Leaving tuner on headstock

S

SevenThumbs

New member
Joined
Oct 28, 2020
Messages
3
Reaction score
0
Location
Arizona
This may be a dumb question. I have a D’Addario micro tuner. Is it OK to leave it clipped on when the uke is in the case with a humidifier? I ask because moisture and electronics usually don’t get along too well.
 
Last edited:
Not a dumb question at all. There are two trains of thought about that:
1. It's fine. The moisture from the humidifiers inside the case makes the humidity no greater than summer in temperate climates. IE: 45 to 55 percent RH. So, it should withstand it without a problem.
2. Don't do it. Anything clamped to your ukulele over a period of time will affect the finish. Leaving an impression into it. Even the cloth strap in a hard case that prevents the top from opening too far can leave an impression of the weave of the material in the finish from pressure when the top is closed. (I have experienced that myself.) Some members have also related that the ukulele strap can also leave an impression if left on the uke while in a tight-fitting case.

The Micro Tuners have a soft coating on the surfaces of the clamp that grip the uke when it's attached and tightened. Which is fine for a day or two. But I wouldn't recommend leaving it in place for any longer than that. Ditto for the D'Addario sound hole micro tuner. Even the tougher polymer finishes will show indents after experiencing a constant pressure in one location for a prolonged period.

I take mine off and store it in the compartment inside the case when I'm not playing the uke. Though I do I confess that I leave a Snark or Peterson tuner on the headstock for a week or two when I'm playing the same uke every day and using a stand in-between sessions. I remove the tuner before the uke goes back in the case.
 
Kenn2018 said:
Not a dumb question at all. There are two trains of thought about that:
1. It's fine. The moisture from the humidifiers inside the case makes the humidity no greater than summer in temperate climates. IE: 45 to 55 percent RH. So, it should withstand it without a problem.
2. Don't do it. Anything clamped to your ukulele over a period of time will affect the finish. Leaving an impression into it. Even the cloth strap in a hard case that prevents the top from opening too far can leave an impression of the weave of the material in the finish from pressure when the top is closed. (I have experienced that myself.) Some members have also related that the ukulele strap can also leave an impression if left on the uke while in a tight-fitting case.

The Micro Tuners have a soft coating on the surfaces of the clamp that grip the uke when it's attached and tightened. Which is fine for a day or two. But I wouldn't recommend leaving it in place for any longer than that. Ditto for the D'Addario sound hole micro tuner. Even the tougher polymer finishes will show indents after experiencing a constant pressure in one location for a prolonged period.

I take mine off and store it in the compartment inside the case when I'm not playing the uke. Though I do I confess that I leave a Snark or Peterson tuner on the headstock for a week or two when I'm playing the same uke every day and using a stand in-between sessions. I remove the tuner before the uke goes back in the case.
Click to expand...

So for the hard case strap that holds the lid, what do you do when you store your ukulele in the hard case for longer periods of time?
 
Great, :( , My Micro Tuners have been on my ukulele headstocks for over 2 years. Now I have to check for damage.
 
I follow Kenn's first train of thought and leave 'em on. You shouldn't be humidifying to the loj t where things are wet: you're aiming for fairly neutral. This shouldn't interfere with electronics. The only real concern is if it'll leave a physical mark. My instruments aren't precious enough that I'm concerned, and I've never yet run into a problem.

I'm more concerned that a strap would rub on the back or soundboard, so I usually remove straps when encasing the instrument.
 
The Snark instructions (which nobody ever reads) tells us:
CAUTION: INSTRUMENT FINISHES. READ THIS BEFORE USING THE SNARK TUNER.
The general rule is: Do not leave any item attached to your instrument longer than necessary. We recommend you remove the Snark tuner from your instrument as soon as you finish tuning. Please be aware that any lacquer type finish can be adversely affected if the rubber pad of the tuner remains left in contact with the finish for a period of time.

By the way, this applies to vinyl backed straps or even leaving your instrument on a Naugahyde couch or chair. My friend lost part of the Martin decal on his guitar to a Snark tuner.

In addition, stuff fastened to a headstock is downright ugly. It bugs me to see capos, tuners, unclipped string ends, cigarettes. . . sticking out from the headstock of an instrument.

My tuner goes onto my mic stand as soon as my instrument is tuned.
 
I'm with Jim - use it, remove it.

John Colter
 
The humidifier isn't going to hurt the tuner, but I don't like leaving a tuner attached for an extended period of time. Even when I'm playing, I'll tune up and then remove it. I figure its purpose is to tune the uke, so when that's done, there's no need for it. When Performing before a group, I think it looks better not having those things stuck on the headstock.
 
I have a sound hole tuner in a few ukes. The other day I noticed I could see where the tuner was attached.
Spruce tends to darken with age and uv exposure. The area where the tuner attaches was slightly lighter than the rest of the top. I don’t see it on the koa top. I have always removed the strap before putting a guitar or ukulele away, they can play havoc on the finish. I roll it up and put it under the headstock covered by my polishing rag.
 
what's the point of keeping it on? I tune my uke when it sounds off--about once a fortnight. Even if you tune more frequently than I do, it seems like the tuner would just be idle for a lot of the time. So why is it there?
 
