Official Luthiers Forum!

I use paddlehead headstocks and I'm still trying to figure out the best
time to drill. Drilling prior to finish seems to cause problems with filler,
wet sanding, and buffing. And... drilling after finish has caused my finish
to fracture sometimes around the holes. Someone here said they drill
before the top coats.

If anyone would like to share their method I would really appreciate it.

long

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"No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.” -Heraclitus of Ephesus

I drill before finish, but I do not install until after I finish.

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"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered." G. K. Chesterton.

[QUOTE=Hesh1956] Bob I drill and install (and remove) prior to finish. After the holes are reamed just right for the specific tuners that I am using I remove the tuners.

After it is finished I have to kiss the holes again with a reamer and reopen the screw holes with a dremel and very fine drill bit but it takes very little time and effort to do this.[/QUOTE]

+1

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Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.

I drill prior to finish. I drill my holes 1/64" to 1/32" wider than the tuner. This spares trying to clean the hole up once the finish is on.

The tiny screw hole for holding the tuner I drill after finishing/buffing -- I use a jewellers drill that Lee Valley sells.

Another way to avoid having to ream all the gunk out is drill the hole to exact size and plug the hole with a disposable ear plug or paper towel.

Mario Proulx mentioned at one time that he had used "Waverly Guitar Peghead Bushing" from Stewmac on a finished peghead. The finish did not chip as the cut from this reamer is so clean. I have not tried it yet, but it is tempting as the tuner holes makes levelling, wet sanding and buffing the peghead a lot more challenging. Here's the tool in question, it is used to drill a stepped hole for the tuner post and bushing.

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Rian Gitar og Mandolin

Thanks everyone!

I think I will go back to drilling prior to finish.   My biggest worry is about
all the water from wet sanding that gets in the holes. It seems all that end
grain could soak up a lot-a-water. Tony's idea of disposable ear plugs
sounds like it might be effective in stoping at least some of that.

Arnt, thanks for the tip on the reamer. I have one on the way from Stew-
Mac with my first set of Waverly tuners. I usually use Schallers and
Gotohs.

Long

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"No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.” -Heraclitus of Ephesus

I drill the peghead for the tuners almost as soon as the glue dries on the headplate! Fit the tuners when the peghead is finally shaped. As I always French polish I find that cleaning up the holes for the tuner and screws takes about 0 secs. Never been a problem as I don't put a lot of finish on and I never buff.

Colin

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I don't believe in anything, I simply make use of a set of reasonable working hypotheses.

[QUOTE=Bob Long] My biggest worry is about
all the water from wet sanding that gets in the holes. It seems all that end grain would soak up a lot-a-water.[/QUOTE]

Bob the ear plug idea won't protect your finish from water when you wet sand. Here's a tip via Tony Karol, use mineral spirits as a lubricant for wet sanding the top of the finish. Water can get under the finish at the peg head holes and lift the finish.

[QUOTE=Arnt] Mario Proulx mentioned at one time that he had used
"Waverly Guitar Peghead Bushing" from Stewmac on a finished peghead.
The finish did not chip as the cut from this reamer is so clean. I have not
tried it yet, but it is tempting as the tuner holes makes levelling, wet
sanding and buffing the peghead a lot more challenging. Here's the tool
in question, it is used to drill a stepped hole for the tuner post and
bushing.

bushingreamer.jpg">[/QUOTE]

I drill and ream my holes before finishing but I have used this tool to
clean up holes for press fit bushings after finishing and it worked very
well. I just chucked in my eggbeater drill and spun a few times with no ill
affects. I imaging it would work just as well to drill .250 pilot holes,
finish and then ream for bushings but I have not done it that way yet.

Louis
Louis405239110.2169675926

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- Louis Freilicher

Oh No! Not another learning experience!

wow,that`s a crazy idea Tony I like it.
                  James W B

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James W Bolan
Nashville Tennessee

I drill right after I shape the peghead and glue on the headplate, all before finishing/buffing.

Mike

[QUOTE=James W B] wow,that`s a crazy idea Tony I like it.
                    James W B [/QUOTE]

James, nothin crazy about it!

Bob, the trick is to have the shafts of the tuner holes sealed when you wet sand and buff. Drill 'em out--I like Anthony's idea of a slightly oversized hole--then spray away. You might end up with a perfect fit, as the lacquer accumulates in the hole. If not, a little reaming does the job. But your tuner shafts will be sealed. And that's the important thing.
If you want to ream before you wet sand, then take a q-tip soaked in shellac or lacquer to run inside the hole to seal the grain against the water.

Does this make sense?

I hope so....

Steve

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From Nacogdoches...the oldest town in Texas.

http://www.stephenkinnaird.com

I wouldn't drill oversize--it's easy enough to clean the lacquer off the insides. Like everyone else, I drill before finishing--it's the last thing I do on the neck, usually. Enough lacquer gets in the holes to seal them, which is good, but I go easy on the excess water when I'm sanding around there. You can also daub the insides of the holes with shellac before lacquering. Then a clean up of the hole after rubbing out. I usually use Sperzels which take a 3/8" hole all the way through, so I use a 3/8" round file and spin it with my fingers as I push it through to help avoid chipping on exit; I also will enter with it from both sides before going all the way through with the widest section, so that there isn't any laquer buildup to chip where the file exits the hole.

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Howard Klepper
http://www.klepperguitars.com

When all else fails, clean the shop.

Thanks again one and all.

Tony, I will try mineral sprits for wet sanding, I use KTM9, so I'll do some
testing first... but I thinlk it'll be ok.

Steve and Howard, sealing the holes makes perfect sense, I'm amazed,
(maybe more like shocked) that I haven't thought of that my self...
Thanks for the tip!

Long

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"No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.” -Heraclitus of Ephesus

I like to drill a 3/8 hole and then buy Grover tuners so they won't fit at all

Kurt

Hey, Kurt I know what you mean!! that 1/64th. makes quite a difference.
I got my 25/64 bit locally... certainly worth the 6 or 7 bucks they cost!

Long

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"No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.” -Heraclitus of Ephesus

So, guys, why don't you just buy a 10mm drill bit? What am I missing?

Carlton, I think the comments about 3/8" holes was meant as kind of a
little joke. I use a 10 mm (25/64th) drill, for Schaller and Gotoh.

Thanks Todd, for you response. I'm going to go back to drilling before
finish, and follow advice and tips from you and others.   Thanks again!

Long

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"No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.” -Heraclitus of Ephesus

Test results I have read say that while lacquer will block liquid water better than shellac, shellac is a more effective barrier against water vapor. It also seems to me to penetrate and soak into the wood more. But either would do fine for this application.

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Howard Klepper
http://www.klepperguitars.com

When all else fails, clean the shop.

I bought the tuners after I drilled the holes. They are installed with a drop of Tightbond to keep the ferrules from falling out. One fell out anyway while pounding in the remaining frets yesterday and is hiding in a pile of shavings.

Kurt