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View Full Version : Can't keep my guitar in tune.



wolf
03-29-2011, 02:43 PM
Guys I need some expert help please.
As I've mentioned before I recently put together a Warmoth " stunt double " for my beloved Drop Top.
The guitar has the new Wilkinson VS401 trem, LSR roller nut and the new Hipshot locking tuners but the damn thing refuses to stay in tune. :mad:
The G string is the biggest culprit... tune it up, bend it and it comes back flat, dip the trem and it returns in tune... this to me hints at a sticking nut but that's impossible.
I even went so far as to buy anther LSR in case mine was faulty.. same issue.
The B is similar but less noticeable.
If I don't touch a string and dip the trem, it returns perfectly so this tells me that the trem itself is not sticking on the posts.
Everything I know about guitar tuning has been addressed.. ie, not sticking at the nut, no movable saddles and locking tuners... so WHY won't it stay in tune as well as my Drop Top ???????
Can anyone please suggest the cause and a solution ?

tom
03-29-2011, 04:04 PM
that's the age old problem. the g string moves the most of them all so it is always where the trouble shows up the worst. it can be binding at the nut, saddle/ball end, at the tuner or the pivot posts. i'd start with lubing the nut, saddle and pivot posts. i don't have much experience with those nuts or bridges.

markus
03-30-2011, 02:42 AM
I also recently built two Warmoth Strats, both with Wilkinson trems and I have to say I also struggle with tuning stability. I didn't go with the LSR nut though, but with Graphtech. Not sure if the problem is the nuts or the trems in my case. Have you inspected the knife edges on the trem to make sure they're sharp / don't have any dents?

wolf
03-30-2011, 12:37 PM
The trem was brand new mate.
It's not the knife edges.

Totally at a loss to understand it. :confused:

tom
03-30-2011, 12:43 PM
new of not, check the knife edges.

strat56
03-30-2011, 05:44 PM
You don't mention it but I'm guessing you've tried a different set of strings on it and stretched them out really well?

Did you try tightening the tremolo springs until the back of the bridge was resting on the top and see if it still had a tuning problem? That should eliminate the knife edge on the tremolo or the that the tremolo isn't settling back in the same place after you bend a string.

Did you install string T's on the headstock? Move the strings from under the string T's or take the T's off and see if the problem exists then.

Do your tuners have a little screw where the button is on the shaft, or are they open and you can see the screw in the middle of the gear? Did the tuner turn really easy or really hard when you strung it up? If it turned really easy you could try tightening that a little in case the tuner is slipping, or loosening it if it turned hard, it might fix it or reduce it enough to prove if it's the tuner or not. Just because it's a locking tuner doesn't mean the tuner itself isn't slipping.

That's all I can think of that hasn't been mentioned already.

csd
03-30-2011, 09:19 PM
i had tuning issues with a strat build. could not get the in toe right, wouldn't hold tune at all. come to find i had the pups lowered (2-sf's and h2+) and that was it. i had no thought that they were that close to cause a prob, but when i got the guitar back, my tech said that was a major player in the issue. ??!!:confused:
i was really surprised because the neck and mid pup were quite a bit lower, and looked wrong. the bridge pup looked at a normal height? the output (vol level) of the neck and mid pups were cool, they sounded fine and balanced well with the h2+? weird!?!!
just throwing that out there, but it worked in my case.:)

tom
03-30-2011, 11:41 PM
ThIs pretty weird. Sf's aren't string suckers.at all compared everything else.in the world.

csd
03-31-2011, 11:53 PM
I really thought it odd as well? can't explain?!