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#1
07-05-2015, 01:50 PM
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3 in a line tuners vs individual ones
I am looking at tuners to buy for a new guitar (aka not yet built
 ) and wondered about nice looking Waverly 3 in line tuners. I think that typically this style was found on lower priced models like the Gibson B-15 I grew up with in the 60s. But these Waverlys are very attractive. Since almost all very nice guitars today do NOT use such tuners, I wonder why? Does anyone, especially builders, have an answer? If it is just about tradition, are there any functional reasons not to use them? I am talking about ones for a flat headstock not a slot head. Thanks! 
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#2
07-05-2015, 02:44 PM
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Quote:
From the earliest days Gibson used three-on-a-plate tuners for flat peg heads, right up until close to 1930. Martin never used those tuners because they don't install tuners in a straight line on each side - there's a slight offset to allow a better path for the string to go from tuner to nut. In Martin's case the choice of peg alignment harks back a hundred years before solid peg heads were standard for the company. That legacy probably kept them from even considering changing the pattern.
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Cheers, Frank Ford Last edited by Frank Ford; 07-05-2015 at 03:23 PM.
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#3
07-05-2015, 06:23 PM
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Thank you!
That makes sense. I look at the headstocks now and see what you mean. Considering how meticulous I am with "orderly string winds," the separate tuners is the only way to go. I have noticed before that they are slightly off and thought it was just a mistake. Now I know!
Question answered! Appreciate it.
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#4
07-05-2015, 07:05 PM
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Since the Gotoh 510s came out, IMO there hasn't been a good reason to use anything else. I vehemently dislike Waverly tuners.
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Solo acoustic guitar videos: This Boy is Damaged - Little Watercolor Pictures of Locomotives - Ragamuffin
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#5
07-05-2015, 07:18 PM
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My opinion is..if you have a good tuner that works for what your doing...then go for it..
Martin guitar is not the holy grail of guitars..I visited the plant, museum, and store...you can not tell me that they are hand made...Robots and computers do most of the work...only thing I saw that was done by hand was neck fitting, and quality control on the body before it went into a computer operated finish area. Braces are pre made...hand glued...vacum press holds it down...The inlay I saw was all CNC.. Only really amazing part of the tour was the service techs..they where tearing down stuff from the late 1880's when I was there and making it like new. They had a guitar from Neil Young...and James Taylor. I've always been a Gibson fan..love how they play..sound and feel...Totally different that a Martin...or a Taylor which I have only played around with but never really played... Bottom line...a quality tuner...is a quality tuner...doesn't matter if it's on a plate..or a single.. I've used both Gotoh's and Grovers
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I'm not a luthier...luthier's know what they are doing. 
Last edited by stuw; 07-05-2015 at 08:00 PM.
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#6
07-17-2015, 04:19 AM
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Just a guess here, but I think another issue, from the manufacturer's standpoint, is marketing...
Individual tuners allow builders to make their headstocks any shape or length they want. Manufacturers couldn't afford to make 3-on-a-strip tuners in all sorts of lengths, or custom lengths; they wouldn't sell enough of each size to justify making them. Individual tuners solves the problem for both the manufacturers and the guitar builders.
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Tres Taylor GS8 Godin A6 Ultra
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#7
07-17-2015, 10:05 AM
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Martin may not be a hand made guitar or a holy grail but they have certainly earned a reputation for being a standard to go by in the industry.
As for Waverly, I've never had a problem with the one's I've used. They seem to be good tuners to me.
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#8
07-17-2015, 06:12 PM
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Quote:
I have used the same phrase several times - Martin's are not a holy grail. They are Martin's, and most of what they do they do very well. It never ceases to baffle me, however, that they cannot fit their bridge pins to the pin hole taper properly... *still baffled*
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---- Ned Milburn NSDCC Master Artisan Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
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