CS 336 tuners and nut

[fullback]

Hello all...just bought a 2008 CS 336...absolutely love it...I'm having a problem keeping it in tune...should I change tuners?? Also I think a bone nut would be better!?? Any help or opinions happily accepted...thx in advance...fullback

[wolfman63]

Hey fullback. I have a cs336 and never had tuning problems, but I did replace the tuners with Gibson Grovers and the nut with a graphite one. I never understood why a guitar of this quality didn't have these as standard equipment from the Custom Shop. As a matter of fact, I took the removed parts to a Gibson rep with instructions to take the crap and return it to the Custom Shop, because they obviously needed it more than I did. I really don't think they gave a squat but it made me feel good. I also returned a previous cs336 to the factory (two weeks old) with a cracked top. It was a great guitar but...... anyway. Good luck with your tuning.

[clayville]

Congrats on your new-to-you 336.

 

It might be best to describe the problem a little more and then diagnose the issue before willy-nilly deciding that the tuners or nut need to be replaced.

 

The tuners on there are likely perfectly functional (if not universally beloved).

 

If you're experiencing binding and pinging in the nut slots and/or a sudden jump flat or sharp (especially on the 3rd and 4th strings which have the most severe angles toward the tuners), then often a little graphite lubricant (run a pencil through the slot) or a bit of careful sandpapering in the slots can solve your issue easily in just a few minutes. If not, the proper-sized nut file can escalate the remedy for more severe issues there.

[bobv]

Clay's not just looking for an excuse to show off his avatar. It's good advice. Don't go running out looking for new machines, they have very very little to do with tuning stability (ease of use, smooth operation, classic looks, sure, but once they're tuned the machines themselves don't move). What happens when a string binds in the nut is that there's a little more tension behind the nut than in front of it - when this snaps back the string goes out of tune. Try bending the strings behind the nut and see if it comes back to pitch (most nuts fail that test, that's why you tune up to pitch and not down). Try tuning up, bend a note on the fretboard, and see if it comes back to pitch. If either one is a problem, you could do with some lube in the nut and maybe even a careful swipe with the proper nut slot file.

 

 

The other thing is that, if you bought the guitar new, the factory setup has the nut slots pretty high and you can get much lower action with them taken down a bit. That's a job for someone with the proper set of gauged nut files, but it should be part of a good comprehensive setup by a pro tech.