Ratio Tuners Arrived

Jerryc41

Jerryc41

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 4, 2015
Messages
10,278
Reaction score
3,207
Location
Catskill Mountains, NY
I ordered Ratio tuners from Pohaku, in Ca, on 6/30, and they arrived today. That's pretty fast.

Saying they are light is an understatement. The four of them together weight just 0.8 ounce, without the tiny screws. Now I'll have to decide where to install them.

There doesn't seem to be any slack in the movement, but they are not smooth in operation, and each one is different. As I turn the knob, I meet a certain amount of resistance at some point. Then it gets easier to turn again until I reach that point of resistance. The effect is "lumpy" turning. Even without a string attached, they take quite a bit more effort to turn, compared with other tuners. Maybe they'll get smoother with time, but for the price, I'm not complaining, just pointing out what I noticed. I can understand why they are working on high end tuners for high end ukes.

The shafts are very narrow, so I don't think any uke would need reaming. They come with four collars/bushings for the top side of the headstock, but they are a force-fit, so the hole size would have to be just right.

When I decide what to do with them, I'll get back to you. I think I'll be buying more of these.
 
Lumpy?. Huh. That can't be right. Bonanza said theirs worked as well as the Gotohs and I'd never describe a Gotoh as lumpy . And bazmaz didn't mention that in his review did he? Hmmm. :confused:
 
They might operate more smoothly once installed on a uke.
 
Jim Hanks said:
Lumpy?. Huh. That can't be right. Bonanza said theirs worked as well as the Gotohs and I'd never describe a Gotoh as lumpy . And bazmaz didn't mention that in his review did he? Hmmm. :confused:
Click to expand...

Okay, how about bumpy? :D

The amount of pressure required to rotate the knob varies, and it's different for each tuner. One tuner might exhibit extra resistance once per revolution, and another might require more effort two or three times per revolution. Maybe I just got four bad ones.
 
Jerryc41 said:
I ordered Ratio tuners from Pohaku, in Ca...
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info and heads-up. I was thinking about trying these, but was not aware they were out for sale yet.

Do you have a direct link to share for these from where you bought them?
 
Pohaku sent me a set and they arrived today - they are my third set. Observations:-
The lumpiness seems to go away once installed and used, at least that is my impression
The bushings are much thicker than the shafts so ream carefully from the topside. If too much is reamed out then a tiny bit of glue seems to work.
The tiny screws are tiny, try to get the pilot holes really vertical to the back of the headstock.
This set is going onto a concert Braddah/Mele, when it arrives in about a week.
IMHO - these are great engineering and value. I love planetary tuners on ukuleles.
 
Jerryc41 said:
The shafts are very narrow, so I don't think any uke would need reaming.
Click to expand...

I had to drill out the holes on my tenor Fluke to fit them.

This is Michael Kohan in Los Angeles, Beverly West near the Beverly Center
9 tenor cutaway ukes, 5 acoustic bass ukes, 11 solid body bass ukes, 9 mini electric bass guitars (Total: 34)

• Donate to The Ukulele Kids Club, they provide ukuleles to children in hospital music therapy programs. www.theukc.org
• Member The CC Strummers: YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/CCStrummers/video, Facebook: www.facebook.com/TheCCStrummers
 
[I had to remove the quoted replies that contain the links to the Pohaku web site since the forum software thinks my post is spam with them included]

Thank you to EDW and Jerry for the links. :)
 
Joe King said:
[I had to remove the quoted replies that contain the links to the Pohaku web site since the forum software thinks my post is spam with them included] Thank you to EDW and Jerry for the links. :)
Click to expand...

When you want to include a web link, type your reply, then click the Go Advanced button and in that window, click the Submit Reply button. That always works for me.
 
I have just fitted a set - my third set - onto a 1997 Braddah (Mele) concert. I bought the tuners from Pohaku and they arrived super fast. I am getting better at fitting these! I am so glad that I have the correct reamers and tools to make the holes for the very tiny screws. One was lumpyish when turning before mounting and once on the uke they are just fine. IMHO these are the best cheap alternative to the Gotoh upt tuners, which I prefer for their classic feel, build and visual appeal. However these Tune-a Lele tuners are great and look pretty cool.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

G
One of the Graph Tech Ratio Tuners won't hold tune - I can see it moving as soon as I let go of it.
Replies
8
Views
337
ksiegel
ksiegel
Doug W
Ratio tuners for Akai soprano
Replies
10
Views
336
Doug W
Doug W
Jeffelele
For Trade Graph Tech ratio ukulele tuners
Replies
8
Views
411
Jeffelele
Jeffelele
E
Sold Gotoh UPT 4:1 ratio planetary tuners - silver / ivoroid
Replies
2
Views
276
Pissodes
Pissodes
Jerryc41
Ratio Tuners Installed
Replies
9
Views
468
Wiggy
Wiggy
Top Bottom