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open back tuners


blindboygrunt

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i have a notion that i'd like some open back tuners for my 45 . waverlys seem to be the boys to go for , lotta cash though arent they , grovers do the same job for less ? ..... so on to the mighty ebay to start research / window shopping and nobody is selling open back tuners . no results . is that weird ? are open back tuner people boycotting ebay ?

i'm in ireland . anybody point me in a direction?

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Over the years, I've had three guitars with Waverlys on them and currently have one with them on. Yes, they are pricey. But they are, hands-down, the best tuners out there. Tuning is unbelievably smooth and yes, there really is a difference between them and less-expensive tuners.

 

These would look perfect on your '45: http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Tuners/Guitar,_solid_peghead_tuners/Waverly_Guitar_Tuners/Waverly_Guitar_Tuners_with_Ivoroid_Knobs,_for_Solid_Pegheads.html

 

That said, I've got a set of open-back, 3-on-a-plate Golden Age Restoration tuners on my J-45 and so far, they've worked great and they look fantastic. Check 'em out here: http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Tuners/Guitar,_solid_peghead_tuners/Golden_Age_Restoration_Tuners_for_Solid_Peghead_Guitar/Golden_Age_Restoration_1920s_style_Tuners_for_Solid_Peghead_Guitar.html

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Grover only makes the open back Sta-tites with the vintage style knobs in 14:1 ratio, the 18:1s have plain oval buttons which would not be period correct for vintage Gibson Jumbo. I have used the 14:1s on several guitars and think they are just fine, especially considering the price difference vs. Waverlys.

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I've never seen a vintage J-45 with anything but three-on-a-plate Klusons, but don't know what your 2005 Historic has.

 

In 1970, I replaced the orginal Klusons on my '48 J-45 with open-back Grovers, primarily because the Klusons just didn't hold tune that well, and I couldn't afford Rotomatics (thank God,in hindsight). It's definitely a different look, but back in 1970 I was more interested in function than authenticity. I certainly have no intention to change back to the original-style Klusons at this point. More than 40 years later, these simple Grovers still work perfectly.

 

Certainly from the "face" side of the guitar, tuners with oval plastic buttons will look more authentic on a J-45, no matter what tuners you select.

 

Before making the change, get all the post dimensions and bushing diameters to see if you will need to ream your existing peghead holes. Not all these similar-looking open-back tuners have the same footprint or component dimensions. The open-back Grover-style Gotohs on my 000-28 EC, for example, are substantially smaller than the old Grovers on my J-45. Don't know how the Waverlys compare.

 

With my modified headstock details, I actually like the look of the nickel Grovers with the nickel buttons, although they are more massive than the Klusons. I'm not sure they would look quite right on a "normal" J-45 headstock, however.

 

GroverSta-Tite.jpg

 

grover.jpg

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I've never seen a vintage J-45 with anything but three-on-a-plate Klusons, but don't know what your 2005 Historic has.

 

In 1970, I repelced the orginal Klusons on my '48 J-45 with open-back Grovers, primarily because the Klusons just didn't hold tune that well, and I couldn't afford Rotomatics (thank God,in hindsight). It's definitely a different look, but back in 1970 I was more interested in function than authenticity. I certainly have no intention to change back to the original-style Klusons at this point. More than 40 years later, these simple Grovers still work perfectly.

 

Certainly from the "face" side of the guitar, tuners with oval plastic buttons will look more authentic on a J-45, no matter what tuners you select.

 

Before making the change, get all the post dimensions and bushing diameters to see if you will need to ream your existing peghead holes. Not all these similar-looking open-back tuners have the same footprint or component dimensions. The open-back Grover-style Gotohs on my 000-28 EC, for example, are substantially smaller than the old Grovers on my J-45. Don't know how the Waverlys compare.

 

With my modified headstock details, I actually like the look of the nickel Grovers with the nickel buttons, although they are more massive than the Klusons. I'm not sure they would look quite right on a "normal" J-45 headstock, however.

 

GroverSta-Tite.jpg

 

grover.jpg

 

great looker Nick :)

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thts the look i like . not so worried about authentic for its time etc etc .

the historic comes with three a side ivoroid buttons , i thought they were klusons but i dont know for sure .

 

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Tuners/Guitar,_solid_peghead_tuners/Grover_Tuners/Grover_18:1_Sta-Tites.html?tab=Pictures#details

 

these are what i need i think . have emailed them to make sure i get the right bushings . 10.5 apparently , but i wanna make sure

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thts the look i like . not so worried about authentic for its time etc etc .

the historic comes with three a side ivoroid buttons , i thought they were klusons but i dont know for sure .

 

http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Tuners/Guitar,_solid_peghead_tuners/Grover_Tuners/Grover_18:1_Sta-Tites.html?tab=Pictures#details

 

these are what i need i think . have emailed them to make sure i get the right bushings . 10.5 apparently , but i wanna make sure

 

I've had these Grover 18:1 Sta-Tites on a guitar and they worked very well. Frankly, though, I think a J-45 with anything other than ivoroid or cream-colored plastic tuner buttons just doesn't look right, but that's just me.

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i have a notion that i'd like some open back tuners for my 45 . waverlys seem to be the boys to go for , lotta cash though arent they , grovers do the same job for less ? ..... so on to the mighty ebay to start research / window shopping and nobody is selling open back tuners . no results . is that weird ? are open back tuner people boycotting ebay ?

i'm in ireland . anybody point me in a direction?

I put these Waverlys on my j45 Standard. They aren't authentic to any specific period...I just like them.

http://i515.photobucket.com/albums/t355/vonzerpa/Gradbday2011026.jpg

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