CIRCLE WITH A DOT

@alisynthesis @voiceofunreason @L0wKey It’s always funny the first time you hear it. It’s such a common recommendation on guitar forums though that we sorta forget it was funny

@voiceofunreason @alisynthesis @L0wKey This is a good product! There are other similar products that are probably better than pencil lead as well.

I love how any discussion on any guitar adjacent topic will quickly turn into “this really improved my tone.” Unless we’re talking about pickups, then no, it didn’t, lol. Folks are genuinely crazy.

@tpherndon @alisynthesis @L0wKey They are! I like them a lot.

The Revstar has a set of GFS Surf 180s. I love GFS pickups. Cheap, sound great, easy to switch out

@L0wKey @alisynthesis Entirely fair.

@alisynthesis @L0wKey Oh definitely. My one Arturia keyboard is more than I’ll ever need because I’m genuinely bad at keys. But I still wanted a nice keyboard, so here we are

@alisynthesis @L0wKey Case in point. The one that’s by the desk changes sometimes.

@alisynthesis @L0wKey I buy guitars until I’m out of wall space. Then I buy one more.

@L0wKey @alisynthesis That said, that’s all they’re good for is faster string changing. Once the tension is settled, standard tuners do just as good a job staying in tune. People who think locking tuners help with tuning stability more generally don’t know what they’re talking about.

@L0wKey @alisynthesis See, I like them because they make strong changes so much faster. No winding needed- pull the string through as tight as you safely can, tighten the nut, tune up, clip the excess, you’re right as rain. Hardly even need to stretch the strings since there’s no slack in the winding to deal with.

@alisynthesis @unsafelyhotboots Haha, honestly that was my same reaction the first time I did this. Now I use those calipers constantly, just to satisfy curiosity

@alisynthesis @unsafelyhotboots Ouch indeed

@alisynthesis Oh good, these are Gotoh style tuners. Not sure if they’re Gotohs and that’s just an old logo, but pretty easy to find, cheap, and reliable.

These will probably fit, but again, research the diameters you’re dealing with first.

https://reverb.com/item/70161251-new-6r-guitar-string-inline-tuning-pegs-locking-tuners-keys-machine-heads-gold?utm_source=rev-ios-app&utm_medium=ios-share&utm_campaign=listing&utm_content=70161251

@unsafelyhotboots @alisynthesis Frets are basically the one thing I pay a pro to do, but I’ve only ever needed that once. And that was just a fret end dress.

@alisynthesis Take a picture of the back of your headstock and I may be able to help.

@alisynthesis Nah, there’s no magic to it. Ideally you’ll find tuners that match the current type in terms of screw layout and shaft diameter. Diameter is more important than screw layout though because you can just drill new pilot holes if you need to. You’ll need calipers to determine the current shaft diameter. You may also need to measure the internal diameter of the holes in the headstock, which involves removing one tuner of course.

Worst case, you may need to ream out the holes a bit. I had to do this for my cheap Gretsch, which was the first guitar I changed tuners on.

@alisynthesis @Roofhare @samvarma Oh interesting. Yeah, new tuners may fix you right up. If the strings are brand new, then I’d say it’s just a matter of working the slack out at the tuning head, but I imagine you would have mentioned if these are brand new strings.

@Roofhare @alisynthesis @samvarma If it’s not a tremolo guitar, then no, that’s weird. Your tuners may be a little loose?

As for graphite, pencil led will work in a pinch, but I’ve had better luck with purpose-bottled graphite lubricant. The particles are finer and tend to do a better job than pencil lead.

You can find it at local hardware stores or bike shops. Here’s an Amazon link to what I’m talking about.

https://www.amazon.com/The-Hillman-Group-Graphite-Lubricant/dp/B0016N38TA/