66 starfire 2 needs new tuners

[Masamune7772]

Hello, I’ve got a 66 starfire 2 and it’s an amazing guitar. It needs replacement tuners. It has the parallelogram style tuners that I can’t seem to find anywhere. Does anyone know of a replacement that would work for this? Nickel preferred.
Thank you

 

[Masamune7772]

Note: I’ve watched a YouTube tutorial on how to restore old tuners with vinegar. Has anyone tried this? The gears seem to go from normal function then slip into a “loose” feeling where the knob turns too easliy and isn’t holding tune. Then it gets tight again as I turn

 

[Masamune7772]

 

[Masamune7772]

As mentioned the tuners work … but not great. As you are adjusting them they will either have too much play or hold the tune

 

[Masamune7772]

It’s a starfire 3 , my mistake

 

[1adam12]

I'm no machinist with tuning machines (honk honk) but have you tried to maximize what is there?...sometimes I've had great success with removing the tuner and bending/tweaking the two arms/hooks/tunnels of that worm gear (creating some tension/friction) and of course tightening that phillips moderately. Just throwing that out there!

 

[BradHK]

I would start by removing, cleaning and seeing if there is something obviously wrong. Easier to do when off the guitar. even when those tuners work ok, there is not a lot of love for them around here. Unfortunately, I don’t think anybody has found a drop in replacement without drilling new holes. I have them on my 1967 Starfire III and they work ok, but not great.

On a separate note, were you aware that your harp tailpiece is for a left handed guitar? Interesting. You said that it is a Starfire III but it does not have the Guildsby or aluminum bridge. We’re these swapped out and somebody put on the left handed harp tailpiece?

 

[mushroom]

the left handed harp does look kinda cool….. and weird.

 

[Masamune7772]

It came like this for me so I’m not sure. It has the pick guard but I took it off because it sits too close to the picking hand. I see that there’s no love for these tuners. I’ll try cleaning them but if I have to replace them it’s mostly about getting the same shaft size. Anybody know the measurement off hand or know a good substitute?

 

[chazmo]

Moving to tech shop. Good luck, Masa.

 

[Default]

I could not find a direct replacement for these tuners, and I have been looking for years. I would go with a set of 18-1 open back Grovers. They will cover the screw holes, pretty much.
The problem with these tuners is the hooks used to hold down the button shafts. They bend and then the tuners slip, or they corrode and bind.