A little rework on a Warmoth Tele

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

Dropped it off for a fret level, nut install, crown and polish.

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

I was a little unhappy with the Sperzels.  They seem a bit cramped for a 6 in line headstock and have broken 3 different strings at the locking pin mechanism.  The biggest let down, they don't seem to reduce tuning issues or be a real time saver; the whole purpose for getting them in the first place.

I went with something a little more traditional, Fender Schaller tuners. 

Here's the Stewmac tool for drilling the set pins.  There are 3 holes there.  The center was for the existing Sperzels.  The outside 2 are for the Schallers.  Either set covers up all 3 holes.






The Schallers shown above and Sperzels shown below.



A straight edge showing the placement is square.




These are staggered, of course.  The Sperzels had 3 different heights where as the Schallers only had 2 heights.  This is a reverse orientation headstock, so the 2 bass strings got the lower heights.

 

[mayfly]

Very cool.  I was not very happy with my sperzel tuners either.  Mine didn't really lock properly and had some machining defects (rough edges, holes not drilled properly). 

nice use of the stu-mac tool!

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

They locked okay.  I would attribute the string breakage (all at the post) to a sharp edge.  But, 3 strings, that's half the tuners! 

 

[Jumble Jumble]

If locking tuners didn't save you any time, you must be a lot better at restrings than I am! New tuners are looking good.

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

The eyelet is a lot smaller on the lockers, which I can't see, so I have to get right up on it.  The pin needed fanagling half the time too.  Plus, you still have to tighten to lock it.  I don't go crazy with wraps on the non-lockers anyway.

If the darn things didn't break strings right at the post, they'd still be on there.  I'd fix one, but 3?  Nope.

 

[Jumble Jumble]

That is very unlucky.

 

[TonyFlyingSquirrel]

I think you're really going to dig the GFS pickups.
I love my NEOTN7!  I love the R.A.T. setup on the bridge p/u too!

 

[mayfly]

Just to arouse the rabble some more, my Sperzels have issues with string breakage at the post as well.

 

[Fat Pete]

Same here. Not that impressed with them - also had a locating pin pull out without that much encouragement.

 

[stubhead]

Yet again, I find myself wondering if the Spertzies have a couple of "tiers" of manufacturing like all the various Wilkinsons or those fun-loving devils "as LICENSED by Floyd Rose"... the reason being that the steel guitar manufacturers have gone over whole-hog to Sperzels from Grover, because of Grover's well-known habit of shopping their manufacturing all over the Far East, searching for the best deals in prison factory labor.... "Yet again" because:
A) Steel guitars cost upwards of $1,500 minimum, and the purchasers tend to not put up with much crap because of it;
B) Steel guitars have some FAT strings, going down to a .068" or .070" on the bottom of a 10-string C6th tuning, and I've never had a problem with either of mine refusing entry.

I'm sitting here fondling a black locker, soon to go on a guitar, and a chrome non-locker, because I'm running my MSA steel as a 10-string rather than 12 right now, and I'd be hard-pressed to say they DID come from different places. The non-locker certainly has a bigger string hole and there are a few differences having to do with mounting, but the parts are interchangeable.

Speaking of customer service, has anyone tried squawking to Sperzel? I have had both new Grovers and new Schallers turn up DOA, and they both zipped me out a new one, though Grover had to get the old one back first (yet another reason to always keep spare tuners, ummm, strings, an extra guitar or five, several amps and plenty of stompboxes, speaking of squawking). YOU JUST NEVER KNOW. :dontknow:

 

[Cagey]

The last Strat that went through here had Sperzels, and I went through 4 strings (A, D, G, B) just setting intonation. Sounds weird, but it had a Floyd on it, and in order to adjust the saddles on that bridge you've got to slack up the string, make the adjustment, then retune and check it. Since the strings have essentially no wrap on the peg, the 90 bend where it goes through the hole got bent back and forth several times each as I narrowed down the adjustment for that string. My thought was the string was getting work-hardened as a result, and that's why it broke. But, maybe Sperzel needs to break the corners on those holes. I didn't get out the loupe, but it's possible those hole entries are just too sharp.

 

[stubhead]

Well, I just stared at em, and yeah... The steel guitar non-locker has a regular longish post with an oval hole that could use a bit of cleanup. The locking ones have a deep slot milled around the head, and the hole is the full width of the slot - so you can't get anything round in there very easily. But as the string is coming in straight from the slot, you could at least soften the sides of the hole with a little oval file, round pippen file or the like. Shrapnel in the gears would be no fun, but then if you turn the lock all the way on, that seems to be closed up. You can also take them completely apart - kind of a pissy way to while away an afternoon  - "maintaining equipment" and/or modifying it is so-oo 20th century.... I wonder if the reason the steel guitar Sperzels work so well is because steel guitarists write to Sperzel if something goes wrong? Weird enough to have disposable amplifiers, but when you just start throwing away guitar parts? eeek. Brave New World. Creak, creak, zzzt... thud. pbpbpbpbpbbp

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

Well, overall not impressed.

 

[Cagey]

Well, I just stared at em, and yeah... The steel guitar non-locker has a regular longish post with an oval hole that could use a bit of cleanup. The locking ones have a deep slot milled around the head, and the hole is the full width of the slot - so you can't get anything round in there very easily. But as the string is coming in straight from the slot, you could at least soften the sides of the hole with a little oval file, round pippen file or the like. Shrapnel in the gears would be no fun, but then if you turn the lock all the way on, that seems to be closed up. You can also take them completely apart - kind of a pissy way to while away an afternoon  - "maintaining equipment" and/or modifying it is so-oo 20th century.... I wonder if the reason the steel guitar Sperzels work so well is because steel guitarists write to Sperzel if something goes wrong? Weird enough to have disposable amplifiers, but when you just start throwing away guitar parts? eeek. Brave New World. Creak, creak, zzzt... thud. pbpbpbpbpbbp

Or, just use Schaller mini-lockers instead. I just had a close look at one of those I happen to have loose, and the hole the string feeds into is chamfered on both sides. String gets a smooth ride transitioning from the hole to wrap around the peg. I tried getting a good picture of it, but my camera doesn't seem to be up to the task...