Guitar tuning keys base plate

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aqualibguitars
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Re: Guitar tuning keys base plate

Post by aqualibguitars »

but will it broach the wooden or plastic buttons?
SteveM
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Re: Guitar tuning keys base plate

Post by SteveM »

aqualibguitars wrote:but will it broach the wooden or plastic buttons?
It can broach steel. Plastic or wood wood be easy.

Normally, you would use cutting fluid when broaching metal. Not sure what you could use for wood or plastic, or if it would even be needed, as the cutting pressure would be a lot lower.

Steve
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GlennW
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Re: Guitar tuning keys base plate

Post by GlennW »

Keep in mid that these are "push through" broaches and need a through hole to be used, which means that the slot you are cutting would have to be all the way through the key.

I'm thinking that the pic of the key shows a blind hole.
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SteveM
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Re: Guitar tuning keys base plate

Post by SteveM »

GlennW wrote:Keep in mid that these are "push through" broaches and need a through hole to be used, which means that the slot you are cutting would have to be all the way through the key.

I'm thinking that the pic of the key shows a blind hole.
Actually, the hole likely goes all the way thru, but it is not the same shape. It will typically be the shape shown for most of the depth and then a small round hole for the mounting screw.

That makes it harder to do.

The plastic one shown might be molded that way, but there are buttons that are wood, so there must be a way to do this. Maybe for those, they DO broach them all the way thru and use a screw with a head larger than the broached hole and a should on the shaft to back it up.

You can buy them from Stewart MacDonald:
http://www.stewmac.com/Hardware_and_Par ... Knobs.html

Maybe Frank Ford has some comments.

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Frank Ford
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Re: Guitar tuning keys base plate

Post by Frank Ford »

One common method of mounting wood buttons is to broach the required hole through a brass rod which is turned and knurled to be cemented into the tuner button. That's what is done to allow the button to be secured on the tuner shaft with a screw in the end, like these plastic ones:
buttons.jpg
Cheers,

Frank Ford
aqualibguitars
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Re: Guitar tuning keys base plate

Post by aqualibguitars »

Thanks friends for the advice especially frank ford. i was thinking of doing the same.
or can i use 4mm id pipe and squeeze it little in a vise to 3.5 mm?
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ctwo
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Re: Guitar tuning keys base plate

Post by ctwo »

aqualibguitars wrote:Thanks friends for the advice especially frank ford. i was thinking of doing the same.
or can i use 4mm id pipe and squeeze it little in a vise to 3.5 mm?
You could do that but I think the form will be random. You might be able to make an internal form to help form.
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Re: Guitar tuning keys base plate

Post by JimGlass »

I make parts for a guitar builder in Nashville. I have a couple of tuners in shop to fit up to the key heads I make for him. I was amazed at how cheap the tuners could be purchased for. My advise is spend your time doing things that can't be purchased so cheap. Don't work to loose money. Took me years to convince the guitar builder of this concept.
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