tuner bushings

[Dan of SC]

Should tuner bushings fit tight in the headstock or have a little wiggle room? I bought a set of Grover tuners and a hole spacer guide from StewMac. The spacer guide comes with instructions that tell you drill the main hole 1/4 " and the bushing recess 3/8". Both of these are a little loose, but I'm thinking maybe the mounting screws hold everything in place and the slightly larger holes keep the tuners from binding. But I don't know, really. Any help?

[peter.coombe]

They should fit tight, but not so tight that they are very difficult to remove. If they are not tight, they will tend to tip foreward and then the tuner may not turn properly. After finishing, there will be some finish in the holes and the holes are then reamed out to the correct size so the bushing fits tight. They may be a little loose before finishing, but after finishing they will be tight or so tight they won't fit at all.

[pfox14]

They should fit tight, but not so tight that they are very difficult to remove. If they are not tight, they will tend to tip foreward and then the tuner may not turn properly. After finishing, there will be some finish in the holes and the holes are then reamed out to the correct size so the bushing fits tight. They may be a little loose before finishing, but after finishing they will be tight or so tight they won't fit at all.

What he said.

[Jim Hilburn]

I installed some Grovers today and the tool I've found to work for them is a machinist's reamer, letter "P".
After the finish is applied the holes need to be cleaned up and I do this with the "P" reamer by hand. if the bushing doesn't sit dead flush to the face, you can angle the reamer slightly to make them fit. If they end up too loose then some CA glue on a toothpick can be run around inside the hole and allowed to dry. That usually tighten things up.
To me when you turn the instrument upside down and the bushings don't fall out and you can't shake them out then they're tight enough.
I think Wav's and Gotohs are all near the same size. Schallers are totally different.

[Tavy]

Just to add that if you're using a reamer to remove the overspill from finish, be very careful you don't chip the finish on the surface when you do so. Either go very carefully, or else a needle file will do the same job on softer finishes (shellac for example). But yes, they should be a firm push fit. Also not a bad idea to put a bevel on the top edge of the hole so they don't chip the finish if you ever remove them.