dopeylopes Posted July 23, 2011 Share Posted July 23, 2011 Hi Friends, I have a 2008 GOR - purchased it in early 2010. Been working perfectly until the other day. A minor problem cropped up with the G string tuner. I'm using this guitar for regular gigs and do not have a backup with me. When I noticed the problem it was evident that the string would not auto tune. When I attempted to turn the peg in the dis engaged mode - the string could be tuned normally. When I re-engaged it - there was no contact with a gear. My first thought was accidental stripping of the gear. The user manual cautions us about this and I have been careful...It really seemed to be a no contact situation. If I had ground the gear - surely there would be some movement with slippage. Now - I'm sure Gibson won't advocate this but here is the solution. You need to have a micro torxx drive set. The required one for the back of the tuning peg is Torxx T7. If you need to remove the actual peg - that is Torxx T8. In this case - there was no need to remove the actual peg - merely the back of the tuning peg mechanism (the large box behind each tuning peg). Using T7 I removed the screw and took off the back plate. Lift it straight out because there is a plastic guide attached to it that can't be damaged. In my case - there was a small silver gear that was at an odd angle - appears that it fell out of it's shaft somehow during use or tuning. Using a micro forceps - I carefully placed the gear back into the shaft then replaced the top cover of the mechanism. It is likely that the plastic guide holds that small gear in place when re-assembled. Next I tried to auto tune - working perfectly. I can't understand why it came out in the first place. There seems to be no retainer other than the plastic shaft mentioned earlier. Used the guitar last night for a 40 minute set and had no problem. Tuned up 2 or 3 times during the show in just minutes and continued to rock. um... unfortunately the venue found our act to be too loud - and they did not like my attitude when told to turn down. Needless to say we won't be returning to that venue... Thought some of you might find the above fix useful. Remember that Gibson may invalidate your warranty if you open these covers - make your own correct decision as to whether or not you are qualified to enact the above fix. Don't do it if you are not technically proficient working with small parts. Rock on... David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarBuilder Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 Well done, David! I discovered the same issue last year and came up with a similar fix. The only other suggestion I have is to put a microscopic drop of LokTite on the gear shaft (don't get it on anything else!) before pushing it back in. I did this to six of my tuners and they all work flawlessly ever since. Just to make sure, I contacted a design engineer at Tronical and he gave my "repair" a thumbs up. I wouldn't worry too much about voiding a warranty; if done carefully, this process does not break any "seals" or leave a trace. It sure beats replacing the tuners at $500 a set! I'd be happy to fix anyone else's tuners if they don't want to tackle it themselves. Just PM me. Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dopeylopes Posted August 13, 2011 Author Share Posted August 13, 2011 Thanks for that additional advice - what is lok tite? Assuming it is a type of adhesive. That must be the real fix. Noticed on my G string tuner that after using the tuner manually - that little gear had again become separated. Applying the lok tite must keep it in place thus it won't pop out again. Where do you purchase Lok-tite? I'd like to have that on hand in the event this happens again. I was able to purchase a replacement treble side tuner and will be receiving that today. Will replace the tuner then keep it as a spare - will perform the fix with lok-tite prior to storing it. Appreciate this information - very helpful. David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarBuilder Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Thanks for that additional advice - what is lok tite? Assuming it is a type of adhesive. That must be the real fix. Noticed on my G string tuner that after using the tuner manually - that little gear had again become separated. Applying the lok tite must keep it in place thus it won't pop out again. Where do you purchase Lok-tite? I'd like to have that on hand in the event this happens again. I was able to purchase a replacement treble side tuner and will be receiving that today. Will replace the tuner then keep it as a spare - will perform the fix with lok-tite prior to storing it. Appreciate this information - very helpful. David Sorry, David! I misspelled the name - it's LocTite. Here's a link: http://www.loctiteproducts.com/p/10/15/t_lkr_red/overview/Loctite-Threadlocker-Red-271.htm They make a lot of different types; I used the Red on my Tronical tuners. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klaushouz Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 Hi Guitarbuilder, how about a jpeg of the EXACT area where you put the LOCK-TITE? Thanks, Klaus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarBuilder Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 Hi Guitarbuilder, how about a jpeg of the EXACT area where you put the LOCK-TITE? Thanks, Klaus I'd love to, Klaus, but I don't have any tuners that need repair right now to take pictures of. I hope you understand that I don't really want to take apart a perfectly good tuner for this. Let me try to describe it as best I can: The part that comes loose is a small gear; it is pressed onto a very short metal shaft. The end of the shaft that sticks back into the gearbox is flat - that is where I put a tiny drop of Lok-tite. Then I carefully press the gear/shaft back into the gearbox and let it set for 24 hours. Hope that is clear enough! Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klaushouz Posted January 26, 2012 Share Posted January 26, 2012 I'd love to, Klaus, but I don't have any tuners that need repair right now to take pictures of. I hope you understand that I don't really want to take apart a perfectly good tuner for this. Let me try to describe it as best I can: The part that comes loose is a small gear; it is pressed onto a very short metal shaft. The end of the shaft that sticks back into the gearbox is flat - that is where I put a tiny drop of Lok-tite. Then I carefully press the gear/shaft back into the gearbox and let it set for 24 hours. Hope that is clear enough! Peter Got it. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenn98827 Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 THanks for the info David. I have a Robot V and all 6 tuners have stopped working. I tried your fix on the high E but to no avail. It doesn't feel like the sprocket is getting set properly anyway I put it into the gear assembly. Were you able to tell when it was "in"? ~glenn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkunrath Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 Hi, havin gthe same problem with all 6 tuners of my LP. Tried to put the gear back into but it only works sometimes and even if it works it gets again defect after using it manualy. It's unbelievable how this is constructed - from my point of view this must get defect everytime on real usage... I'm thinking of replacing the tuner by manual Schallers to be honest.... Ciao, Bernd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goodguy Posted August 1, 2017 Share Posted August 1, 2017 Old thread but I am adding to it in case someone needs help on this issue. This relates to the original Tronical Robot Tuners that Gibson used back in 2008 and beyond (not the min-e-tune or later versions they eventually settled on. The tuning machines in question are big satin silver and say "Tronical" on the tuning key. I purchased a 2008 Gibson Robot and three of the tuners would make noise but not turn. Pulled a few apart a few times and tried different solutions to repair. I can confirm the problem is the small gear shaft in the black round cylinder come out and gets displaced and will no longer turn. Gluing the shaft back in sort of worked on one of the tuners but not the others. I tired lock tite, superglue, etc and sometimes the shaft will just not stay in. In fact, when it did stay seated with superglue too firmly, it did not allow the gear to turn. Herein lies the problem: It is damn hard to tell exactly how the mechanism is supposed to function. First, you have a black cylinder that will not turn, but you have a band and wheel on it that does turn/move. But when you try to manually move the gear (when inserted with its small key end in the slot within the shaft bottom...IT does not turn....so HOW THE HELL DO THESE THINGS TURN?? it is impossible to see the mechanism in action because you have to close the tuner to make it work. I wish i could understand the theory behind how it work as it would be easier to service. Unfortunately, the whole Tronical system is a great idea and design (even better than the current system) but is plagued by the weakest link being these small gears that move out of place. Tronical wants something like $60 each for a replacement tuner which I just cant afford to put a couple hundred more into a guitar worth maybe $800. Love the system, I just wish I could fix the final two tuners and understadn how the whole black cylinder/small gear shaft was supposed to function. The next experiment is to craft a piece of plastic that wedges against the inside side of the tuner cavity and presses the gear in place so it cannot slide outward but yet allows it to turn? Any ideas or experiences are welcome. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.