Help identifying locking tuners
Mon Sep 24, 2018 12:50 pm
Hi all,
I purchased a 2014 S-500 last week, and one of the things that attracted me was the fact that it had locking tuners. I am not sure when the S-500 guitars stopped being shipped with locking tuners by default, but nowadays they usually have the standard tuners.
So, the build sheet says that this guitar was shipped with standard tuners. These tuners are Schaller-style, but how do I determine exactly what make of tuners they are? I took one off to see if there was any indication inside, but no.
I purchased a 2014 S-500 last week, and one of the things that attracted me was the fact that it had locking tuners. I am not sure when the S-500 guitars stopped being shipped with locking tuners by default, but nowadays they usually have the standard tuners.
So, the build sheet says that this guitar was shipped with standard tuners. These tuners are Schaller-style, but how do I determine exactly what make of tuners they are? I took one off to see if there was any indication inside, but no.
Re: Help identifying locking tuners
Mon Sep 24, 2018 4:35 pm
The seller wasn't able to tell you specifically what kind they are? It's a shame that whoever put them on could have put the G&L/Schaller locking tuners on without drilling any holes. In terms of what they actually are, they could be these https://www.allparts.com/TK-7574-001-6-in-line-Mini-Locking-Tuners-Nickel_p_5454.html or something similar. They could also be Schallers https://www.visionguitar.com/products/new-schaller-6-in-line-10mm-chrome-locking-tuners; are they all the same height or different heights? These Schallers are apparently 2 heights.
Re: Help identifying locking tuners
Tue Sep 25, 2018 8:37 am
Hi, thanks for weighing in with this.
The tuners are two heights, which is a detail that the original installer hadn't noticed. I swapped two of the tuners to get the correct heights in the correct holes, and studied the parts for any identifying marks. None existed, except perhaps three parallel lines.
The shape of the "button" matches the schallers that you linked to and not the allparts keys. I don't know who is making G&L's OEM locking tuners nowadays, but Ping Well is making the bass keys. One of the things that attracted me to this 2014 S-500 was the locking tuners like Leo intended, but the (not shown in the listing) build sheet states that it came with standard tuners.
So, I'm going to assume that these are Schallers and forge into the future with them.
The tuners are two heights, which is a detail that the original installer hadn't noticed. I swapped two of the tuners to get the correct heights in the correct holes, and studied the parts for any identifying marks. None existed, except perhaps three parallel lines.
The shape of the "button" matches the schallers that you linked to and not the allparts keys. I don't know who is making G&L's OEM locking tuners nowadays, but Ping Well is making the bass keys. One of the things that attracted me to this 2014 S-500 was the locking tuners like Leo intended, but the (not shown in the listing) build sheet states that it came with standard tuners.
So, I'm going to assume that these are Schallers and forge into the future with them.
Re: Help identifying locking tuners
Tue Sep 25, 2018 4:58 pm
My understanding is that the locking tuners that G&L puts on USA guitars are made by Schaller, although they have also used Sperzels in the past. There is a post discussing their various tuners here http://www.guitarsbyleo.com/FORUM/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=3399.
Re: Help identifying locking tuners
Wed Sep 26, 2018 7:48 am
Hi, I'm confident that the post you linked to was correct in 2011 when it was written. About a year ago G&L switched to Ping OEM tuners for bass because of supply issues with Schaller, apparently an owner had died and the company was in some sort of disarray and unable to fulfill their commitments. So, I do not have any faith that the current G&L branded locking tuners are still made by Schaller.