Finally got my Gotoh UPTs installed

Interesting that you are installing long on everything. That’s good to know, and may change my process of ordering in the future.

I installed the Long Gotohs on "everything" only because those ukes were too thick for the regulars. Still, longer is better than too short.

I wonder if this is a typo about your tuners.
"the diameter in millimeters of the main body of the tuners:16.95mm"
That seems to be a very large measurement.

EDIT: I see Amazon has other UPT tuners but they're all about the same price, and they're all white! Do these makers have no imagination?
https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=geared+planetRY+tuners
 
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I installed the Long Gotohs on "everything" only because those ukes were too thick for the regulars. Still, longer is better than too short.

I wonder if this is a typo about your tuners.
"the diameter in millimeters of the main body of the tuners:16.95mm"
That seems to be a very large measurement.

I just measured the diameters of the Gotoh UPTs...14.37mm. 2.6 mm for banjo tuners doesn’t seem much larger.
 
...

EDIT: I see Amazon has other UPT tuners but they're all about the same price, and they're all white! Do these makers have no imagination?
https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=geared+planetRY+tuners

Those Knilling pegs are specifically for violin family instruments and will stick out the back of the headstock an obscene amount and make your uke not fit in the case, and for a Fluke or Flea, if the tuner shaft is longer than about 22mm FROM THE INSIDE FACE of the headstock, you will not be able to fit them on opposing sides of the headstock.

The others in you link are banjo tuners, and from what I've seen over the past 30 yrs or so, the buttons are traditionally white for the 'less expensive' models, and for other color buttons and the metal parts (like gold, bronze, black, etc) usually cost way more...

The $20 banjo tuners that Chris linked above are a steal if they work well and the gears inside do not grind or slip and turn easily.
 
Okay...the Banjo planetary tuners arrived today...in a large Amazon envelope, the five tuners (the 5th tuner is of no use to me) packaged in a small taped bubble wrap package.

Installation is exactly the same as Gotohs, with the exception that the “stake” on the main unit is larger and needs a larger diameter hole.

These things are big. The back units have a diameter of 16.8mm, and are 42mm long (or about 1 5/8”). I don’t know how this compares with Peg Head tuners, but it is A LOT bigger than the Gotohs.

None of this is a surprise to me, and it is something I am going to live with. I could probably find more compact planetary banjo tuners, but not for $20.

The operation is similar, but in no way comparable, to the Gotohs that I own. They just aren’t smooth. That said, they work 1000% better than the friction tuners that were on this particular ukulele...and the depth of that headstock requires a non-ukulele solution. Believe it or not, when I hold the ukulele at the body/neck meeting point, it is perfectly balanced. I would think the head would sink like a stone when trying to balance it.

Booli...I’m not sure what to say. I think you’ll be disappointed by the tactile quality of these tuners versus the Gotoh. But then again, if you are looking for a super-cheap solution, these are working (so far) and I have no reason to believe they won’t keep working.

I’m just pleased to have a functional ukulele, when it was previously unplayable regardless of how tight I made the back screws, and the threat of it being nothing with one bored out hole and 3 regular holes.

And I’m quite (using a term from Zoe Bestel) chuffed to have a Martin S1 with UPTs. I don’t have a lot of ukuleles that are worthy of UPTs, but my Opio Concert is going to get them, and I’m even tempted to put them on my Opio Tenor which has perfectly fine geared tuners. Maybe they would make sense on my Kala Banjolele, but I’m not sure I will keep that once Outdoor Ukulele releases their banjolele.

Anything else you want to know about these Banjo tuners? The required holes are (as expected) slightly larger than Gotohs.
 
Cool. It sounds like they are worth what you paid for them.

I don't think the day when decent UPTs are standard on at least midrange ukes is far off. Then they will drift down to the cheap ones. But it sounds like Gotoh don't have to worry much about competition at the high end.
 
Cool. It sounds like they are worth what you paid for them.

I don't think the day when decent UPTs are standard on at least midrange ukes is far off. Then they will drift down to the cheap ones. But it sounds like Gotoh don't have to worry much about competition at the high end.

If internal gears are made cheaply, they can be worse than friction tuners, so we'll have to hope that any mass production maintains quality.
 
Thanks Chris for the detailed update. I am glad that they will work as a solution on that uke. :)

Booli...I’m not sure what to say. I think you’ll be disappointed by the tactile quality of these tuners versus the Gotoh. But then again, if you are looking for a super-cheap solution, these are working (so far) and I have no reason to believe they won’t keep working...

Where you mention about how they work, are the gears crunchy or grinding or uneven resistance, or do they have lots of lash (aka slop) in how the shaft rotates in response to the turning of the button?

I'm thinking that if the above issues are present but are not severe, these might pass muster for me.

Is it in the fit and finish that they are rough and noticeably cheap feeling compared to the Gotoh UPTs?

The only time I am working the tuners a lot are in the week after a string change, and then after that, they usually require little adjustment.
 
Booli,

It is touch for me to say. The fit and finish seem okay (on the outside). One works very well; two work pretty decently; and one seems “notchy.” With that one (on C, incidentally), there is no grinding sound, and it seems to be willing to “jump” to the next spot although it holds the tuning between the “notches”.

But there is a noticeable upgrade in buttery smoothness with the Gotohs.

I suppose, since it is Amazon, you could take a chance and see what you think and return them if you think they are junk.

I wish I was more of an expert on planetary tuners...but at this point, I just wanted this ukulele to work—and since the $60+ Gotohs weren’t going to be able to do it...I took a risk on these $20 tuners and for now I can live with them!
 
I had a look on Eagle Music's website (UK dealer who specialise in banjos, though they also have a good selection of decent quality ukes) and good quality banjo planetary tuners no cheaper than Gotoh UPTs. They range from 50-80GBP a set which is comparable to a set of Gotoh UPTs here. The brands they stock are Leader and Schaller with the latter being the more expensive.
 
I had a look on Eagle Music's website (UK dealer who specialise in banjos, though they also have a good selection of decent quality ukes) and good quality banjo planetary tuners no cheaper than Gotoh UPTs. They range from 50-80GBP a set which is comparable to a set of Gotoh UPTs here. The brands they stock are Leader and Schaller with the latter being the more expensive.

I think we have to accept the fact that quality costs money. HMS has Gotohs ready for immediate delivery at a good price. I put a set in my new Firefly yesterday. Huge difference in tuning.
 
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