New Tuners, New Buttons, New Photos - UPDATED

[George]

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

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...)

 

[DWM]

Really like your final choice.  Very balanced look - just enough gold, just enough ebony.

[TaylorGirl]

Looks great, George!

[wooglins]

Looks great I just upgraded mine to rosewood.  I really like the Ebony!!!!

[CodeBlueEMT]

 Good job George. The gold tuners really go well with everything else. Elegant. That's the word.

[K-G]

Really like the "look" of the black ones.

But, has anyone experience where these black ones break / crack?

[George]

Really like the "look" of the black ones.

But, has anyone experience where these black ones break / crack?

At the beginning I was a little worried about splitting the wood.  The buttons I bought (Schaller) are a very loose fit when the screw isn't tight, and you really have to screw it quite tightly to pull the worm-gear shaft back through the machine head housing (it protrudes about 3mm when the button is removed).  But I needn't have worried.  The shaft is slightly tapered, so as you tighten the button screw, the shaft makes perfect contact with the button.  When it's tight there is no play or back-lash - it really is a perfect fit.

And that's the thing - it's a perfect fit.  So there is no danger of splitting the wood.  I suppose if you use a poor quality button, or one that doesn't quite fit the Taylor/Ping tuner, there's a chance it could split if you over tighten it.  Mine have been on for a week now, so they've bedded-in, and everything looks good so far...

[George]

I added some comments and photos of the GS Mini machine head upgrade...

[mgap]

I like the look you have now, right down to the gold button screw.  The photo gallery was a excellent way for us to see all the options.  I appreciate it.   

[Guitarman]

Very nice post, George.

I would like to put ebony knobs on my GS4 but keep the silver machines.  Does anyone know where I can get those, preferably in the U.K. ?

[George]

Very nice post, George.

I would like to put ebony knobs on my GS4 but keep the silver machines.  Does anyone know where I can get those, preferably in the U.K. ?

There are loads of different brands, materials, sizes etc. out there - you just need to decide what you like.  The ones I used are Schaller Ebony "Button 7".  If you choose these ones you can be 99% sure that they'll fit, and you've seen the pictures, so you know how it will look.  These are available in the usual places (Amazon, Ebay etc.), but they are quite expensive.  I bought mine from a warehouse music store in Germany called Thomann, at a fraction of the Amazon price.  They also have a Thomann.co.uk and .ie  - you could check both to see which is the cheaper shipping.  Just be aware, some vendors sell the buttons with the (black) fitting screws, some without (Thomann buttons are without the screws).  In my opinion, don't use black screws - the Nickel ones look way better.

[guitarsrsoawesome]

Thanks so much for posting this.  I actually ordered some ebony tuner buttons on ebay last year to change them out on my 514ce and match the ebony headstock veneer, but when they arrived they were the mini sized and would work well on the gs mini, so now I have a reference for where i can order the larger ones as you have done. 

[Guitarman]

Very nice post, George.

I would like to put ebony knobs on my GS4 but keep the silver machines.  Does anyone know where I can get those, preferably in the U.K. ?

There are loads of different brands, materials, sizes etc. out there - you just need to decide what you like.  The ones I used are Schaller Ebony "Button 7".  If you choose these ones you can be 99% sure that they'll fit, and you've seen the pictures, so you know how it will look.  These are available in the usual places (Amazon, Ebay etc.), but they are quite expensive.  I bought mine from a warehouse music store in Germany called Thomann, at a fraction of the Amazon price.  They also have a Thomann.co.uk and .ie  - you could check both to see which is the cheaper shipping.  Just be aware, some vendors sell the buttons with the (black) fitting screws, some without (Thomann buttons are without the screws).  In my opinion, don't use black screws - the Nickel ones look way better.

Thanks very much, George 
I have bought stuff from Thomann before but didn't think of looking there for the ebony buttons.

[packy]

Lovin' all the combinations!

[Guitarman]

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