Replace Tuners on a custom soprano...any suggestions?

sonomajazz

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 13, 2012
Messages
567
Reaction score
0
Location
Marin County California
Just acquired a David Newton couple of weeks ago and it is definitely a keeper, (well, until that vintage Martin shows up!).
Would like to replace the tuners. I think they're friction style and are difficult to control. Pegheds would be ideal. I have them on my tenors, but don't want to spend $140 + for the turners and install.
Any suggestions would be appreciated.
 
Vote #1 for PEgheds if you can have someone install them.

Vote #2 Gotoh Planetary tuners, you should be able to install yourself. Similar to pegheds but bigger, heavier and do not have a vintage simple look... but easier to install.

good luck!
 
Vote #1 for PEgheds if you can have someone install them.

Vote #2 Gotoh Planetary tuners, you should be able to install yourself. Similar to pegheds but bigger, heavier and do not have a vintage simple look... but easier to install.

good luck!

I personally would go with the Gotohs. Owned both and I think the Gotohs are the best for non-vintage ukes, including tenors.
 
Have you tried adjusting the tuners? Those are good quality and should be able to be adjusted so that they work well.
 
Have you tried adjusting the tuners? Those are good quality and should be able to be adjusted so that they work well.

Good advice. The little screw in the knob can be adjusted to increase or decrease resistance. I find it best the dethne slightly and bring up to pitch.
 
I have one of davids ukuleles and love the tuners and his ukes...they turn better, but I think they hold better than pegheads if you ask me... think about it..
besides you are rich...he he you live in Marin County :)
 
Send it to me, I'll do the Peghed install no charge.
Buy your Pegheds, check around locally for how much $ a pro install is.
If shipping is less, let me do it.

Now THAT is customer service!


-Kurt​
 
Send it to me, I'll do the Peghed install no charge.
Buy your Pegheds, check around locally for how much $ a pro install is.
If shipping is less, let me do it.

Thanks for the generous offer, David...certainly not unhappy with the uke, just a preference. Probably "Too much time on my hands" kind of thing...
Thanks to all for some great suggestions!
 
I second the recommendations to try to get used to the tuners. I bought a Kiwaya KS-5 with friction tuners and hated them. I was going to have a local luthier change them out for Gotohs. He said it would be a few weeks till he had them in stock so I tightened the little screw at the end of each tuner and have found that once the new strings settled in, I don't need to retuned that often, so why change something that's not broken :)
 
I have one of davids ukuleles and love the tuners and his ukes...they turn better, but I think they hold better than pegheads if you ask me... think about it..
besides you are rich...he he you live in Marin County :)

Ha, mm...don't have everything I want, but have everything I need...that's rich in my book...
 
OBTW, Stan...HI trip in June...going to the Big Island and for the first time, would rather be in Oahu to visit the uke factories, HMS etc.
But, maybe I can coax Moore Bettah man down off the mountain for a visit...(or visit the mountain?)
 
I fifth keeping the friction tuners. Those are good quality, too, like Ryan said. Honestly, tighten them up a bit and they're great.

That said, if you do plan to change them, buy them and send them to David Newton; his offer to do the work for you is well worth the round trip postage. Exceedingly generous.
 
I sixth keeping the friction tuners - but if you really must change then I third (or fourth, I lost count) the recommendation for the new UPT tuners.

I've always preferred friction tuners on sopranos and concerts but that's beginning to change since I have put the UPTs on a couple of ukes and really like them, and they look like the friction tuners they replaced. I even put a set on my Pineapple Sunday to get rid of the "ears" of the stock tuners.

I know there are a lot of fans of the PEGHEADS and I'm sure they're great tuners, and have the same ratio as the UPTs, but personally they just don't flip my wipper aesthetically.

John
 
Pegheds

If someone says that a friction tuner will hold as well and be easier to use than PEGHEDS, they don't know how to use them. PEGHEDS will never leave compression marks on you peghead front and back. They also are warranted to work, or they will be repaired or replaced for the cost of shipping them, and a self addressed bubble pack envelope for them to be returned to you. There are two lengths of the shaft. If the peghead(headstock) is 15mm or less, you can use either one. The short one is 19mm and the longer one is 27.5mm .

Elderly only has the longer ones at $80 a set and $120 to install.
Either set from me is $55.00 for 2L and 2R. I will send them directly to whoever you have do it, and as my part of encouraging you, I will pay the shipping----provided it's within the USA.

The new Gotoh units cost more, and are extremely heavy. All four PEGHEDS weigh less than one of the Gotohs. They also use a 3/8 inch bore hole.

The buttons can be left matte finish or run on a buffing wheel with a little bit of buffing compound to look as shiny as ebony.
 
I 7th keeping the tuners but that isn't the question the OP is asking is it.

Not exactly, but it is relevant...
I have a Black Bear cigar box (for sale!) that has a little different type of friction tuner and they seem to be much smoother. The soprano tuners are "sticky", and not as easy to tune. If they felt like the BB I wouldn't have thought to change them.
Once again, my preference for tuners does not reflect on the quality of this little uke...it is superb.
 
Top Bottom