New Tuners, New Buttons, New Photos - UPDATED

[George]

Thanks again, George.  I have ordered the buttons from Thomann and should have them installed next week

You're welcome.  I already looked at the pictures of your GS4 - that beautiful back and sides, no pick-guard, the simple fret inlays - gorgeous guitar.  I think the ebony buttons will really compliment the look.  Let us know how you get on...

[sstaylor58]

FYI - I have swapped out the standard mini tuners for both gold and silver Taylor tuners previously on different mini's without a hitch.  It is a simple and great upgrade. Recently though, I purchased a set of used gold Taylor tuners on the AGF from someone who said they came off his 816.  I wanted to upgrade my koa mini to gold tuners. These tuners did not fit the mini - the threaded shaft that screws in was longer than I have seen before, which didn't allow you to fully tighten the tuners down.  They missed by at least an 1/8"...I have not had this issue before, and now I have a set of perfectly fine gold tuners that don't fit my koa mini.  I have thought about carefully cutting the threaded shaft down, but worry about messing up the threads...anyone else run into this before or have any ideas?  I thought all Taylor tuners would be identical but apparently not.

[Guitarsan]

Wow, never thought to upgrade the tuners on the mini, really, but I have the parts to do it so am inspired and will do it next string change. I actually have a set of nickel regular size Taylor Ping tuners and a set of smaller Taylor Ping nickel tuners off a Taylor 12 string. I may end up using the regular size tuners with the 12 string tuner buttons, since they're similar size to the mini buttons, but nicer looking. But, will try both tuner buttons and see which I like better. I'll start a new thread and take photos when I get around to this. 

[Guitarman]

You're welcome.  I already looked at the pictures of your GS4 - that beautiful back and sides, no pick-guard, the simple fret inlays - gorgeous guitar.  I think the ebony buttons will really compliment the look.  Let us know how you get on...

They arrived today George.  I like the more overall "woody" look.  Thanks again for the heads-up about Thomann.

[George]

They arrived today George.  I like the more overall "woody" look.  Thanks again for the heads-up about Thomann.

Looks terrific John.  I don't think there's an easier way to change the personality of your guitar...

[guitarsrsoawesome]

Hey guys, before I order, and since I've made the mistake of ordering the smaller "minis" before on ebay (which I still have if any one wants them for their gs mini, just pm me and I'll send them to you as free of charge), I'm looking to get the schaller ebony buttons on this page:

http://www.lmii.com/products/kit-wizard/tuning-machines/schaller-ebony-buttons/385-schaller-ebony-buttons-set-of-6/flypage-noimage

This site only offers the minis and this size.  Are there only two sizes? And will this other size best fit my 514ce?

Also, in the description on a previous page on the site I saw the disclaimor that they only work with the schaller tuning machines, but I'm assuming they will also work with the Taylors?  Just screw them on, right?

Thanks for all your help! And first come, first served on the free minis!

[guitarsrsoawesome]

Hey guys, before I order, and since I've made the mistake of ordering the smaller "minis" before on ebay (which I still have if any one wants them for their gs mini, just pm me and I'll send them to you as free of charge), I'm looking to get the schaller ebony buttons on this page:

http://www.lmii.com/products/kit-wizard/tuning-machines/schaller-ebony-buttons/385-schaller-ebony-buttons-set-of-6/flypage-noimage

This site only offers the minis and this size.  Are there only two sizes? And will this other size best fit my 514ce?

Also, in the description on a previous page on the site I saw the disclaimor that they only work with the schaller tuning machines, but I'm assuming they will also work with the Taylors?  Just screw them on, right?

Thanks for all your help! And first come, first served on the free minis!

Got a quick response to the mini ebony tuners...no longer available

[George]

Hey guys, before I order, and since I've made the mistake of ordering the smaller "minis" before on ebay (which I still have if any one wants them for their gs mini, just pm me and I'll send them to you as free of charge), I'm looking to get the schaller ebony buttons on this page:

http://www.lmii.com/products/kit-wizard/tuning-machines/schaller-ebony-buttons/385-schaller-ebony-buttons-set-of-6/flypage-noimage

This site only offers the minis and this size.  Are there only two sizes? And will this other size best fit my 514ce?

Also, in the description on a previous page on the site I saw the disclaimor that they only work with the schaller tuning machines, but I'm assuming they will also work with the Taylors?  Just screw them on, right?

Thanks for all your help! And first come, first served on the free minis!

They look like the right ones, and they claim to be for mini's, so they're probably OK.  I believe "Button 6" is the one you want (I used "Button 7" which are claimed by Schaller as the 'large" one, whereas button 6 is the "small" one), but there's no mention of the button number in the description you've shared.

Here's the thing - you'll need to take a leap of faith :-)  I didn't try the Schaller buttons on the Mini tuners.  They fit perfectly on the Regular tuners, and the buttons on the Regular and Mini tuners are interchangeable, so the logical conclusion is that the Shaller buttons will fit the Mini tuners :-)

I think I mentioned before, but not sure:  The Schaller buttons are very loose compared to the standard button before you tighten the screw.  But don't be put off - once tightened they fit perfectly with no play or back-lash etc...

[George]

Hey guys, before I order, and since I've made the mistake of ordering the smaller "minis" before on ebay (which I still have if any one wants them for their gs mini, just pm me and I'll send them to you as free of charge), I'm looking to get the schaller ebony buttons on this page:

http://www.lmii.com/products/kit-wizard/tuning-machines/schaller-ebony-buttons/385-schaller-ebony-buttons-set-of-6/flypage-noimage

This site only offers the minis and this size.  Are there only two sizes? And will this other size best fit my 514ce?

