Double Bass Rattling D String Tuner on half size Chinese Student

[StyleOverShow]

So I bought a Chinese half size upright from a friend who accidentally bought three at an online auction. It came with a bag, bow, nylon strings, all for less than $50 bucks.

Took it to Gary Chen of Stein on Vine, across from local 47 in Hwd and he assessed it suggesting a new bridge, Spiro strings for around $500. He installed an Aubert Mirecourt (France) bridge and new steel strings and he sounded great playing it when I picked it up, so I added a new Underwood transducer pickup for $250. All in it's about $800 and the wisdom of these choices is the subject for another post.

Have been working on left and right hand for a month and I am starting to make some decent sounds on it, except certain tones make the headstock rattle.

I've narrowed it down to the D string tuner and a wide gap on the seating of the plate in photo below. You can see daylight between the plate and the headstock.

If I hold the peg and strike the resonating pitches, the rattle is gone, so I think I got it.

Now, how to fix this. Stuff toothpicks and Elmers glue into the gap, or, seriously, remove the tuner and fill the existing hole, and re drill, with the plate firmly against the headstock. As you may suspect, I am financially weary of this project, although it is a perfectly portable bass with a good enough tone, at least to my mostly EBG ears. So is this a DIY fix for an average tool handler?

Thanks for any advice.

 

[Don Kasper]

Try a heavy rubber band from the suspect tuner shaft to the tuner shaft on the same side of the "pegbox" ( that's what we call it over here on the DB side....).

 

[StyleOverShow]

Try a heavy rubber band from the suspect tuner shaft to the tuner shaft on the same side of the "pegbox" ( that's what we call it over here on the DB side....).

Pegbox...okay, thanks. So create tension on tuner shaft with dense pliable material, eg rubber band, and just wrap the tuner shaft one the "outside" of the pegbox. Much easier than my proposal.

 

[Don Kasper]

Yes - by pulling on the offending shaft, with the rubber band attached to the adjacent non-offending shaft, you may find that the rattle will be dampened/eliminated.
This, of course, is a short-term fix. At some point, a more permanent fix may be necessary. Or, just keep a supply of rubber bands handy.

 

[GretschWretch]

A loose screw through the spur gear also could cause this sort of rattle.

 

[StyleOverShow]

A loose screw through the spur gear also could cause this sort of rattle.

Thanks, checked them all out early on

 

[bassmanbrent]

You could also check to see if the tuning key is rattling where it attaches to the tuner shaft. I had a bass with a rattle and that turned out to be the problem. A little CA glue solved the problem.

 

[StyleOverShow]

Got a couple of medium width/strength rubber bands on it and it definitely helps. Don't expect much more improvement with heavier rb's.

The neck rumbles in my left hand.

 

[Mark Gollihur]

You could also check to see if the tuning key is rattling where it attaches to the tuner shaft. I had a bass with a rattle and that turned out to be the problem. A little CA glue solved the problem.

Yes, I had a bass that did this as well - to clarify, where the "ear" of the tuner is fitted into the shaft slot. I was able to wrap the tuner end with a thin piece of cardboard (to prevent scratching/scarring the metal) and squeeze tightly with a big set of pliers to get it to stop.

 

[bassmanbrent]

Yes, I had a bass that did this as well - to clarify, where the "ear" of the tuner is fitted into the shaft slot. I was able to wrap the tuner end with a thin piece of cardboard (to prevent scratching/scarring the metal) and squeeze tightly with a big set of pliers to get it to stop.

Thanks for the clarification Mark. If memory serves, I tried your method first, but ended up having to use CA glue as well to totally eliminate the problem. It's not something I'd do on my 'good' bass but it worked well.