#1
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Of plastic pins and monels....
I finally got tired of trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. The wood pins on my Martin (second set) never quite fit right, but they were a vast improvement on the ones that came with the guitar - those stuck up about a mile. I had swapped out the plastic pins on the Alvarez for brass pins. I tried the plastic Alvarez pins on my Martin today as I was changing strings and they are a perfect fit. Of course this throws the balance of the universe totally out of kilter for me as I must have wood pins in the Martin. So now I have to figure out what size pins fit the Martin without going to the trouble of reaming the holes bigger (last resort).
As an aside, I finally got around to putting Martin Retro Monels in the Martin. Took me long enough.
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Barry Youtube! My SoundCloud page Avalon L-320C, Guild D-120, Martin D-16GT, McIlroy A20, Pellerin SJ CW Cordobas - C5, Fusion 12 Orchestra, C12, Stage Traditional Alvarez AP66SB, Seagull Folk Aria {Johann Logy}: |
#2
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Can wooden pegs be thinned down by placing the head in a drill chuck (you'd have to protect the head somehow) and spinning it on a flat piece of sandpaper at the proper angle?
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#3
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Did Martin start reaming the pin holes with a taper that matches the pins, or are they still just straight drilled?
If the holes aren't tapered, you won't find the "right" pins. The holes need reamed properly. If the tapered pin is narrow enough to sit flush, it's allowing the ball end of the string to pull up into the hole and damaging the bridge plate. |
#4
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Since Martin stopped fully reaming pin holes about 30 years ago (there are exceptions), I reamed my younger ones to a five-degree taper which allows me to use any five-degree pin interchangeably from any manufacturer (more or less). When properly reamed, the pins will sit proudly on their collars, not stick up like golf ball tees.
Reamers can be expensive, a tech should be able to do the job in a few minutes for a reasonable price. Will not only seat pins properly but also help close the gap between the slot in slotted pins and the plate, a natural place for string balls to wiggle up and damage the plate. 2A size pins are five-degree pins designed for the older Martins; size 2C are five-degree tapered but with a reduce shaft diameter and will therefore fit the newer Martins that haven't been reamed. |
#5
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I'd argue that they don't "fit". They just don't stick up and appear to seat properly.
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#6
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Point taken, but then I'll argue that the proper proper way is to have the holes slotted and reamed and fitted with unslotted pins like in the good old days - afterall, it's all about minimizing the gap at the intersection of the pin and the plate.
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#7
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Maybe I should rotate the pins I put in to keep the ball from moving up the slot. Good point.
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Barry Youtube! My SoundCloud page Avalon L-320C, Guild D-120, Martin D-16GT, McIlroy A20, Pellerin SJ CW Cordobas - C5, Fusion 12 Orchestra, C12, Stage Traditional Alvarez AP66SB, Seagull Folk Aria {Johann Logy}: |
#8
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I agree, and recommended having the holes reamed in a previous post. I also prefer slotted holes and unslotted pins, but sometimes the bass E hole is too close to the saddle for that to be practical.
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