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Hipshot Ultralight VS. Gotoh Res-O-Lite tuners

#41
After reading this post, I think I would like to get the Gotoh resolites. I had a maybe dumb question, but what is the difference between the reverse and the non reverse? I'm assuming you turn them different ways to tune, but does it really make a difference aside from preference?

Also which one will fit my American Fender jazz?
the GB528 or GB640?
 
#43
Ahh, that makes sense about the reverse.

So people would get the reverse kind if they just like how the old tuners tuned huh?

I think I'll go for the non-reverse, since that's just what I'm used to!

If I get the Gotoh's for my Jbass, I have to use screws to mount them on right?
I've never done any kind of modding on my bass before, so I'm sort of worried about drilling a screw in my head.
Any tips, suggestions?
 
#45
I have a Made in USA J bass. When I looked up the serial number, it said it was made from 2004-2005.

I measured the peg hole and it is 11/16 inches.
Next to each peg hole are two little holes where tiny metal dowels on the tuner go in to secure the tuner.

Since the Peg hole is 11/16, I thought the GB640 would be the one I want, but it has four screw holes on the tuner, so I thought I would have to drill holes in it.......
 
#46
The vintage style bushings require an 11/16" dia. bore in your headstock, so sounds like you're good to go there.

I would also measure and confirm that the bores are 1-7/8" apart, just to be sure. If for some reason they're much closer together than that, the new tuners won't fit.

You will be drilling new holes (16) for the new mounting screws. It's not too difficult. Shoot me a PM and I can hook you up with a template for drilling the mounting screws if you'd like.
 
#47
Question: Does anybody know if the GB640 machine heads are offered in chrome (not nickel) finish? I know that nickel is the "vintage correct" finish, but when I finally get around to building a parts bass I would like to match the tuners to the chrome 201. [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] it seems that the finishes offered are N (nickel), GG (gold), CK (black), XN (X-finish nickel I assume), XC ( I hope that stands for X-finish chrome) and XG (X-finish gold).

Getting hold of anything other than the reverse wind tuners in nickel is pretty difficult it seems... :atoz:
 
#49
KingRazor said:
So even though the GB528s are part of the "res-o-lite" series, they weigh in at 59 grams?

That makes them a hair heavier than the hipshot clover leaf models.

Obviously the GB350s are light but they aren't the standard Fender shape. So they can't be compared to clover head tuners.
Click to expand...

I was thinking all weekend about this and why the Gotoh clover-style tuners would be preferred if they're a bit harder to get, slightly more expensive, and weight a bit more. Then I remembered what the other big difference was, weight-aside:

Hipshot does not have the ability to do shiny chrome, gold, or black on their ultra-lite series tuners. They are actually a baked on satin paint. Gotoh, on the other hand, does the shiny metal stuff, so the chrome Gotohs will look more stock than the silver Hipshots.
 
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#50
FunkMetalBass said:
I was thinking all weekend about this and why the Gotoh clover-style tuners would be preferred if they're a bit harder to get, slightly more expensive, and weight a bit more. Then I remembered what the other big difference was, weight-aside:

Hipshot does not have the ability to do shiny chrome, gold, or black on their ultra-lite series tuners. They are actually a baked on satin paint. Gotoh, on the other hand, does the shiny metal stuff, so the chrome Gotohs will look more stock than the silver Hipshots.
Click to expand...

That, and an even bigger issue: Gotho res-o-lites come in 11/16" size. That's standard Fender size.

Hipshot ultralites only come in 3/8" or 1/2" size and would be too small for a lot of basses, I believe.
 
#53
KingRazor said:
That, and an even bigger issue: Gotho res-o-lites come in 11/16" size. That's standard Fender size.

Hipshot ultralites only come in 3/8" or 1/2" size and would be too small for a lot of basses, I believe.
Click to expand...

If memory serves, the inner diameter of the bushing on a Fender bass is 9/16" (~1/2"), correct?

Also, many non-Fender basses that use more compact headstock styles (Spector, Ibanez), use the 3/8" size.
 
#54
ErikP.Bass said:
Wait.
So I looked into this a bit more and found the below. The Hipshot Ultralite HB6C with 1/2" posts are 57g each and the Gotoh Res-o-lite GB640's are 66.9g each. There's the 10g difference. This doesn't seem to be a fair comparison IMO as it looks like the GB640's should really be matched up against the HB3's, the weight of which I couldn't find anywhere.
Click to expand...

I think you have a good point re: comparison of GB640 to Hipshot HB3, so I contacted Hipshot about the weight of that tuner. Their response:

"The HB3 tuner weighs about 85g or 3.0oz. This is for the tuner, bushing and the four mounting screws."

So, the next question is . . . does the GB640's published weight of 66.9g include the bushing and four screws?
 
#59
FunkMetalBass said:
They theoretically shouldn't be buzzing, but if they're loose, it could be an issue. Cut a strip of a business card and wrap it around the tuner, then put it back into the bushing. That ~1/16" should fill the gap and give a nice snug fit.
Click to expand...

I was surprised, they would literally fall out of the holes. I tried masking tape and some regular paper but it didn't work too well. I'll have to try a business card. Thinking I may also want to try some Hipshot Ultralites.
 
#60
ErikP.Bass said:
I was surprised, they would literally fall out of the holes. I tried masking tape and some regular paper but it didn't work too well. I'll have to try a business card. Thinking I may also want to try some Hipshot Ultralites.
Click to expand...

I received my first two sets of Res-O-Lites that had undersize bushings, as well. They came direct from Gotoh, early in their production (couldn't get them stateside very easily at that point).
The most recent set I ordered from Mojo (two months ago) had proper sized bushings.
In your case, I'd just reuse the original RW bushings and you're good to go.
 

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