Also, in the description on a previous page on the site I saw the disclaimor that they only work with the schaller tuning machines, but I'm assuming they will also work with the Taylors?  Just screw them on, right?

Thanks for all your help! And first come, first served on the free minis!

CORRECTION

It was the regular sized buttons you wanted, right?  Then scratch half of what I said in my last comment :-)

Bottom line, if they're Schaller, they'll fit without modification...

[guitarsrsoawesome]

Hey guys, before I order, and since I've made the mistake of ordering the smaller "minis" before on ebay (which I still have if any one wants them for their gs mini, just pm me and I'll send them to you as free of charge), I'm looking to get the schaller ebony buttons on this page:

http://www.lmii.com/products/kit-wizard/tuning-machines/schaller-ebony-buttons/385-schaller-ebony-buttons-set-of-6/flypage-noimage

This site only offers the minis and this size.  Are there only two sizes? And will this other size best fit my 514ce?

Also, in the description on a previous page on the site I saw the disclaimor that they only work with the schaller tuning machines, but I'm assuming they will also work with the Taylors?  Just screw them on, right?

Thanks for all your help! And first come, first served on the free minis!

CORRECTION

It was the regular sized buttons you wanted, right?  Then scratch half of what I said in my last comment :-)

Bottom line, if they're Schaller, they'll fit without modification...

Exactly, I accidentally got minis when I ordered almost two years ago now and those are the ones I'm now giving away.  Just want the standard ones.  Thanks so much for the info.  The page link I posted is a west coast company, so I'm going to call them once they open to double check before I order.  Thanks so much for all the info though and this strand has reinspired me to do what I originally intended to do a couple years ago.  Love the look.

[steelerboy329]

Those look great!  I ordered some mini ebony tuner buttons for my 562 from lmii which I think will look nice.  I've also been thinking about an 814 and if I do end up getting one, then I will definitely be adding ebony tuner buttons on that one as well.

[K-G]

Love the look of those black ones.  But I hear they are sensitive to humidity.  Someone informed me that it breaks after a while.  Anyone know about this?

[Kmkoenig]

UPDATED - some new photos below, and a few lines, for when you use your "spare" Taylor machine heads as an upgrade for your GS Mini
Do the Schaller ebony buttons fit the standard Taylor machine heads? If so, do you have a model # and website to order? They look great!

I posted in another thread that I wanted to change the look of my 816ce by replacing the machine heads.  This modification changes the look of the whole guitar, not just the headstock - super!

I decided that I didn't want to change the originality of my guitar by adding non-stock tuners, for example the popular Gotoh 510 upgrade.  But also I didn't want the hassle of modifying the headstock, drilling holes etc.  The solution?  A new set of Taylor machine heads in a different colour, and some Schaller Ebony buttons that fit the Taylor/Ping machine head with NO additions or alterations.  This is a mega-easy modification - everything is "plug and play".  If you want some instructions, or just some top-tips, please add a comment and I'll start a new thread.

The look I wanted and perfectly achieved is the gold machine head with ebony buttons (and gold fixing screws).  This is exactly what I wanted, at a fraction of the price of the Gotoh upgrade, and now I have a selection of parts that I can use to change the look any time I want - win, win, win!

The first photo is my first choice.  The other photos cover all the other possibilities, in case anyone is thinking of the same modification, but is uncertain how the headstock will look.

Gold tuners, ebony buttons with gold fixings (don't forget to change the truss rod cover screws to complete the look)...



Original gold tuners and nickel tuners

 

Front and back, gold tuners with ebony buttons

 

Front and back, nickel tuners with ebony buttons

 

Nickel/gold fixing screws

   

Black fixing screws

 

And don't forget to finish off the look with a nice gold strap button



There have been a few questions about the quality of the stock GS Mini machine heads, comparison with the standard Taylor branded machine heads, and if the standard ones will fit the Mini.  Here is what I found out when recently swapping my Mini machine heads for my new "spare" Taylor branded Ping tuners...

First of all, this is an upgrade.  When you get the two tuners side by side on the bench, you can clearly see the difference in quality - the casting and finish is noticeably better on the Taylor branded tuner (on the right).  And in my opinion, the chrome finish on the Mini tuner looks cheap compared to the Nickel finish on the standard Taylor tuner.  Also interestingly, Taylor had the fore-sight to provide the extra locating hole required for fixing the Taylor branded tuner (as if Taylor was anticipating this upgrade).  This means that the Taylor tuner can be fitted without any modifications to your Mini - bonus!

 

Here you can see front and back a comparison of the two machine heads and how they will look on your Mini.  I already mentioned the colour difference, but also the Taylor housing is slightly bigger, and the Taylor buttons are quite a bit bigger.

Action-wise, I had no complaints with my original Mini tuners - my Mini was easy to tune and stayed in tune.  However, when you have the opportunity to test the two tuners side by side on the same guitar, I found the Taylor one was smoother and more responsive, so again, definitely an upgrade in quality

 

Finally, a before and after side-by-side.  Because the changes are only noticeable if you know what you're looking for, this upgrade doesn't alter the overall look of your guitar, but it is a quality upgrade.

One last thing - I personally don't think the larger buttons look out of place on the Mini.  But the two sets of buttons are interchangeable if you prefer to use the small ones (but look out for the subtle colour difference...)

 

[guitarsrsoawesome]

What a great job showing us the differences in tuners between the mini and the regular, and just overall a great thread for those of us interested in following suit.  Well done and thanks.