Special wrench

We need a special wrench. The pickup in my wife's UBass keeps coming loose, and we don't have a tool reach inside to tighten it properly. Does anyone know where to find such an animal?

Ukecaster said:

Are you referring to a loose endpin jack, where the cord plugs in?

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If it is the end pin jack, I bought this not long ago, a little awkward, but you get the hang of it, it works.

https://www.musiciansfriend.com/acc...xJNhvo_0CBEAlNyJqvwlAhJZIiPZluBRoCwJIQAvD_BwE

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This is Michael Kohan in Los Angeles, Beverly Grove near the Beverly Center
9 tenor cutaway ukes, 4 acoustic bass ukes, 12 solid body bass ukes, 14 mini electric bass guitars (Total: 39)

• 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

Thanks John, Mike, one of these could no doubt be the fix we need! I'd love to be the one to invent a jack that doesn't come loose by itself....

Nickie said:

Thanks John, Mike, one of these could no doubt be the fix we need! I'd love to be the one to invent a jack that doesn't come loose by itself....

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I wonder if all that's needed is a proper size lock washer. I'm going to take the nut to a hardware store and see if they have something that fits.

I have a friend who has had lots of jacks come loose. I watched him one day and realized he was in the habit of (unconsciously) giving the cable a slight twist every time he inserted or removed it. No wonder the jacks slowly unscrewed themselves. Might be worth checking to see if you've inadvertently developed the same habit!

And at any rate - I find that a tiny drop of loctite is effective in keeping them from loosening over time.

kohanmike said:

If it is the end pin jack, I bought this not long ago, a little awkward, but you get the hang of it, it works.

https://www.musiciansfriend.com/acc...xJNhvo_0CBEAlNyJqvwlAhJZIiPZluBRoCwJIQAvD_BwE

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This is Michael Kohan in Los Angeles, Beverly Grove near the Beverly Center
9 tenor cutaway ukes, 4 acoustic bass ukes, 12 solid body bass ukes, 14 mini electric bass guitars (Total: 39)

• 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

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That's a lot better than using pliers and slipping. : )

dwizum said:

I have a friend who has had lots of jacks come loose. I watched him one day and realized he was in the habit of (unconsciously) giving the cable a slight twist every time he inserted or removed it. No wonder the jacks slowly unscrewed themselves. Might be worth checking to see if you've inadvertently developed the same habit!

And at any rate - I find that a tiny drop of loctite is effective in keeping them from loosening over time.

Click to expand...

No, she does not twist the cable. I will suggest the locktite, though, if all else fails.
Mike, I thought about the lock washer idea, but I think it might be too thick....but it's worth a looksee.

If you're comfortable with totally removing the jack, the nut on the backside can be adjusted to accommodate changes in thickness.

Some brands of jack are actually sold with a toothed lock washer as part of the standard hardware, usually the super thin stamped kind. I grabbed a stock photo of a switchcraft jack as an example, you can see the toothed washer:



Usually there is a toothed lock washer and two plain washers - the toothed washer and one plain washer go on the inside, and the other plain washer goes on the outside. Could be worth a try to find another of the toothed washers to lock down the nut on the outside, too. The key is finding one that fits under the strap button trimpiece that threads on after the nut, otherwise it might look a little funny.

Thanks dwizum!