Tuning Machines...

[Empty Pockets]

Weeell I was puttin the tuners (Gotohs) on my new Warmoth neck the other day and the strangest thing happened...when I screwed in the tiny little screw on one of 'em, half of it stuck to the screwdriver and the other half stayed embedded in the headstock :smack:

Is there anything I can do about this? I've removed screws before but never a screw THIS small from a piece of wood I care THIS much about, hahaha...

Will any harm come from just leaving it and acting like the machine is completely installed?

 

[Pandemonium]

Re: Tuning Machines...

Short of drilling it out I don't know. I always use soap on wood screws and tighten very carefully to avoid that.

 

[Hellion]

Re: Tuning Machines...

Drill it out. Soap the replacement. Sometimes they break.

 

[casblah]

Re: Tuning Machines...

The only thing about drilling it out is , you'll almost always end up with a larger hole than when you started. But it seems like the only way out for you. That sucks man, sorry about your luck.

 

[Benjy_26]

Re: Tuning Machines...

Try a screw extractor. It might take a while to get it out, but if you're leary of drilling, it might be worht a try.

 

[Pandemonium]

Re: Tuning Machines...

Yeah, they go down to 5/64ths if that's not too big.

 

[STRATDELUXER97]

Re: Tuning Machines...

Xander...You may have to actually drill around or aside of the broken screw,remove it,once the screw is removed from the maple neck...You may have to drill the hole just big enough to glue a peice of hardwood dowel back into the headstock...Sand the dowel flush after it's good and dry and then rescrew your tuner screws "carefully" back into the hard maple..Use either wax or soap..Also be sure to drill the hole before you try screwing into the maple..Use a bit 1 size smaller in diameter than the tuner screw and don't drill the full length of the screw so that the screw gets a nice bite right at the end of it's travel...Do whatever you can to hide the new dowel rod area or don't worry about it(It's on the back of the neck)...

John

 

[Empty Pockets]

Re: Tuning Machines...

Err that sounds like so much work, good thing I'm in shop class now...i'll probably try drilling it out before I do the dowel thing, hahahaha...

-X

 

[Pandemonium]

Re: Tuning Machines...

Use a drill press if you have access to one.

 

[Pandemonium]

Re: Tuning Machines...

Hey Empty pockets, I was just browsing over at Stew-Mac and they have screw extractors for small guitar screws, $18.53 for a set of 3. Good luck.

 

[Empty Pockets]

Re: Tuning Machines...

!!! You might've saved my neck, or at least my headstock...

Thanks for all the advice and stuff fellas...

-X