Tuner machine advice

[Leester]

Apologies up front as I'm fairly new to the forum and suspect my question has been repeatedly answered already.

I have a Breedlove legacy OF that I really enjoy. The Grover tuners on it are serviceable but I don't enjoy confirming the stereotype that the mandolin player is always retuning. Is there a better option for tuners in that wide space between the Grovers I have and the $500+ Waverlys?

If the reality is that I just need to buy a better mandolin I can certainly entertain that option

Thanks for any help you can offer.

[MikeEdgerton]

Take a look at the Rubner tuners. There are times they are not available but they are decent and although they are a little more money than the Grovers they don't approach the price of the Waverly tuners. I'm a Waverly fan but they are a stretch.

https://www.rubnertuners.com/

[Br1ck]

Tuneing issues are very rarely caused by tuners. More common are strings not installed correctly and nut slot issues. The main difference between cheap tuners and Waverlys is smoothness of operation.

[Leester]

Brick,
Thanks for the information. I'll check on a set up to include nut slots-much cheaper than new tuners!

[Pittsburgh Bill]

Tuneing issues are very rarely caused by tuners. More common are strings not installed correctly and nut slot issues. The main difference between cheap tuners and Waverlys is smoothness of operation.

I'm no expert on this, but do want to offer for what it's worth told to me by people with more expertise than me, " Changes in humidity and temperature fluctuations have a larger effect on a mandolin staying in tune than many other instruments due to multiple factors including but not limited to size, string tension, scale, e.t.c.".
Maybe, sounded good to me at the time.

[Br1ck]

I'm no expert on this, but do want to offer for what it's worth told to me by people with more expertise than me, " Changes in humidity and temperature fluctuations have a larger effect on a mandolin staying in tune than many other instruments due to multiple factors including but not limited to size, string tension, scale, e.t.c.".
Maybe, sounded good to me at the time.

I think we need to separate the issue. Mandolins fluctuate more than any other instrument I've played. It is the nature of the beast for all but possibly carbon fiber mandolins. Then there are the factors that I'd call mechanical like strings hanging up in nut slots, and strings slipping on posts due to poor restringing technique. I had a blissful two weeks last winter when my mandolin was saturated with all the moisture it could hold and held tuning for that whole time. Then things dried up and it was back to two or three cents off on most strings.

So set up issues cause strings to slip out of tune and can be addressed. Temperature and humidity can be tempered but not conquered.

[Leester]

I think we need to separate the issue. Mandolins fluctuate more than any other instrument I've played. It is the nature of the beast for all but possibly carbon fiber mandolins. Then there are the factors that I'd call mechanical like strings hanging up in nut slots, and strings slipping on posts due to poor restringing technique. I had a blissful two weeks last winter when my mandolin was saturated with all the moisture it could hold and held tuning for that whole time. Then things dried up and it was back to two or three cents off on most strings.

So set up issues cause strings to slip out of tune and can be addressed. Temperature and humidity can be tempered but not conquered.

Excellent follow up information. It helps explain why I notice more significant difficulties when we play at assisted living facilities that are significantly warmer and less humid than where my mandolin usually lives. I checked out the nut slots on my mandolin and they surely need some work so I'll put that at the top of the list. Thanks again for the help.

[CarlM]

Tuners really do not move much once they are set unless they are worn out no matter whether cheap or expensive tuners. The gear is against the worm and there really is not much to move. The difference between cheap and expensive tuners is how easy they are to turn and how smoothly they move. It will affect how easily it is to get the strings in tune but not how they hold. Going out of tune is usually the mandolin moving, not the tuners unless they are worn out or screws have come loose.

[yankees1]

Rubner !!!!!!!!!!!!!! The new Rubner F tuners will be available in January ! Supposedly ! I am waiting for the Rubner F Luxury gold tuners for my new Girouard oval !