Clover leaf rattle

[Shakin-Slim]

Hi there.

I have spent the last day trying to sort out what I thought was a truss rod rattle. I'm over the moon to discover it is not. I'm sure we all know how frustrating it can be trying to locate a rattle. Turns out is in the clover leaf part of my tuning key. The clover leaf itself is rattling back and forth in the 2 stems on either side of it that it sits in. This is on a Japanese P bass copy. Any idea how to fix it? At the moment I'm trying to stuff some card down in there. If that doesn't work, any other ideas?

Cheers
Shaun

[Lesfunk]

you could get some better machines

[Shakin-Slim]

Why is that always the first response? If I had dough I wouldn't have bought a cheap bass. Cheers anyway

[Marton]

You can try put some glue on it, I've seen a cheap bass with some on it. Or you could change the tuners. Seriously, it's a cheap mod, you'll be glad you've done it.

[Lesfunk]

Originally Posted by Shakin-Slim

Why is that always the first response?Cheers anyway

Sorry, It's just the most logical response. You could buy a single machine to replace the rattling one pretty cheap.
Those cheap tuners do sometimes rattle, especially on an older well used bass.
I suppose if everything is tight, rubber band the clover leaf tuner to the string peg on the front of the head stock. Just to hold it still. ??

[Cannabass]

yeah rubber band works until you can get a new one. or if you think you got the skills take it apart and fix the thing, but you dont have to get snappy

[tangentmusic]

If you take the tuner apart, there is a thin strip of metal that causes the tension when turning the tuner. slightly bend that piece of metal in the same direction that it's already bent. It should cause the tuner to tighten up when re-assembled, hopefully eliminating the rattle.

[Shakin-Slim]

Didn't mean to come across as snappy. Sorry guys. Thanks for all the responses. I've got some card in the gap at the moment which is helping. I was thinking glue might be a good way to go. If not I'll look at the price of a new tuner. I just tend to go the "fix it yourself" route, and only buy stuff when all else fails. Cheers for the help.

Slim

[JLS]

Originally Posted by Shakin-Slim

Hi there.

I have spent the last day trying to sort out what I thought was a truss rod rattle. I'm over the moon to discover it is not. I'm sure we all know how frustrating it can be trying to locate a rattle. Turns out is in the clover leaf part of my tuning key. The clover leaf itself is rattling back and forth in the 2 stems on either side of it that it sits in. This is on a Japanese P bass copy. Any idea how to fix it? At the moment I'm trying to stuff some card down in there. If that doesn't work, any other ideas?

Cheers
Shaun

I JUST had to find a mystery rattle on a customer's bass, and that's what it was! I clamped the shaft with a Kant-twist clamp, and wicked superglue into the joint--shut it right up.
It was so bad, I'd thought it was the dreaded bad Squier Affinity trussrod issue.