Selmer-Style Tuners a little tight

Gypton

Is it normal for the selmer-style tuners to be very uneven? On mine some seem tight on half of the turn, and loose for the other half. They do hold they're tuning fine, just worry if they'll be alright for the long term. Anyone with experience recomend any kind of servicing, or just leave them?

Michael Bauer

What kind of guitar is it?

Manouche guitars sometimes had rediculously tight tuners. Most would loosen with time, but a few of them never did on the three I've owned. Manouche had proprietary hardware, I believe, so I believe their tuning key issues were isolated to that brand.

I've never noticed that problem on any other guitars, but I'm sure there are some.

Gypton

its a Gallato

frater

A lot of issues reported with those: point is Gallato tried to stay as close as possible to the original design not incorporating "new" technology as, fora example, Miller or AJL.

Elliot

Hi

Sometimes when tuning the middle strings you reach the part when you are actually pushing down on the pliage and things can get pretty tight then, especially with a newer guitar. If the tuners get tight on their own with no tension at all, I'd at least try getting a winder on them and just winding them around for a while to distribute the oil inside the casing. Many people don't do that with a new guitar, sometimes the oil just settles without having been spread around yet properly. But that's all I would do.

Jazzaferri

If the tuners have different pressure requirements during the rotation of the gear assy it is most likely a machining error. It will over time tend to loosen up due to wear but will tend to leave a sloppy tuner(s).

What I look for in tuners is smooth steady pressure with lots of ratio so minor tuning adjustments are more easily accomplished. Harder to find on a guitar built to a budget . Using a PTFE type of lube will lower the friction without attracting dust and other contaminants that increase wear on exposed gear tuners. The pressure on the gears may not seem like much but given a 20 pound pull from a string and the gear ratio's involved the contact pressures on the gear faces are actually quite high.