Slipping tuners

[uk_lefty]

Hi! One of my basses has upgraded Schaller tuners, it's a jazz bass and these are almost typical fender type... Problem is they often slip out of tune. A bit annoying. Is this simply a case of tightening the screws? Or are they dead?

[EmmettC]

Do they have tension adjustment? I think some of them have a nut at the bottom of the shaft to make them tighter (or looser).

[Manton Customs]

Can you actually see and feel them slip? Tuners won't normally slip unless the cog is damaged, but maybe that's the case!

It's possible the problem is not the tuners but the nut pinching the strings too tightly. If you ever hear creaking or a ping while tuning (or any other time) then that will definitely confirm it. Have you upped your string gauge recently? Some graphite in the nut slots may help, but the slots may need to be widened.

[Chienmortbb]

Agree with Mr Manton there. Schallers rarely let you down.

Edited March 7, 2016 by Chienmortbb

[BigRedX]

IME slipping tuners are due to the bearings for the worm gear having worn out and not holding the two gears tight enough together. And I've never seen this on anything other than very old open style mechanisms. AFAIK the tension adjustment on modern tuners simply adjusts how hard (or not) it is to turn the worm gear and nothing else.

To the OP are you sure the problem is the tuners? can you see the string post actually turning back when under string tension?

[uk_lefty]

Hi everyone... It's unlikely to be the nut as I had a bone nut made and installed by a top quality luthier and I use light gauge strings on my jazz. The bass loses its tuning more during hotter weather, really let me down on a gig a few years back.
I've been sure it was the tuners, partly because they were fitted by a previous owner so I don't know their origins or how well they've been treated, but also because they can sometimes feel quite loose. There's a screw at the top, hard to describe, that I could tighten I guess... Ideally I want to replace with more authentic looking tuners but if these are duff then it means I can't honestly sell them on, which would be a shame.

[Chienmortbb]

To be honest the material is almost irrelevant. If there is any binding on the strings, tuning will be erratic. Say your luthier cut the G slot to 42 to accommodate a 40 thou string and you use a 45 thou G then it will probably bind. I would pay for full setup and take the luthier's advice on what needs doing. Where are you based?

[Dad3353]

[quote name='uk_lefty' timestamp='1457444081' post='2998617']...
I've been sure it was the tuners...
[/quote]

Any chance of a close-up photo of each side of the headstock..? Maybe there's something to spot there, and would help dialogue..?

[Manton Customs]

To be honest the fact that it has recently received a new nut makes it even more likely it's the culprit. Everybody makes mistakes regardless of experience.The fact it's a bone nut also makes it a bit more "grabby" than if it were graphite or similar. There's obviously nothing wrong with bone, it's a great nut material, but the slots need to be cut correctly and the slots to be lubed. It's probably only the tiniest of fractions too tight and I certainly don't want to sound like I'm being hard on your luthier .

Slipping tuners are normally very obvious as you'll struggle to get the note to pitch in the first place without the tuning heading back downwards again while you're still attempting to tune it. My experience is also the same as Big Red X's in that I've never had a modern tuner slip, just old junky open geared ones on 60s and 70s guitars.

If you just want to sell the tuners with a clear conscience, then maybe buy some new ones first and see if this solves your tuning issues before selling the old ones. I suspect the tuning issues will still be present though, but if not you'll have your answer .