Caution - Clip on headstock tuners

[The Bard Rocks]

I had a Martin D12-20 from the 60's that had a pretty and shiny spot on its headstock from leaving a capo on. That taught me never to leave anything on longer than necessary.

[DesertTwang]

Originally Posted by laocmo

I leave my tuners on all the time. This has never damaged the finish on any of my other guitars, just the CEO-8 (and the guitars that had lacquer that had not hardened enough).

Yep, that's the issue right there. Sorry this happened to you. If I remember correctly, though, Martin explicitly states in their instructions not to do this.

[Coop47]

Originally Posted by The Bard Rocks

I had a Martin D12-20 from the 60's that had a pretty and shiny spot on its headstock from leaving a capo on. That taught me never to leave anything on longer than necessary.

Yep, did the same to my '85 Guild D-50 back before we had the interwebs. It used to upset me, but now it's just part of our history together.

[Brucebubs]

Need to be careful with these guitar stands too.



That rubber tubing on the arms and particularly that rubber stop on the back rest can react with the guitar finish.

I cover them all with cloth material.

[Ed66]

I leave clip on tuners on all my guitars - as they hang on the wall so start casting those stones None of my guitars have nitro finishes and most have had the tuner in place for months at a time with not a mark to speak for it. Of course, now that I mention it, there's a reasonable chance I'll pick one up tomorrow and find a tuner morphed to the head-stock. If that happens you'll be gifted with pictures of my Borg guitar/tuner in short order.

[Cabarone]

Originally Posted by joeld

I bought a Snark the other week, with hopes of helping me quickly move to alternate tunings. I usually go through several every time I play. I read in the instructions that it should not be used on a nitro-finished guitar. So I returned it and came home with a slide instead.

I put a cloth between the tuner and the headstock when tuning my Gibsons...still gets in tune...and I would never leave a tuner on any of mine...just mho...

[kathyson]

I don't leave them on any of my instruments with the exception of a D'Adderio stealth tuner on my Strat.

[vindibona1]

Common sense would dictate that you use the tuner, then remove it from the headstock until the next use. But I suppose many just leave them on because it's convenient.

[brianmay]

Is it just me?

I clip on the tuner, tune the guitar and pop the tuner back in my pocket, or next to the capo.

I never leave them on, why would you?

[Silly Moustache]

As said , I leave mine on all the time with no ill effects, as I need to have the facility to check/correct tuning in between numbers , usually during the applause (or rotten fruit bombardment).
there is no answer for all, and I wouldn't necessarily blame Martins QC, but i do believe that Nitro fininshes take time to harden, and if the OP has a brand new guitar, or if the nitro is not yet fully hardened , maybe that was the issue???

Remember, some willingly pay more to have a new guitar look old!

[Goodallboy]

Originally Posted by brianmay

Is it just me?

I clip on the tuner, tune the guitar and pop the tuner back in my pocket, or next to the capo.

I never leave them on, why would you?

When you figure this out, let me know.

I don't need to go on.

[Brucebubs]

Originally Posted by brianmay

Is it just me?

I clip on the tuner, tune the guitar and pop the tuner back in my pocket, or next to the capo.

I never leave them on, why would you?

Oh, I've been leaving them on till the batteries go flat then just clipping on another tuner.

[Kittoon]

Originally Posted by Goodallboy

When you figure this out, let me know.

I don't need to go on.

Because guitars go slightly out of tune within a few minutes. If your ear is good enough to adapt quickly enough, you probably don’t need a tuner in the first place.

[frankmcr]

Originally Posted by Brucebubs

As shown above, it's always best to clip as many tuners on as there is room for. No tuner is 100% perfect, but with 6 or 7 on at the same time you can average out their readings and arrive at the true tuning.

[HFox]

I never leave a clip-on tuner on the guitar after tuning, I take it right off, personally.[/QUOTE]
Why would one NOT do this???