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View Full Version : Repair/restoring 1930s Grover banjo tuners



Kerry Krishna
Feb-07-2012, 7:25pm
A few of the Kay Kraft tenor guitars and rosewood 6 strings use these old style machine heads. The leather pressure spacer things are falling off (literally!) my current tenor, and the machines need work. Are there any photoessays anyone knows of for fixing these old style machines?
The machine in the lower right corner is the problem one today, and if you look, you will see an actual piece of leather poking out...
Thanks for any help!

sunburst
Feb-07-2012, 8:22pm
There are quite a few of those "2 tab"s around, perhaps a replacement wold be easier than fixing it.
As for the leather washers, all you need to do is take the button off, make a new washer (two sizes of leather punches) and replace it.

Ivan Kelsall
Feb-08-2012, 3:02am
I'd be surprised if there wasn't a way of lubricating them somehow.I'd remove them from the instrument,remove the tuning button & see if there was a way of dripping a tiny amount of lubricating oil down the tuner shaft into the housing. On Frank Ford's 'Frets.com' website in his 'tune up your tuners' section,he shows a similar 'closed housing' style of tuner. He does say that they're 'lubricated for life',but some old lubricants can dry out. I'd remove them from the instrument,because if you can get some oil into them,then it might seep out of the housing. Better it does that OFF the instrument than on it. As for the tiny leather washers,if you have access to some leather punches,then as John Hamlett says,you can use 2 different sized punches to make new washers. Or, if you only have (or can borrow) one of the usual 'pliers style' hand punches,then draw the washer outline onto the leather,punch out the centre hole & then do a bit of nifty scissor work for the outside,
Ivan

Kerry Krishna
Feb-08-2012, 5:15pm
Thanks guys. That is all I needed to know. These 80 year old KK Tenor guitars are wanting to stay unmodified I am thinking. Anything I can do to help them stay original is great for me.