Re: Tuning Machines (Was "Re: Gore, Sarah Paili, nude pics")

After Geezer wrote:

I just installed the Schallers....I agree with you 100%.
Schaller quality has gone down the tubes. I honestly couldn't believe how
shoddy they are.

Hank Alrich replied:

I've heard that the old man died, his son took over, the machinery is
tired and no longer in spec for machining tolerances, but they don't
spend to fix it, they just keep cranking out "tuners".


You've got part of the story. The old man died, his middle-aged son
took over, but then was killed in an auto accident on the Autobahn.
The company, while still in business, has been more or less rudderless
ever since, and is obviously NOT investing in re-tooling and
maintaining their machinery..

The same sort of decline took place with Grover tuning gears back in
the 1970's, though I don't think catastrophic death was involved. But
accuracy of their gears declined significantly from when the Grover
Rotomatic was the best thing on the market.

Eventually somebody stepped in and halted Grover's decline and
reversed it, to an extent, anyway. Presumably the same thing will
happen with Schaller eventually.

Let's hope so, anyway.

As for the best Gotohs to put on that Larrivee parlor, Geezer, I'm not
sure off the top of my head. Let's hope Larry can provide us with
that answer.

I don't believe that Gotoh makes a mini guitar tuner that's as small
as the Schaller and Ping minis, not in a sealed gear tuner, anyway.

They do make a mini version of their superb 510 gear. I've got some
sets of them on several of my instruments. But those are a bit larger
than the Schaller or Ping minis.

Gotoh also makes a Waverly lookalike they call the 510 open gear model
that's got a small footprint, and which can be ordered with an even
smaller backplate that allows six in a row spacing like the old
Klusons on Fender pegheads.

Open gear tuners might be one good option for you here.

But if we don't hear from Larry on this, you can call Allparts on
Monday and ask one of their sales reps if there's a direct replacement
that works well. That 800 number is 800-327-8942.

Hope this helps.


Wade Hampton Miller
Chugiak, Alaska
.