Metal Friction Tuners - Newbie Question

[Adam]

Rather than continue to hijack the "Sousa for Banjo" thread I thought it best to post this question in a new discussion.

The Morrison banjo has arrived and I've unpacked it and played around with it for a few minutes before needing to go back to work. I tuned it up to eAEG#B (which was only a half step up or so from where it was during shipping - so I'm guessing Bernunzio probably had it tuned up to G in their shop but who knows). Anyway, I think it sounds great in the A tuning. One problem was that the fifth string did slip a little and I noticed the tuning peg was a little loose. If this had happened with one of my banjos with violin style friction pegs I would've simply pushed the peg into the neck a little more in order for it to hold better. But obviously the metal tuners don't push in ... They do have small screws on top of them, however, and I tightened that a little and it did seem to hold better.

Is this the right thing to do if the tuning peg is slipping with metal friction tuners?

Or is there something more drastic going on here - like the tuning peg is damaged?

Any advice/thoughts are appreciated ... Like I said it is a newbie question. :)

I've attached some picks of the 5th string peg just so you can see what I'm talking about (apologies for the blurriness of the pics - I was rushing to get back to work.)

Thanks again.
Best,
Adam

[Adam]

Found this on the Banjo Hangout.

Still, any thoughts you good folks have are welcome and appreciated.

Thanks,
Adam

[Joel Hooks]

From the photos you attached it looks like it is a modern make replacement peg.

Yes, you tighten the screw, that increases the friction to hold the peg. If you crack the button, the replacements available from banjo part suppliers will fit (sometimes they need a bit of work in the holes).

Are the other pegs modern replacements?

If not, sometimes they need a little help in the form of a washer between the button and the works.

I recently bought a 13" Stewart that has pre "champion" patent tuners (these are marked April 30. 1885, Grover's patent is May 8, 1888). I guess that one of the former owners got the grand idea to put a metal split lock washer between the button and the peg. The result was that every time the peg was turned it would scrape away a little of the celluloid button's bearing surface. I discovered this the first time I tuned up as a unpleasant scraping noise was made. To make a long story longer, I cut washers out of fiber automotive gasket material and they now work fine.

I also play in the same pitch, I rather like it.

[Adam]

Thanks for your comments, Joel.

I'm not sure if the other tuners are modern replacements, but I bet they probably are. (Pics attached.) Is there an obvious way to tell? I don't see any markings on them to indicate maker or year ...

Everything seems to be working alright now ... Tightening the screw on the 5th string tuner is keeping things in pitch.

Best,
Adam

[Paul Hostetter]

The most obvious way to tell it's recently made is the use of a Phillips head screw in the mechanism. This says, loud and clear, Made In Asia! But we judge by results. No matter where they are or were made, 1:1 tuners like this generally work great with nylon or gut strings, and not so bad with steel either.

There are techniques for correcting issues that affect how they function, but the usual thing is to simply tighten the tension screw (that's the one with the Phillips head).

[Adam]

Thanks, Paul. I found your comments on this topic from the Banjo Hangout to be really useful ...

All the tuners on my Morrison have ye olde Philips screw ... So they're modern. Fair enough. They do keep the strings well in tune now that the strings have relaxed a bit. I still have the banjo tuned low (eAEG#B) because when I have tried to tune it up to G tuning the tuners do slip a bit ... Tightening the screws resolves the slipping but it makes me nervous so I tune it back down low! Silly of me, I'm sure, but I'm new to this style of tuner and the banjo is new to me so caution prevails ... For now anyway. :)

Thanks again for you comment.

Best regards,
Adam