question for ksdaddy

[GibbyJoe]

since you seem to be the guy on here who knows a lot about repairs i hope you can help me out. I just bought some snake wood waverly tuners for my j200 and i guess i have to drill a hole for the top of the waverlys. The rotomatics are shoirter. what size drill bit should i use for that screw and how deep should i drill it?? hope u can help thx

[ksdaddy]

I have no idea what you have for screws but I typically use a 1/16" drill bit, which is still usually a little small but not enough to bother. Beats just ramming an awl into the wood and praying. As to depth, again, I have no idea what you have for screws but they're typically about 3/8" long. Once you subtract the tuner flange you're still over 1/4" usually. There's no real harm in drilling a little deeper than you need to go as long as you can control it. I wouldn't recommend using a hand drill for something like this (although I do sometimes). A drill press would be better because you can usually control the depth via the depth stop. If that's impossible, then you can just wrap a little piece of masking tape around the bit where you want to to stop and then just pay attention. The more important part here is the old hole, the one you're 'not' going to use. If it's anywhere close to the proposed new hole, take the time to plug the old holes with a wooden match and glue, which is crude and lo-tech but the object is to make sure the old hole doesn't suck the drill bit into it. I didn't do a good job of explaining but if it ever happens to you, you'll say words that would make a streetwalker blush.

[John Lee Walker]

Just my 2 cents here. I just finished doing the exact same thing to my SJ200MC - replaced the Grover Rotos with the gold engraved Waverlys. The bottom hole lines up but you'll have to drill a top hole for the Waverly mounting hole. Ksdaddy is correct on the size drill bit, 1/16" will work. My guitar techy was out of town when I was in town so I decided to undergo the task myself. I only drilled about 1/32" deep or just when the hole looked to be the same in diameter as the mounting hole. Had to get the 3/8" conversion bushings to fit and tapped them in with a rubber mallet. They went in like a breeze and they look fantastic on my guitar.

 

Just remember not to be impatient, consider it delicate surgery. I wrapped my wrench in electrical tape to avoid scratches on the headstock and used a small square of suede leather around each tuner as I worked on it. I was very pleased with the outcome. Not a scratch, and the Waverlys look like a million bucks on there;)

 

They ought to for as much as they cost *ack*

 

Good luck with it, GibbyJoe!

[GibbyJoe]

thanks very much for the replies guys. not sure if im going to do it or have someone else do it for me. i would hate to mess it up. jlw sure would like to see some more pix of your custom jumbo i love that guitar. I bet those gold waverlys look great on there!!

[TWilson]

+1 for pictures of your new tuners, John Lee. Also, are you still considering putting on a dark pickguard with white border? Where would you get such a thing? (sorry for the slight thread hijack!) I don't think I'd have the guts to drill a hole in my SJ-200. Be careful!

[John Lee Walker]

Hey Gibby - yep, they look great, mighty proud of 'em:)

 

Hey TW - Pics will be coming soon as I get back to ye olde homestead. Hey, the hard part is over, no more holes to drill. Everything went A-ok with that. Yeah I have been considering a black/white bound p/g but they are hard to find, and when I do they are as much as a cheap guitar it seems like. I will probably bite the bullet and get one from Nichols soon. The more I look at the imperfections in this one the more motivated I get to replace it. I guess that will be the final touch:) I got lucky talking to someone at the Opryland Mall store and they hooked my up with an original flowerpot decal and a Gibson Custom Factory decal for the back of my headstock. Nice sentimental touch, huh? :))