Project questions

[Ryan_Kelly]

so jackson is by far my favorite guitar company. i play metal core/hardcore usually in drop a sharp. i have a jackson dk2 pro series which is my baby. i wanted another guitar that didn't have a floyd rose and instead of buying a nice guitar off the bat, i decided to get a cheap jackson js22 dinky archtop and plan to upgrade everything i can and really make a guitar that suits my needs as a player. i have a few questions tho. the first thing that needs upgrading is the tuning machines and nut because this guitar goes wildly out of tune even from the mildest playing. so my question is what are some good tuning machine brands and how do i know if they will fit the holes in my guitars headstock? also regarding the nut, what are some good brands for that and what kind of glue should i use to secure the new nut in place? any help is extremely appreciated and i will post pics of the guitar throughout its makeover. thanks in advance

-Ryan

[Nightbat]

Drop Z?

I'm guessing you put in thicker strings, like a set of 068-251

Have you checked if the strings aren't catching in the nut because of this? (I've had this happen on a guitar going from 009 to 010)

[Ryan_Kelly]

Drop Z?

I'm guessing you put in thicker strings, like a set of 068-251

Have you checked if the strings aren't catching in the nut because of this? (I've had this happen on a guitar going from 009 to 010)

not sure what you're getting at. my post said i play drop A. if you're making a joke it went completely over my head lol

[lefty]

What gauge strings are you using?

[Ryan_Kelly]

What gauge strings are you using?

I typically use 13-65. Sometimes 13-60

[Matt_B]

With strings that thick the nut needs to be cut/resized for them. I have no doubt that the strings are binding in the nut and that is causing your tuning issues. New tuning keys won't fix that. Even after the nut is fixed I wouldn't bother replacing the tuning machines. That ones that come on it are fine.

You should also block that bridge so it cannot move at all.

[Matt_B]

Also, bear in mind that no matter what you do to the guitar in question it's always going to be a $200. What I mean by that is in terms of resale any "upgrades" you make to it will not increase the value proportionately. As a matter of fact they won't increase the value at all.

[Nightbat]

Also, bear in mind that no matter what you do to the guitar in question it's always going to be a $200. What I mean by that is in terms of resale any "upgrades" you make to it will not increase the value proportionately. As a matter of fact they won't increase the value at all.

To learn about guitartech, these cheaper axes are great to work on, and probably a lot of them will end up becoming very decent players with high end upgrades (not to say they can't be good right out of the box)

But when it comes to 'getting rid' of it, they were, are, and always will be budget guitars and you end up getting more for selling the aftermarket parts loose than the value for any budget guitar
The only difference will be, that it's probably sell a lot quicker

[MartinBarre]

I have a guitar tuned to Drop B, with ultra heavy strings on it but I specifically picked one of my guitars with a locking nut. Not so I could lock it, but because locking nuts have wide-ass slots that don't need filing down!
Maybe you should tune your DK2 to drop A and use the JS22 for playing in standard tuning?

[MartinBarre]

Who plays in Drop A anyway? Not knocking it, just curious. I know Nile us A but never heard of any bands that use Drop A.

[Matt_B]

What you upgrade just make sure you can easily remove it. For example iIf you get new pickups, keep the old ones. If you sell the guitar, take out the new pickups, reinstall the old ones. Then you can sell the "new" pickups or install them in your next guitar.

[Mudlark]

I'd recommend taking your guitar to a repair shop and have them cut you a bone nut slotted for 13-65 gauge strings before changing the tuners. Keep the slots lubed with pencil lead shavings.
I changed the plastic nut on my DKMGT because the G string was binding and making a 'pinging' sound while tuning. The bone nut cured it immediately.

If you do wind up replacing the tuners, try a set of GOTOH SG381's. GOTOH makes the Jackson branded tuners on the higher end Jacksons and they should drop in with no need of drilling a new mounting screw on the back of the headstock.

I needed to replace a tuner on my USA Soloist and got a set of the standard Jackson branded tuners. They perform very well. No tuning problems at all.

[Ryan_Kelly]

Who plays in Drop A anyway? Not knocking it, just curious. I know Nile us A but never heard of any bands that use Drop A.

i listen to a lot of metal core. fit for a king, like moths to flames, issues, obey the brave, chunk no captain chunk, abandoned by bears, and some crown the empire use drop a sharp. also i don't ever play standard tuning. my dk2 pro is also setup and locked in drop a sharp but i also listen to a lot of bands that use other tunings like drop c drop b or drop a. retuning a floyd is a b*** and a half so i wanted another guitar that doesn't have a locking them so that i could easily move from drop b to drop a or into any other tunings i might be vibing on at the moment.

[Ryan_Kelly]

not trying to be a jerk or anything i truly appreciate the advice being given but i was just asking for brands or customer experiences. i understand that the nut will need to be filed to accommodate my strings but that being said i would still like to replace the nut with something a little nicer. this one is noticeably cheap and has pieces chipping away. also the tuning keys are definitely going to be replaced. they are not good at all. they have very strange responses to movement. i will make a half turn and the pitch won't change at all but then another half turn moves the pitch up almost an entire step. and even when the strings are tuned and taught, the tuning keys somehow find a way to loosen themselves so then even slight movements while playing can cause them to downturn on their own. i wanted to go with gotoh locking tuners but i don't know if they will fit this headstock. thats what i was asking

[Matt_B]

Get a bone, synthetic bone or graphite nut.

As for tuners, get Gotohs. They're the best bang for the buck and work fine. I'd still bet that the tuning problems you're experiencing are because of the nut and the tuners.