The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #1

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    Just received a nice used Eastman archtop. But a problem: It seems that on a few of the tuners, the top insert part ("male" threaded) is not long enough to couple with the "female" collar from the back. it's BARELY not, because 3 of the 6 are secure. I noticed something wrong as I was inspecting the guitar, the top part with the nut was spinning freely. So I removed the strings and sure enough, 3 of the 6 front threaded nuts just fell out. I have looked at a whole bunch of these guitars, and read Eastman's specs,and there's no reason to believe they they are anything but the original Gotoh tuners, and there are no signs of a tuner change. However, there is a bit of finish damage around the tuners on the headstock face, as if they had to be really pressed down hard to make coupling contact. The guitar is an Eastman archtop. It's as if the headstock is just a mm thicker than the tuners, or the tuners are not long enough for the headstock. Has anyone had any similar experience?
    Last edited by Woody Sound; 02-19-2020 at 03:27 PM.

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  3. #2

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    Contact Eastman they have very good support! They sent me, at no charge, mounting screws for an Eastman tailpiece that I bought on eBay. It wasn't even going on an Eastman guitar. I now have a new Eastman 7 string.

  4. #3

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    Are the threads stripped?

  5. #4
    Quote Originally Posted by Geunther
    Are the threads stripped?
    Nope, they thread just fine off of the guitar. It's as if either the bushings or collars are just slightly too short to reach each other through the headstock. The headstock is about 5/8" thick, and that's almost the same distance needed for the bushing to just meet the collar, so as I said, it's very close, they're just barely not meeting. As best I can find, they appear to be Gotoh gold w/ ebony buttons SG360-EN01GG.

    Eastman with a problem-eastman-tuner-jpg
    Last edited by Woody Sound; 02-20-2020 at 10:24 AM.

  6. #5

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    Are you sure they are Gotohs? I've had two Eastman guitars with "Chotohs".
    And it was not at all obvious that they were copies.

  7. #6
    Positively Gotoh, but thanks for checking. The model is SG360-EN01GG. It's possible that the model number suffix is unique to Eastman. Here is a pic of mine, and also two pics from the web on a Pisano model.

    Eastman with a problem-eastman-tuner-6-jpg
    Eastman with a problem-eastman-tuner-9-jpgEastman with a problem-eastman-tuner-8-jpg

  8. #7

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    Many guitars has the thickness of the headstock taper towards the top. That means that the tuners for the E strings need longer bushings than the D and G strings. I have a guitar which tapers so much and has a headstock thickness towards the nut so that the low E string can barely find room for itself on the tuner. Luckily the guitar is equipped with Grover Imperials which has old fashioned pressed in top bushings and not screw in bushings like this Gotoh. Now that I think about it, maybe the same problem was the reason my luthier installed Imperials and not Rotomatics with Imperial buttons, which I had suggested in my specs. In his book, Bob Benedetto calls this headstock taper something like a nice touch, but I can't see the practical functionality of it, while I can see disadvantages as in this case.

    Whatever, if the bushings are too short, they are too short, period. If Eastman can't/won't supply tuners with longer bushings, have them replaced yourself with another model/brand of tuners which has the sufficient length. It may even be possible to find some which is a perfect drop in, so no new screw holes have to be drilled. Be sure to check out if they fit, before paying for them. Not only the bushing length has to fit but the diameter of the tuners also has to fit the size of the hole in the headstock. If it's to narrow, it can be reamed out to fit, which is not too hard, but the reverse is not possible without first plugging the holes and drilling new ones. That is surely a luthier job.

  9. #8
    Found some longer bushings in my parts drawer, problem solved. But it still annoys me that Eastman would do that. Real lack of attention. I wrote them about it and they didn't even answer.

  10. #9

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    Quote Originally Posted by Longways to Go
    Are you sure they are Gotohs? I've had two Eastman guitars with "Chotohs".
    And it was not at all obvious that they were copies.
    Which models used "Chotohs"? Were they clearly marked "Chotoh"? I have seen "Ping" tuners on several models.

  11. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by DanielleOM
    Which models used "Chotohs"? Were they clearly marked "Chotoh"? I have seen "Ping" tuners on several models.
    yeah, that's what I was thinking of. My bad.

  12. #11

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    I don't know anything about their tuners, but Ping golf clubs are, or at least used to be, rather highly regarded.

  13. #12

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    Glad to hear that got sorted. Nice parts drawer!

    With the talk about Eastman tuners I thought I'd mention my 2007 Pisano 880 has Schallers. According to current specs they still use Schaller E-M6Ga on the model. I see by the neck wood and headstock yours is a diff Pisano model. Hope you dig it like I do mine.

  14. #13

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    My Eastman is pretty tight that way... on the low E string two wraps is the most you can do.
    Attached Images Attached Images Eastman with a problem-20200222_105235-jpg