What is the best tuner for adding a 5th string to a tenor uke?

[Rroberds]

Hi, I took up the ukulele for Covid and fell in love with it. I have since started building the stewmac kits and adding my touch. I would love to make a 5 string but am having a difficult time finding a center tuner. I am using the Grover 8N tuners. I also added an ebony faceplate which head thickness to 13.5mm. Any ideas?

 

[Kenn2018]

Welcome to the UU Forum Rroberds.

I'm afraid I can't answer your question. You might post in the Ukulele Building/Luthiers Lounge and the Uke Tech Support to catch the eye of someone with more experience about constructing a ukulele than in the New Members board.

Best of luck with your build.

 

[ploverwing]

I've just redirected this thread here to the LL to get some more expert feedback!

Cheers!
Amie
Moderator Team

 

[Mike $]

I wish they made a small 5th string tuner like they have on a banjo, right there on the neck at the 5th fret. I'd make me a nice uke and pick it like Earl Scruggs.

 

[Jerryc41]

Hi, I took up the ukulele for Covid and fell in love with it. I have since started building the stewmac kits and adding my touch. I would love to make a 5 string but am having a difficult time finding a center tuner. I am using the Grover 8N tuners. I also added an ebony faceplate which head thickness to 13.5mm. Any ideas?

By "center," you probably mean between two of the tuners that are already there. If you mean in the center of the headstock, a Gotoh would be perfect.

When I wanted to turn a 4-string headstock into into a 5-string for a uke I was building. I plugged the holes with dowels and drilled new holes. I converted an Enya Moon into a 5-string (low-G) by adding another tuner in between the G and C tuners. I couldn't find a good white one to match, so I bought black ones and replaced all the original tuning machines. Amazon has a large assortment of tuning machines.

 

[Moore Bettah Ukuleles]

Gotoh UPT.

 

[Pegasus Guitars]

I use Gotoh UPT pegs on concerts, but when I used them once on a tenor, they seemed to slip, especially on the wound C. That was a few years ago.I would like confirmation from others that use them on tenors that the slippage was just my imagination. I hope that it was because I would like to try them again. Opinion poll please!

 

[Tom Snape]

I haven't used the Gotoh UPT pegs yet, but I recently used the cheaper Golden Gate planetary tuners on a tenor banjolele. I was dismayed to see the tuners unwinding the first time I strung it up. So I tightened the screws on the knobs a little and now they hold fine. Both brands of these tuners use planetary gears to achieve a 4:1 ratio, but that alone will not prevent unwinding; some friction is still required.

This is what the japarts.ca site has to say about the UPT tuners:

"Do I need to tighten the screws like friction pegs?

Yes and no. Let's start with the no: You probably won't need to make any kind of adjustment. But on the off-chance that you do (you'll know - the post would un-wind from string tension) it's easy to tighten to the right amount of tension. Which brings us to the yes: Technically, the planetary gear is engaged by the screw that holds the button in place. Unlike friction pegs, there is a very wide range of "works well"."

 

[BuzzBD]

Hey Bob, I have used the UPTs on all sizes of ukulele. Occasionally one will slip, slight tightening of the knob screw has always rectified the issue.

 

[Canada Jim]

There are a few options for making a 5-string uke. It would help us to help you if you told us your option.

• a 5-string with a thumb string added - cGCEG tuning perhaps
• a 5-string with one of the strings doubled like a mandolin course
• a 5-string with one of the strings doubled in an octave course
• some other option

Spider John Koerner played a 7-string guitar in the sixties. He converted a standard 6 string by putting a banjo peg in the centre of the peg head and running an octave string beside the 3rd string, making it an octave G course.
Roger McGuinn had Martin make him a Spider John style 7 string and although he never credited Koerner, I doubt that anyone who was active in the sixties folk revival would be unaware of the Blues, Rags & Hollers LPs put out by Koerner, Ray & Glover.

 

[sequoia]

Spider John Koerner played a 7-string guitar in the sixties. He converted a standard 6 string by putting a banjo peg in the centre of the peg head and running an octave string beside the 3rd string, making it an octave G course.

The things I learn on this site. I didn't know of John Koerner.

Koerner was an early influence on Bob Dylan, who mentioned Koerner in his autobiography, Chronicles. Speaking of the early 1960s, Koerner later said, "We were all goofy, you know. We were thinkers and drinkers and artists and players, and Dylan was one of us. He was another guy. Wikipedia,.

 

[Coast_Ukulele]

I use Gotoh UPT pegs on concerts, but when I used them once on a tenor, they seemed to slip, especially on the wound C. That was a few years ago.I would like confirmation from others that use them on tenors that the slippage was just my imagination. I hope that it was because I would like to try them again. Opinion poll please!

I really like the UPTs and I’ve had the same experience as BuzzBD. I’ve probably used them on about 50 ukes.

but now that i think about it, i don’t use wound C strings. i’ve used the upt with tenor wound G and baritone wound D. a little screw tightening has worked well for those strings with no slipping.

 

[Kevdog]

Hi, I took up the ukulele for Covid and fell in love with it. I have since started building the stewmac kits and adding my touch. I would love to make a 5 string but am having a difficult time finding a center tuner. I am using the Grover 8N tuners. I also added an ebony faceplate which head thickness to 13.5mm. Any ideas?

Check out www.KinnardUkes.com Check out the 5 string baritone under the “Luthier’s Reserve” section.

 

[Michael Smith]

I've used a PegHead tuner for this application. As others have said the UPTs would work great as well.