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Hipshot Machines - 3/8" or 1/2"?

Booty Shaman

Booty Shaman

Nov 1, 2016
672
817
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Northern California
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#1
Hello experienced luthiers - I am getting ready to make templates for my two bass builds and will be using hipshot ultra lite tuning machines and want to accurately place the holes on the headstock. I notice that hipshot offers a 3/8" & a 1/2" shaft on the tuners. What would be the reason to choose one size over the other if one is building from scratch? I am thinking I should go with the 3/8" because they will be lighter weight but wanted to ask more experienced luthiers before placing an order.
 
#3
I use the 3/8"D for most all my builds, but prefer the look of the 1/2"D for a Fender-style 4 in-line type headstock

I'd also consider the 1/2"D for cases where I was using a string thicker than .130" and there was potential for the string to have that larger diameter wrapped onto the tuner. There are a couple brands/materials of strings that tend for their core to break if you aren't careful when wrapping the thick part onto the tuner; a larger diameter tuner will help to reduce the potential for this kind of string breakage.
 
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#4
Booty Shaman said:
Hello experienced luthiers - I am getting ready to make templates for my two bass builds and will be using hipshot ultra lite tuning machines and want to accurately place the holes on the headstock. I notice that hipshot offers a 3/8" & a 1/2" shaft on the tuners. What would be the reason to choose one size over the other if one is building from scratch? I am thinking I should go with the 3/8" because they will be lighter weight but wanted to ask more experienced luthiers before placing an order.
Click to expand...

Weight difference is probably negligible. The 3/8" ones are there for smaller headstocks, but it's not a dramatic difference. I spend a lot of time on my headstock designs to make sure it's a straight pull and all the strings are parallel off the nut to the tuners. Just remember that your center position on the tuner is not the same as where the string wraps around the outside of the post, so you'll want to carefully offset your placements based on whichever measurement you decide to install.
 
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#5
Lonnybass said:
Weight difference is probably negligible. The 3/8" ones are there for smaller headstocks, but it's not a dramatic difference. I spend a lot of time on my headstock designs to make sure it's a straight pull and all the strings are parallel off the nut to the tuners. Just remember that your center position on the tuner is not the same as where the string wraps around the outside of the post, so you'll want to carefully offset your placements based on whichever measurement you decide to install.
Click to expand...
Thank you for this advice. Do you wait to drill the holes in the headstock until after you have installed the nut?
 
#7
I use both, depending on the headstock. Fender and Fender style headstocks, I go with 1/2", because it looks "right" to my eye. Rickenbacker and Rickenbacker headstock, I use 3/8", again because it looks right. So yeah, basically what those guys said ^

I'll add, that I actually prefer the 1/2". I feel that the string winds better on it because of the larger diameter. I feel like it's straining on a 3/8". Though I've never had issues with either.
 
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#8
I actually drill out the holes before the nut - but I use a template to pre-mark the center points with a pencil dot on the headstock. After that, I will use the nut width and centerline as a guide, and draw each string line from the nut slot up the headstock. This way I can make sure everything measures out perfectly straight and parallel, and the center points are appropriately offset. It's a bit more planning work, but the end result really pays off as a nice detail. I'll see if I can dig out a few relevant build pics to show you. In the meantime here's some shots after.
 
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#10
I recently completed a bass and was faced with the same problem of choosing between 3/8" and 1/2" Hipshots.
I went with the 1/2", even though I used a minimalist headstock design and don't regret it. I have another one to do for a friend and thought about going with the 3/8", but truthfully, the 1/2" Hipshots are just so smooth and effortless that I'm going to repeat the same size.
Here's the topic if you're interested; there are tons of build tips and details, and the tuners are shown at photo #117.
30” Scale Compact Semi-acoustic Fretless Bass Build
 
#12
Lonnybass said:
Weight difference is probably negligible. The 3/8" ones are there for smaller headstocks, but it's not a dramatic difference.
...
Click to expand...
The best numbers I've found so far are:

Hipshot HB6Y Ultralite Y Key with ½” dia 49 g
Hipshot HB6Y Ultralite Y Key with 3/8” dia 40 g
Hipshot HB6C Ultralite Clover Key with ½” dia 57 g
Hipshot HB6C Ultralite Clover Key with 3/8” dia 47 g

So, about 9-10 g per key, or 45-50 g (~ 1.5–1.75 oz) for a 5-stringer. Not a ton of difference if you're comparing to a 100-123 g stock Fender key, but, not insignificant either.
 

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