replacement isnt that hard with the right equipment. I bought a several year old Famous soprano that came with the original Gotoh entry level friction tuners. I put on Grover 6 friction tuners but had to bore out the holes to get them to fit. I bought a relatively inexpensive luthier reamer ($15) to open the holes. I went slow but the new tuners went in without a hitch. Work much better than the old tuners.

Similar experience here. It’s just takes a little gumption to start enlarging the holes. i had to take a deep breath.

 

[Bill Sheehan]

Well I did it! My first adventure into changing out machine heads is complete. Here's what I learned:

1. It can be done.
2. Patience is key. What might have taken some 30 minutes, took me 4+ hours.
3. Cheap parts are cheap for a reason.

So I have a vintage Favilla baritone and the tuners were driving me crazy. They were the original friction tuners. They needed to go. So I did tons of research and watched lots of video's. Purchased my tuners (I opted for closed gear tuners, 15:1 ratio), got my tools ready, and launched into the process. Removing the old friction tuners was pretty simple. Then came the challenging part . . . I had to enlarge the hole for the tuners. I used a hand reamer to enlarge the opening to about 10 mm. This took some time. But I put on an old British Mystery, Inspector Linley, and began. I ended up watching three episodes.

Once the holes were enlarged, the rest was pretty easy. The screws that came with the tuners are very cheap. One of the screw heads broke off. But once I replaced the screws, the final result is quite nice. Even a cheap set of closed geared tuners work better than the original. I may replace them down the road, but for now I'm very happy. And I learned a lot in the process!

I learned not to mess with the Inspector! He is one smart cookie (although he has a lot to learn about being a husband).

Awesome! Sounds like a job well done!

 

[Island Jim]

This has been mentioned before but it is worth repeating. When using wood screws into hardwood drill a proper pilot hole, normally 1/16", and very important lubricate the threads. I use vaseline or sometimes bar soap. It doesn't take much!

 

[about2]

This has been mentioned before but it is worth repeating. When using wood screws into hardwood drill a proper pilot hole, normally 1/16", and very important lubricate the threads. I use vaseline or sometimes bar soap. It doesn't take much!

It is worth repeating. Thank you. Lesson learned. What do they say about experience? It's not just a good teacher . . .

 

[SkeeterAB]

So you replaced the entire tuning machine, not just the button/knob. I prefer geared to pegs, and I've replaced the tuners on most of my Magic Fluke instruments and some others. For a good uke, I would use Gotoh tuners, although they are expensive. If you drill a hole for that tiny screw, or if you use an awl to enlarge the hole, the chances of breaking a screw are reduced. Some lube - bee's wax - can help, too. Also, screw it in a bit and back it off; screw it in a bit and back it off.

Sorry to hijack this thread, but I just bought a used tenor koa fluke that I love, except for the friction tuners. They are terrible. I am ok with the friction tuners on another uke, but even with adjustments these are either sloppy loose or almost impossible to turn.
Could you possibly give me some advice or point me to thread that explains modifying a fluke to replace the friction tuners with Gotoh planetary UPTL tuning machines? I have switched out UPTs with other UPTs on two ukes, but I have never had to modify the holes and those had standard hole geometry.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Anita

 

[Pissodes]

Sorry to hijack this thread, but I just bought a used tenor koa fluke that I love, except for the friction tuners. They are terrible. I am ok with the friction tuners on another uke, but even with adjustments these are either sloppy loose or almost impossible to turn.
Could you possibly give me some advice or point me to thread that explains modifying a fluke to replace the friction tuners with Gotoh planetary UPTL tuning machines? I have switched out UPTs with other UPTs on two ukes, but I have never had to modify the holes and those had standard hole geometry.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Anita

Couple things to consider. The first will be the thickness of the headstock. Most are around 12mm give or take. The Grover tuners are just under 11mm at the base and need a 8mm hole to pass through the head. The UPTs are over 15mm at the base and need a 10mm hole. If the fluke has a thick enough headstock to accommodate a 10mm hole, the base of the tuners will still probably extend beyond the upper/lower edges of the head. Same for the washers used under the threaded nut. Might be more of an aesthetic issue that functional. Tuning peg height would need to be considered too. Im guessing UPTLs would be needed?? The other is drilling the new hole. Its best to use an appropriate reamer and you would need an awl or similar sharp tool to make a small indentation for the locking pin on the base of the tuner. Reamers can be cheap ($15 on Amazon) or expensive ($120+ on Stew Mac). Awls are cheap. There are some videos showing the process. The best one is here:

 

[SkeeterAB]

Couple things to consider. The first will be the thickness of the headstock. Most are around 12mm give or take. The Grover tuners are just under 11mm at the base and need a 8mm hole to pass through the head. The UPTs are over 15mm at the base and need a 10mm hole. If the fluke has a thick enough headstock to accommodate a 10mm hole, the base of the tuners will still probably extend beyond the upper/lower edges of the head. Same for the washers used under the threaded nut. Might be more of an aesthetic issue that functional. Tuning peg height would need to be considered too. Im guessing UPTLs would be needed?? The other is drilling the new hole. Its best to use an appropriate reamer and you would need an awl or similar sharp tool to make a small indentation for the locking pin on the base of the tuner. Reamers can be cheap ($15 on Amazon) or expensive ($120+ on Stew Mac). Awls are cheap. There are some videos showing the process. The best one is here:

Thank you Pissodes! I did not even think to compare the widest diameter of the planetary tuners (UPTL 15 mm) with the thickness of the headstock (13.5 mm). I will have about 0.75 mm overhang on each side, but I think that will look fine and feel ok with the rounded corner profile of the UPTL base. The pegheads would not have this problem, but I read that they are harder to install and much harder to take out. Also, thank you for the link to the instructions.
Anita