tuning

[Buslady]

Ok now that I have the nut clamps for my Dinky DKMG, how do you tune? I noticed it sharpens when you tighten them, and you can't really tune with them tight...soooo....???

[Nimitz]

Get your guitar tuned up with them off then put them on and adjust with your fine tuners.

[rebar71]

tighten the lock nuts down enough for them to make the tuning go sharp - but leave them just loose enough to still be able to tune from the head stock. you should be able to do this. tune again, then give them the final lock-down. there may still be some ajustment to be done with the fine tuners.

my low E does this real bad and this is how I handle it.

[Trussrod]

tighten the lock nuts down enough for them to make the tuning go sharp - but leave them just loose enough to still be able to tune from the head stock. you should be able to do this. tune again, then give them the final lock-down. there may still be some ajustment to be done with the fine tuners.

my low E does this real bad and this is how I handle it.

The HS is tilted so that you can use this method to tune the guitar.

[Buslady]

tighten the lock nuts down enough for them to make the tuning go sharp - but leave them just loose enough to still be able to tune from the head stock. you should be able to do this. tune again, then give them the final lock-down. there may still be some ajustment to be done with the fine tuners.

my low E does this real bad and this is how I handle it.

I'll try this. My E goes nuts too. The others aren't so bad.

[DalyTek]

My Jackson Kelly (KE3) suffers from the thicker strings going sharp when the clamps are tightened too. I have an ESP that has a string retainer bar behind the nut that holds the strings down and this problem doesn't exist on that guitar.

They say that Jacksons have a headstock that is more tilted back so the retainer bar isn't necessary, but the headstock angle is about identical on my ESP and my KE3 so I'm not sure how true that theory is.

I tune the top strings on my KE3 just a little flat so they come up close to pitch when the locks are tightened, then use the fine tuners. I will have to try rebar71's method next string change and see if I can pull that off. Theoretically, it sounds like it should work..although it would seem that would wear grooves into the bottoms of the nut locks from the string friction.

[Buslady]

You all have my gratitude. I tuned, tightened the clamps then used the fine tuners and bam...tuned! And it's holding tune much better.

I wondered why there's no retainer when so many others have it.

[Nimitz]

See that wasn't so hard...

[MakeAJazzNoiseHere]

I always make sure to leave plenty of "down" travel on the lower string fine tuners, but the problem can be mostly avoided if you wrap enough extra wire on the tuning peg to get it closer to the bottom (about 3 winds on the low e) and don't "top wrap" - all the winds go below the hole.

I end up less than a half-step sharp on the low E and the A is usually right on.

[Nimitz]

I get the E string fine tuner setup almost all the way down so that I can get to drop D with the fine tuner... takes some practice but all in all not really that hard.

[Buslady]

my E fine tuner i actually had to screw up, not down...

[Nimitz]

Down? Out?

Ok what I meant was tune the E with the nut lock loose.. and have the fine tuner almost all the way tight (righty tighty) then you can loosen or turn to the left to drop it into D...

or whatever...

[MakeAJazzNoiseHere]

Yeah, "down" means up.

Don't eat the brown acid!