Tuning problem

[Shad1]

Dave,

Yes it's nearly always the G-string (inevitably). The point is when it 'goes' the tension balance across all strings changes slightly so retuning 'on the fly' is very touchy-feely. I confess I'm a bit of a tuning nut (pardon the pun) so it's pretty depressing when it happens every time I pick up the guitar and play. I just don't want to spend even more money on a solution that's going to be a 'suck it and see' one.

I haven't changed my string guage for some years. I use 10's of a variety of makes so I don't imagine that is the problem.

Thanks again for your suggestions.

Malc.

[des mcneill]

Hi Malc,
I have been following this thread with interest and the various suggestions make sense. My initial thoughts were that the neck may be moving since 70's Strats are prone to that,but since you feel the problem is usually one particular string you could rule out the tuner by swoping the "G" tuner with another one and if the fault follows the tuner then you will know where the problem is(or is not). I am a bass player but have several Strats and have no particular tuning problem,but have seen the neck moving on some 70's guitars which of course makes some strings go sharp.
Cheers,
Des.

[Shad1]

Thanks Des - a good suggestion which I will be trying. I'll post to the thread again with the results.

Malc.

[stratmantd]

Hi Malc,
I have been following this thread with interest and the various suggestions make sense. My initial thoughts were that the neck may be moving since 70's Strats are prone to that,but since you feel the problem is usually one particular string you could rule out the tuner by swoping the "G" tuner with another one and if the fault follows the tuner then you will know where the problem is(or is not). I am a bass player but have several Strats and have no particular tuning problem,but have seen the neck moving on some 70's guitars which of course makes some strings go sharp.
Cheers,
Des.

Swapping round the machine head sounds like a great idea. Why didn't you think of that Malc? Seriously though, if the fault can be that easily fixed it will be a great relief after all the effort you've put in up 'til now trying to get it fixed; I know how frustrating it's been.

As a proud owner of a 70s Strat too, I am a bit concerned about the comment that 70s Strats necks are prone to movement. Where can I read up about this? Is it another story about the 3-screw attachment being less stable than 4 screws? If so, I beg to differ; a triangle is much more stable than a rhombus (4 corners). The unstable 3-screw arrangement story was put about as an example of the poor quality control during the CBS era. There is no basis to the story at all.

[Shad1]

Thanks Dave/Tom,

I'll be swapping the 'G' head for the top 'E' - less tension, and see how it goes. Previously I had taken the head off to tighten it internally but it's a sealed unit - darn! Every which way......

Thanks again for the comments and suggestions - it's 11pm and I'm now about to practice and raise my blood pressure again.......

Malc

[stratmantd]

Don't overdo it now me old mucker. We don't want you doing yourself a mischief. At least not before Cliff (no, not "also a singer") organises our 2009 outing.

[Shad1]

Thanks Tom......Have stopped now......mechanics have won over music - official. The looney bin awaits.......

Malc

[Bluesnote]

I know it might sound stupid or obvious but have you checked the bolts that screw your neck to the body.
A Framus I once owned had problems with this. The neck loosened off for whatever reason and it caused massive tuning problems as the neck was moving about when I played, I had to take the bolts out one at a time and pack the holes with a matchstick and screw them back in again. It was a total success and I never had any more bother after that.
I think it was during my Hendrix era

[47guitarman]

Hello again,
If it is always the G string that causes it and the tuning can go sharp or flat (from your first post) then I personally would suspect that the string is binding in the nut. If it was the tuning peg slipping then the G would always go flat as it slips and the tension reduces on the string. I cannot see how a slipping peg can make a string go sharp. Having said that, if the G goes really flat then the other strings will go sharp as the tension on them increases slightly to balance the pull of the tremolo springs. I don't know if that's what you mean.
If it is the string binding in the nut I would slacken the G string so it can be slipped out of the nut and make sure the nut slot is clean. Make sure the string is clean. If there is a string tree make sure that is clean underneath too. Put the string back into the nut (and under the string tree if there is one) with a little lubricant and retune. If the string is still binding the nut slot might need to be eased in width a fraction. If you are not confident about doing this it would be best left to a luthier.
If it is always the G string that causes the problem it is highly unlikely to be a neck stability problem.
Just my thoughts, hope they help.
Regards, Dave

[John]

I Completely aggree with Dave, I had this proplem years ago, It was fixed with a black graphite nut , cut and fitted by a guitar tech and since then no more tuning issues. I have since bought a mex 50's classic and straight away had a white graphite nut and have never had any tuning problems .
so my advice for what its worth would be to have a professional set up and a graphite nut fitted
regards John