Les Paul tone knobs

not_the_dj

gearaddict said:

I'm not sure there are any pre-drilled screw holes...I don't think you need them for the min-etune. The back plate is just held on by the robocops heads. 

You certainly wouldn't be the first to remove them and replace with standard tuners: http://www.mylespaul.com/forums/gibson-les-pauls/303531-removing-min-e-tune-advice.html

ICBM

Yes, sounds like you will have to drill holes for the proper tuners. If they're entirely within the area of the robot tuners I can't really see a problem since you could put it back invisibly if you ever want to.

The other advantage of drilling the holes yourself instead of having Gibson do it is that you can get them in the right place .

gearaddict

Thomann have asked me for the serial number of the guitar and say they are "contacting the manufacturer"...I did tell them which tuners are on the guitar and even sent them a link to the relevant Tronical unit on the Thomann website but they didn't seem interested in that. I'm not sure what the process is but if they are waiting for Gibson to supply replacements I could be here at Xmas. Or not. Dunno. It's frustrating not to be able to play the guitar just because I can't tune the stupid E string.

I've always been a huge Thomann fan but this transaction has felt very much like dealing with a faceless box shifter and it has put me off. Still - £500 saving. Must remember that.

underdog

gearaddict;498581" said:

Thomann have asked me for the serial number of the guitar and say they are "contacting the manufacturer"...I did tell them which tuners are on the guitar and even sent them a link to the relevant Tronical unit on the Thomann website but they didn't seem interested in that. I'm not sure what the process is but if they are waiting for Gibson to supply replacements I could be here at Xmas. Or not. Dunno. It's frustrating not to be able to play the guitar just because I can't tune the stupid E string.

I've always been a huge Thomann fan but this transaction has felt very much like dealing with a faceless box shifter and it has put me off. Still - £500 saving. Must remember that.

Did you email or phone them? For a quick solution I'd always go with phone contact, even more so with thomann.

not_the_dj

I had a warranty fix on my Gibson, via Andertons. That was for a push/push pot. They also needed the serial number and then to order the part from Gibson spares (who have a European centre).

I did ask the Andertons guy at the time if he could order two so I could hold a spare myself, but he wasn't allowed to do that, he could only order the exact quantity needed for that warranty claim.

Might be a similar situation with this.

gearaddict

Got this from Thomann today

"Hi there,

thank you for your patience. Unfortunately, after contacting the manufacturer, they are not able to send us a complete Tuner set for this model. I’m afraid that we will need the instrument back so that we can return it to Gibson. We can offer to send it to the manufacturer with a repair request or we can refund you in full as soon as we receive it.The return instructions have already been presented. Please return the instrument and let us know how you would like us to proceed in this case. Apologies for any inconveniences caused."

Can't decide if this is reasonable or wank. They have the tuners in stock, so could just send me some but clearly don't want to. I don't feel I shouldn't be out of pocket in having to replace them myself. I could go back and ask for money to buy my own tuners. Dunno.

ICBM

Just return it for a refund. This is getting silly.

Then take the money and go shopping for a Les Paul in person, making sure you pick one which looks the way you want, doesn't have wobbly tone knobs, is set up properly and doesn't have robot tuners. There are a lot of them out there and it shouldn't be impossible to find one.

I think you'll be happier.

not_the_dj

ICBM said:

Just return it for a refund. This is getting silly.

Then take the money and go shopping for a Les Paul in person, making sure you pick one which looks the way you want, doesn't have wobbly tone knobs, is set up properly and doesn't have robot tuners. There are a lot of them out there and it shouldn't be impossible to find one.

I think you'll be happier.

Seconded

RaymondLin

I agree, and for £1600, you are almost at the money for a Custom shop if you go used.

There is a R8 in the classifeld for not much more.

Maynehead

Can you not get them to send you just one tuner if that's all you need? They'd save money on the return postage and they can use the other tuners from the pack they opened as spares for similar issues...

Seems a shame to lose a perfectly good Les Paul for the sake of one broken tuner...

I'd be tempted to phone them up in person and see if you can convince them to do this.

Adam_MD

not_the_dj;500323" said:

ICBM said:

Just return it for a refund. This is getting silly.



Then take the money and go shopping for a Les Paul in person, making sure you pick one which looks the way you want, doesn't have wobbly tone knobs, is set up properly and doesn't have robot tuners. There are a lot of them out there and it shouldn't be impossible to find one.



I think you'll be happier.










Seconded

+3

FelineGuitars

Or save up some more money and have one of ours......

:P

gearaddict

I'm reluctant to send he guitar back. It has grown on me colour-wise and I love the smell. I also enjoy torturing you all.

I have had a final attempt at getting them to send me a couple of replacement tuners (one is completely jammed but there's another that feels a bit grindy). They have them in stock, after all.

I might get my wife to phone them. She's German and filled with rage.

ICBM

If they won't, then cut your losses and fit standard tuners. Really.

They have them as well…

http://www.thomann.de/gb/grover_3l_3r_guitar_tuning_machines.html

You can even get locking ones if you don't want to feel *that* much of a Luddite .

If one tuner has already broken and another doesn't feel too good, that should tell you something about the potential reliability of the ones it has on now.

gearaddict

Which ones would I get? These?

http://www.thomann.de/gb/grover_406c_mini_locking_rotomatics_c.htm

ICBM

gearaddict said:

Which ones would I get? These?

http://www.thomann.de/gb/grover_406c_mini_locking_rotomatics_c.htm

Either those or the full-size 106Cs. I prefer the minis to the full-size Rotomatics which I find a bit big and heavy - although I know some people think the minis look odd on a Les Paul. Or there are the 502Cs if you prefer the more traditional thumbwheel behind the headstock type - although I think that adds even more weight.

Look on the bright side, you get to choose the exact ones you want instead of having to worry about which ones fit the existing screw hole location .

I would stick to Grover for a Gibson too, just because it's in the rules .

GuitarMonkey

ICBM said:

Either those or the full-size 106Cs. I prefer the minis to the full-size Rotomatics which I find a bit big and heavy - although I know some people think the minis look odd on a Les Paul. 

I think that Grovers contribute to a lot of headstock breaks - the extra weight equals extra inertia in a fall.

ICBM

GuitarMonkey said:

I think that Grovers contribute to a lot of headstock breaks - the extra weight equals extra inertia in a fall.

You're probably right - at least for the full-size ones - it certainly can't help, even if they're not the main reason. The keys alone are ridiculously heavy, which is why I changed the ones on my Dove to mini keys, since I didn't want to actually re-drill the headstock.

I can't imagine the robot tuners are that light either, although I don't know the exact weight.

DaveMon

I picked up some of these from RichTone; http://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/products/gibson_modern_nickel_machine_heads_with_metal_buttons.asp £45 posted! And in this country! Although I still need to get round to fitting them yet....

welshboyo

I've got a set of Grovers off my 335 which I'm happy for you to have for nowt, you might need bushes for them but pm me and we'll sort something out