Luke II tuning stability????

[rinkydinkron]

What are the easiest and most obvious improvements to make to my Luke to improve its tuning stability?
Is it normal for a Luke to go out of tune when bending strings and using the tremelo?
For such an expensive guitar (here in the UK anyway) i am extremely dissapointed with it's inability to stay in tune for any length of time.

 

[ebb soul]

Well, it certainly should be an exceptionally stable guitar.
My Silhouette hardly ever goes out of tune, and when it does, a quick extra trem yank unsticks it.
The most stable guitars I'd ever played.

Some sort of nut lube/graphite may help.
One wonders what size set of strings you use?
How the trem is angled to the body, and ammount of springs?
Also, you may have a bad slot in the nut, perhaps.
Again, yet to see such a flaw on a musicman....
One of those things you have to see to know.

 

[kbaim]

Good set up, and tightening the trem claw and having the bridge lay flat instead of floating has improved it for me...but I don't use the whammy.


KEITH

 

[rinkydinkron]

I use 10's.
It has 3 springs.
I recently had it set up and serviced at an Ernie Ball endorsed Music shop in Glasgow UK and the tech set up the trem slightly higher at the 6th string and lower at the 1st as he said if i wanted it floating it would'nt lie paralell to the body for some reason.
Prior to that the bridge was fixed.

 

[kbaim]

The bridge was higher? or the saddle was higher?

There's a few guys here that are good repair guys (i'm not one) that will probably post some suggestions.

 

[rinkydinkron]

The bridge.

 

[Dodgeball]

Hey,

I don't see any reason at all why the bridge should lie higher one side than the other but I'm open to correction on this.

However if you're using 10's that may be the problem. The Luke is set up for 9's and consequently the nut is cut for 9's. If you're using 10's it's likely the strings will be sticking in the nutslots. Either go back to 9's or have the nut re-cut for 10's I guess.

I'm assuming of course that you have thoroughly streched out the strings.

Good luck bro.

 

[beej]

I have to say I've been really impressed with the tuning stability of the MM tremelos- my Axis SS and Luke rarely go out of tune, even when using the bar like mad.

My first guess (aside from making sure that the tuners are locked properly and the strings aren't wound around the posts) would be to check the nut. Make sure the grooves are smooth and the strings aren't being grabbed by a bur or anything. Tommy in Delaware recommended "Nut Sauce", a lube for the nut. Others have suggested rubbing a pencil in the grooves to leave some graphite there. I would certainly try one of these to see, as it's probably the likely candidate.

 

[Ali]

Mine needs a mild tuning tweak once every couple hours of solid play!!!

It's still set up on 9s though but the trem is fully floating as it should be.

Sounds like a nut problem as mentioned.

 

[jongitarz]

I use 10's.
It has 3 springs.
I recently had it set up and serviced at an Ernie Ball endorsed Music shop in Glasgow UK and the tech set up the trem slightly higher at the 6th string and lower at the 1st as he said if i wanted it floating it would'nt lie paralell to the body for some reason.
Prior to that the bridge was fixed.

I would try another tech. I can't see any reason that the bridge should not be level. Floating trems are touchy and harder to set up , but it should stay in tune. Keep in mind, that a non floating trem will return to exactly the same spot, because it rests on the body. The only thing that makes the floating trem return is the tension of the strings, and springs, and is not as exact.

I think 3 springs is 1 too many even with 10's

 

[Raz]

I would try another tech. I can't see any reason that the bridge should not be level. Floating trems are touchy and harder to set up , but it should stay in tune. Keep in mind, that a non floating trem will return to exactly the same spot, because it rests on the body. The only thing that makes the floating trem return is the tension of the strings, and springs, and is not as exact.

I think 3 springs is 1 too many even with 10's

Don't they come like that from the factory, even with 9's?

 

[jongitarz]

Nope. The Lukes and Axis come with 2 springs

 

[rinkydinkron]

When the tech in Glasgow set it up he changed the strings to 10's and i presume he saw to the nut at the same time.
I don't think it's the nut that's the problem as the strings don't seem to be obstructed in any way and there is no "clicking" sound from the strings catching.
My feeling is the problem is either "saddle" or "bridge position" related.
I think the tech said that the bridge was higher at the 6th string to prevent the back of the bridge from hitting the body inside the cavity particularly when raising notes.
To tell the truth i'm totally "pissed off" with all this hassle to the extent that i think i'll return the bridge to the parallel position as i rarely use the trem anyway and from what jonigitarz says it should definately help with tuning stability.

 

[jongitarz]

Don't give up yet!! Look in the FAQ section here. There is good info on setting up your Luke. I think everybody should learn to do a set up on their own guitars. Good Luck with it!

 

[kbaim]

Also, and this is a big reason why floating trems have their detractors, if you rest your hand on the bridge to do any muting, strings tend to go sharp with the pressure the hand resting on the bridge creates.

Dat don't sound too good.

 

[SteveB]

We've seen a few threads concerning setups this week. I hope that this will not escape Big Poppa's attention, and he'll see the wisdom of my online 'setup video' section for the web site.

The FAQ's on setup are great, but sometimes it's just nicer to have a visual reference. Especially when making points about neck relief, string height, etc.

Besides, I don't think any other guitar manufacturers have such a thing online, so it would be unique. I don't think it needs to be a big-budget thing. A decent Mini-DV camcorder mounted on a tripod could do the job.. film it, then xfer to PC via USB or firewire cable, a little editing, and it's ready for the web.

The most expensive aspect would be Jon's time. Maybe he could receive a perk like not having to wait in the normal processing queue to receive his rosewood axis?

 

[beej]

> The FAQ's on setup are great, but sometimes it's just nicer to have a visual
> reference.

Kinda off-topic, but Dan Erlewine has some DVDs on seting up/repairing your guitar that you can order off the Stewmac site. (Got 'em as a present, but haven't had a chance to watch them yet.) Might be worth a look for anyone here who wants to learn more.

> I don't think it's the nut that's the problem as the strings don't seem to be
> obstructed in any way and there is no "clicking" sound from the strings catching.

I'd still suggest lubing the nut with "sauce" or graphite. Costs very little and could really make a difference. Besides, I don't think you're likely to hear any noise from the nut, even if there's a bit of friction on the strings.

For fun, why not put in another spring or two in the trem to pull it flush? Then re-tune and see if you have the same problem when depressing the bar. If there's no improvement then you can rule out having to set up the guitar again (you just have to pull out the springs again, re-tune, and you're back to where you were).

 

[rinkydinkron]

I tried taking one spring out but the bridge ended up at an angle and in turn the action became too high and the tremelo resting position too low so i put the spring back in and it's definately better.
Bear in mind the bridge angle is slight so i guess for the time being it's the best of my options at least until i see a guitar tech next.
Beej,i'll lube the nut with graphite as i do with my Levinson Blade and see if that helps any,there's nothing to loss in trying is there?

 

[beej]

> there's nothing to loss in trying is there?

Nope- nothing to loose. Hopefully that'll help! Good luck.