Honu Deluxe Concert: Brand New: A-string friction peg, beyond slipping

tuscadero · May 17, 2010

hey-o

I love my new uke. I've had it about a month and it is sweet. I don't take it to extreme places, don't leave it in the car, I have not changed the strings (aquilia) and I have barely had to tune it since I got it.

Then, last night, after no major change in lifestyle, the A string peg went completely hinky on me. It didn't just go out of tune. It went completely slack. The string is still wound around the peg, I don't even see a change in the number of times it's wrapped around. There's no change at the bridge. The peg resists being turned to tighten and unwinds immediately upon release. I tightened the screw, not too much, but enough to make it hold, played two songs, and boom, the string just released and dropped to D on my clip on tuner.

I tighten the pegs on my flea and fluke every now and again, but they hold the adjustment for months. This is a pretty expensive instrument and I don't want to damage it. Is this normal behavior or would you recommend I bring it back to the store for a look-see?

Latinleaders · May 19, 2010

I'm having a similar problem at the mo. Your uke is a good deal better quality than mine so I would probably get it checked out 'cause that doesn't sound right. Or...read right in this case. I'm trying to find out about getting the tuning pegs changed on mine but see what people say. Hope you get it sorted.

fahrner · May 20, 2010

tuscadero said:
hey-o

I love my new uke. I've had it about a month and it is sweet. I don't take it to extreme places, don't leave it in the car, I have not changed the strings (aquilia) and I have barely had to tune it since I got it.

Then, last night, after no major change in lifestyle, the A string peg went completely hinky on me. It didn't just go out of tune. It went completely slack. The string is still wound around the peg, I don't even see a change in the number of times it's wrapped around. There's no change at the bridge. The peg resists being turned to tighten and unwinds immediately upon release. I tightened the screw, not too much, but enough to make it hold, played two songs, and boom, the string just released and dropped to D on my clip on tuner.

I tighten the pegs on my flea and fluke every now and again, but they hold the adjustment for months. This is a pretty expensive instrument and I don't want to damage it. Is this normal behavior or would you recommend I bring it back to the store for a look-see?

Reading your symptom reminded me of a very similar experience with one of my guitars. It turned out that the string was actually slipping on the tuner. The end had broken off at the hole in the tuner peg. I'd tune the thing up, play for a little bit and the darn thing would slip again. You might unwind the string and check it out.

tuscadero · May 27, 2010

Just in case anyone finds this in a search, I did end up having to take the uke in to the shop for a fixing. It wasn't something that could be fixed by the regular staff, so they are going to have their repair guy who comes in weekly take a look at it. I will update when I get the verdict.

luvdat · May 27, 2010

tuscadero said:
Just in case anyone finds this in a search, I did end up having to take the uke in to the shop for a fixing. It wasn't something that could be fixed by the regular staff, so they are going to have their repair guy who comes in weekly take a look at it. I will update when I get the verdict.

Thanks and will follow the update.

tuscadero · Jun 1, 2010

Update: the repair guy at Music Emporium worked on it on Saturday and got it tight enough for me to use over the holiday. But he couldn't figure out why it was slipping so badly and he had trouble getting it to stay tight. In the long run he recommended replacing the friction pegs with geared pegs or the peghead style pegs. However this would
a. void my warranty (uke is only a month old)
b. take away one of the things I really like about the Big Island ukes, the matching wooden peg turners are kind of beautiful.

The uke stayed in tune all weekend, so I am happy about that. But I have sent an email to Jorma from Big Island ukulele to see if he could sell me a replacement tuner. Again, if there is more to report, I will update.

Honu Deluxe Concert: Brand New: A-string friction peg, beyond slipping

tuscadero

Well-known member

Latinleaders

Well-known member

fahrner

Well-known member

tuscadero

Well-known member

luvdat

Well-known member

tuscadero

Well-known member

Similar threads