Wilkinson vintage bass tuners!

They are fine tuners for the price. IMHO they are zero upgrade over CV tuners. I have two cv basses and I find the tuners to be very good as is; certainly as good as the old Schallers on my 1975 G3 and my 1962 Jazz.

I put vintage style Hipshots on my VMJ because the chrome was flaking off and I wanted black hardware. I don't consider them that much of an improvement as far as functionality is concerned but they are lighter and look great. Also $120 all in. Eek.

The wilkinson tuners will be heavy with durable plating. But they have a good reputation for very good quality and are made by JinHo in Korea. The machining is top notch with all JinHo products I have used. I have not used that specific tuner but have used two JinHo branded types and really loved them.

Now, why do you think that a fifty dollar bill is going to improve over the stock CV tuners?

 

bassman74 I've had those and they're solid, but no less/more solid than the stock CV tuners (as 96tbird mentioned). That said, if you're going for a particular look, go ahead and get them. Just so you don't overpay, GuitarFetish.com has them in stock and they're on sale for Boxing Day. Check them for a quick price comparison.

 

Unless a tuner is being replaced due to damage to keep the set uniform, in my opinion changing tuners without spending the money to get a definite upgrade in performance, as with Hipshot, Schaller or Gotoh, is a waste of money.

 

Then you loosen the Phillips bolt in the back of the large spur gear; smooth and silky.

You can also remove the gear and if there's not a nylon washer there, cut a washer from a TROPICANA juice jug to smooth the ride. Tropicana plastic is very tough and slippy. Great. Easy. Done.

Look fellas, as with any mechanism you have to adjust things once in a while. I don't get why everyone gets so upset about it but they do. Maybe it's the constant Windows updates causing 'puter downtime that is robbing people of patience.

 

Gotoh products are excellent however, what you have there are vintage Kluson style clones. Instead of the plate being bent to form hoops for the worm gear shaft, the Gotoh has flat plate with seperate bent hoops that have tangs that pass through the plate and are spit welded or bent in the back. Usually this type requres recesses in the wood to allow for the tangs.

Look here to see. https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-AlP27dCNBRg/T9GaVhuVzfI/AAAAAAAAEAU/u7dke9hx1o4/s800/DSCN1600.JPG

 

These Wilkinsons are basically a cross between the in-house Fender heads from 1967-1976 (the length of the key stem) to the backplate and worm adaptability of the 70s Schallers (1977 to 1982). They were designed to be a drop-in replacement for the 1967-1982 Fender headstocks.

I'm currently working my way to converting the clover leafs into lollipops (my brother did the hard work with a dremel) for a later build I will call "Memories of 1968" Jazz bass. Now I need to find a decent bound lefty neck with block inlays...

 

Here's your neck in maple:
EDEN Paddle Bass Neck Maple/Maple Right/Lefty Block Inlay Unfinished

I don't see it in ebony right now, must be out of stock.

 

I have always been impressed with Wilkinson hardware. Their quality excedes their price

 

I'll write to them. They sometimes will make a batch of necks upon request.