Help!. Problem instaling Gotoh 510s.

[Guitar Cowboy]

Thinking outside the box a bit, how about making sure the tuner is nice and tight with the locking nut and then gluing the remaining screw head in place on it?

Only you would ever know.

Craig

Remember that this screw does nothing to "hold" the tuning machine in place as that's accomplished by the nut at the top.  The screw is only a "locating" screw that helps prevent the body twisting: it needs only a mild anchoring and it's a happy camper

I've done nothing on this yet as I have not had a chance to visit a luthier. I had assumed the screw contributed to holding the tuner in place and that without it, the tuner could rotate under the tension of the string even if you initially anchor the nut down solid. I was assuming the nut could loosen over time and that the screw helped keep everything in place. Having said that, I don't think I have ever had to tightening  a nut down during a string change. Maybe I'll try stringing her up and see what happens
Thanks

Steve

[Craig]

Well the standard Taylor tuners don't have a screw so it can only be a precaution.

Craig

[greg947]

It is true the Taylor tuners do not have a screw, but mine have a pin on the back that sticks out more than 1/8 inches.  I have always assumed this was to keep the tuners from turning when the strings are tightened.

[Edward]

You really could just cinch down the nut (don't go crazy with torque, but "firm" is plenty good) and your tuning machine will not move, truly, unless you crank on it.  The Ping tuners have a pin on the back so that's their anchor.  But as for the gotoh's screw, it is there to prevent it from rotating yes, but it really is more a failsafe measure than it is an actual anchor.  FWIW, I have done this exact thing on a cheap Ibanez I had, and again on a student's cheap guitar...all 6 machines with only the nut holding them down: neither guitar has ever had any of their tuners move. 

That said, I'd personally just want to get it truly right on any nice guitar.  But for the meantime (or as long as your psyche can handle it ), you'd be perfectly fine with just popping that 510 in there and tightening down the nut so that it's firmly on there.

Edward

[Guitar Cowboy]

UPDATE: Victory!!!

I decided to take my 618 I to my local jeweler who happens to have big bunches of cash that used to belong to me. Somehow, my guitar purchases are always followed by a significant jewelry purchase. I think it is some sort of law of nature.

Anyway, we padded his work bench to the hilt. As I held the guitar, he was able to cut the remaining imbedded screw in half lengthwise and extract it piece by piece. We thought all he would need to do was cut in a slot in screw and unscrew it with a micro screw driver , but this didn't work. We eventually found out that the screw was slightly bent at the tip , so it was not going to be backed out ...no way - no how.

The two halves of the very tip of  screw remained imbedded , but I was able to get these out by re-drilling the hole just a tiny bit deeper. Unfortunately, the screw hole was stripped of doing all this, so I did have to fill it and re-drill the hole, but that was not a big deal. A good quality wood filler from Ace  and some  ebony stain and I was good to go. I had called LMI  shortly after all this happened and they shipped me a couple cosmo black screws  at no charge  for when I was ready to reinstall . The second time around all went without incident.... ... ... phew!

Now I have another issue with this guitar , but that's another story for another post.

Thanks for all your words of wisdom and encouragement

Steve

[TaylorGirl]

Cool! Glad it all worked out for you.

[Edward]

Good deal, Steve!...nice that it worked for you in the end!

Edward

[magirus]

Great to read that your problem was solved GC! It's a pity the screw was bent or it would probably would have spun straight out with a slot cut in the shaft end. It's a shame to see that the guitar has another issue, hope this is easily fixed.