If it stays on the Uke it doesn't get lost.

The daddario micro tuners are low profile and seem designed to stay on the instrument (barring fine print CYA warnings about damaging finish). When I used them I had one on each instrument. Now that I cant read them so well I have bigger brighter tuners which go on to tune then come off and get lost.

I tune whenever I start a session, though often that's just a quick check that the instrument is close enough to in tune with itself that I can't hear the diff.
 
rafter said:
So for the hard case strap that holds the lid, what do you do when you store your ukulele in the hard case for longer periods of time?
Click to expand...

As I close the top, I use my finger to start to tuck it to the side of the uke. So far, it's worked just fine.

I take my sound hole tuners off when I put my ukes in the case. It's a pain because the battery is only held by a small clip and comes off very easily to rattle around inside the body.
 
Last edited:
Thank you all for your replies and advice. I should clarify the reason for leaving the tuner clipped on. I have had my uke for about 2 weeks now and I practice twice a day (sore fingers permitting). I like the micro tuner but putting it on and removing it that often puts a lot of wear on that little plastic ratchet. I think I’ll just leave it on and see what happens. I put the display on the back of the head stock so the the only thing visible is the small clip.
 
Last edited:
Leaving it on is a bad idea. I left my Peterson tuner on my headstock, the cat knocked the uke off the table onto the floor. It resulted in nicks in the headstock and a broken tuner. Cost- $70.00!
 
gochugogi said:
I've had NS Micro Tuners on my Kremona Coco and Mari ukuleles for about two years and no marks or signs of use. I've only removed them to change the battery.
Click to expand...

kkimura said:
Great, :( , My Micro Tuners have been on my ukulele headstocks for over 2 years. Now I have to check for damage.
Click to expand...

SevenThumbs said:
Thank you all for your replies and advice. I should clarify the reason for leaving the tuner clipped on. I have had my uke for about 2 weeks now and I practice twice a day (sore fingers permitting). I like the micro tuner but putting it on and removing it that often puts a lot of wear on that little plastic ratchet. I think I’ll just leave it on and see what happens. I put the display on the back of the head stock so the the only thing visible is the small clip.
Click to expand...

Nickie said:
Leaving it on is a bad idea. I left my Peterson tuner on my headstock, the cat knocked the uke off the table onto the floor. It resulted in nicks in the headstock and a broken tuner. Cost- $70.00!
Click to expand...

I also leave my Micro tuner on all the time, don't see any damage. I have one on all my ukes without a built in tuner They're so compact, it's very unlikely to snag something. Ukes are notorious for going out of tune, which mine do, and I want to be able to tune them at the moment, not have to get out the tuner.

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: www.youtube.com/user/CCStrummers/video, www.facebook.com/TheCCStrummers
 
Nickie said:
Leaving it on is a bad idea. I left my Peterson tuner on my headstock, the cat knocked the uke off the table onto the floor. It resulted in nicks in the headstock and a broken tuner. Cost- $70.00!
Click to expand...
I'd blame leaving it out on a table where the cat can get to it before I'd blame the tuner. It's a cat's job to knock things off tables. Cats are assholes. They only survive because they're super-cute and adorable assholes.

The Peterson is also a lot bigger and bulkier than the daddario micro. I don't think the Peterson is actually heavy enough to interfere with playing, but psychologically it feels unbalanced having that big chunk of plastic on the wee ukulele headstock. Mine stays on just long enough to tune then back in a pocket. Now if I'd only ever remember which pocket.
 
I have four guitars and four ukes in the household and one tuner so the tuner sits in its place and gets clipped on whenever one of the instruments sounds a bit off, and then is removed immediately. I can't play with one attached at all and find it distracting. A half decent uke only needs a tuning tweak every few days only anyway.
 
This thread has really evolved from the OP!

I live in the tropics. Probably more humid most of the time than your case ever will be and all my tuners still work.

PS: Have had an NS Mini on my uke since 2013 with zero issues.
 
Jerryc41 said:
The humidifier isn't going to hurt the tuner, but I don't like leaving a tuner attached for an extended period of time. Even when I'm playing, I'll tune up and then remove it. I figure its purpose is to tune the uke, so when that's done, there's no need for it. When Performing before a group, I think it looks better not having those things stuck on the headstock.
Click to expand...

Agree with your minds. Humidifier doesn`t hurt the tuner
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

G
Humidipaks (or other long-lasting humidifiers) and leaving a solid-top instrument on its own for a few months?
Replies
11
Views
836
Kenn2018
Kenn2018
Ukecaster
Leaving On A Jet Plane
Replies
5
Views
371
Ukecaster
Ukecaster
Rllink
Leaving your ukes.
2
Replies
38
Views
4K
Braddtastic
B
MikeHollandGuitar
She's Leaving Home (Beatles) - Ukulele instrumental with Orchestration.
Replies
13
Views
1K
PlentyofUkes
PlentyofUkes
T
Leaving Ukes in cases in a storage POD
Replies
4
Views
500
theblackox
T
Top Bottom