Official Luthiers Forum!

I got asked today if I could help a friend and replace a fractured tuner button on an OEM tuner on a Taylor slothead. The buttons look to be some variety of plastic pressed onto fluted shafts. Replacement buttons are on their way from a vendor in British Colombia. So, what to do? Remove the fractured button and press a new one onto the shaft, cold? Is heat ever used to help installation, as in using a soldering iron to heat the tuner shaft and get the button to melt onto the shaft? Is it appropriate to use a bench vise to squeeze the new button onto the shaft? An arbor press? A drill press? Some combination of techniques? Should the tuner be disassembled first? Any 'gotcha!' things to be aware of? Is this a task that could be farmed out by mail order to somebody who knows what he's doing? Of course the owner has a paying gig coming up and this guitar is his one and only gigging 6-string, so consciousness of time is a dandy idea.

Besides these few trivial questions, I think I got this.

Thanks!

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Peter Havriluk

OK here is what I do:

1). Remove tuner from guitar.

2). Clamp in vice (metal vice use leather to not scratch tuner).

3). Once proper replacement buttons (plastic) are secured I make a wooden spacer from the other buttons and tuners that the spacer is the gap between the tuner button and the head stock. We are going to press the button on and want to press it on far enough but not too far.

4). Heat tuner shaft pretty hot nearly red hot with a torch (propane) and then press the button on. They go in initially nicely and then slow down just before they are all the way home so keep pressing and the heated shaft will melt its way the rest of the way. Use the spacer to ensure proper installation. Try to avoid not heating the shaft enough and then getting the button stuck only partially on before the shaft cools. So heat the shaft until nearly red hot.

Be careful not to burn yourself and I always double check that my fire extinguisher(s) are charged, checked and near by.

Hope this helps Peter.

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Ann Arbor Guitars

Thanks, Hesh. I guess. I feared the need for heat. A keyed shaft and a mounting screw seems so much neater. Sigh.

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Peter Havriluk

I would suggest using a soldering iron to heat the shafts. I cut the end of the copper loop tip, on a Weller soldering gun with an on/off trigger. Works great and no open flame to deal with.

Paul we don't use or need heat to take the old buttons off they usually crumble off or can be worked off with pliers.

We don't find that a soldering iron is hot enough, fast enough and we also want to see the shaft start to glow. The common things that goes wrong for some folks when replacing these is they start to press on the new button before the shaft is hot enough. What results is the button is not all the way home when things cool and that sucks.

What you are doing with the soldering iron would help a button that was not all the way home if the shaft has to be reheated. But with a torch and near red hot before we start we don't have issues with things cooling before the button is up against the spacer.

It's not a bad idea for folks who have not done this before to have more buttons than you need.....

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Ann Arbor Guitars

Actually, if you look at closely at image, the cut prongs touching the post are not connected until they touch the tuner shafts. This includes them in the circuit as they become part of the tip. That is different from touching them with a hot soldering iron, the posts get very hot very quickly. You can melt buttons with this if you're not careful. Give it a try.

I should add that the image I posted is a prop to show how I configure the business end. Old buttons are easily removed by simply crushing them with pliers, no heat needed.

Ah now I see that and did not see it before that makes a lot of sense and may be faster than a torch, great idea!!

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Ann Arbor Guitars

Thanks, it has worked for me.