Epiphone wildkat WILL NOT STAY IN TUNE!!!

[Fendert]

It is such a shame because I love this guitar and sounds great! but seriously the G and the D will not through one song! I got 11's on it right now.

 

any solutions besides getting rid of it?

[IamBurnout]

Get a new nut cut.

[jamdogg]

try some guitargrease on the nut. see if it helps.

[Orange Jackson]

I think a new black graphtech xl turq nut is the best bet.

http://www.graphtech.com/products.html?SubCategoryID=8

 

Test fit the new one to make sure it is the right height, if not, sand a little off the bottom and try again. Repeat, rinse, and enjoy. A few drops of super glue is good for putting them in.

 

 

You'll lightly tap the old nut out with a small mallet and some type of punch. You just need to break the glue seal.

 

They are a great product for tremed guitars that don't have a locking nut, i.e. most strats. Pretty easy operation.

[Fendert]

 

I think a new black graphtech xl turq nut is the best bet. http://www.graphtech.com/products.html?SubCategoryID=8 Test fit the new one to make sure it is the right height, if not, sand a little off the bottom and try again. Repeat, rinse, and enjoy. A few drops of super glue is good for putting them in. You'll lightly tap the old nut out with a small mallet and some type of punch. You just need to break the glue seal. They are a great product for tremed guitars that don't have a locking nut, i.e. most strats.

 

 

 

is that the issue? I just need a better nut?

[BoneNut]

 

is that the issue? I just need a better nut?

 

 

...or learn how to install strings and no, that isn't meant as a put down.

[Elias Graves]

I do know the cheap ass Grovers on my Alley Kat (especially the D and G) didn't hold worth a crap. Some 18:1 Grovers fixed the problem.

How much do you use the Bigsby?

 

EG

[Orange Jackson]

 

...or learn how to install strings and no, that isn't meant as a put down.

 

 

 

Well, ...that is a little strong imo. You can install them perfectly and if the nut has too much grab it will hose up the tuning every time, if you are using the trem. You can find this type of problem on guitars with locking tuners (no string wraps) and a standard type nut.

 

 

The graphtech nut is advertised as 500 times more slick then a standard nut. I have them on a few guitars that use to have standard type nuts, I think they're a world apart.

[IamBurnout]

Graphtech, ftw.

[jamdogg]

could be the tuners, could be the nut, could be string installation, could be a combo of any/all. my suggestion is to "rinse and repeat" doing the cheapest stuff first - changing strings, lube the nut, etc.

[bluesnapper]

90% of the time it's the nut... lube it up with something - shaved down pencil lead (graphite), chapstick or any of the 'proper' guitar products. If this doesn't work, a new nut might be the best solution - or you could get your current one recut..

 

But yeah, also make sure your strings are installed correctly. It took me ten years before I realised the difference this made!

[BoneNut]

 

Well, ...that is a little strong imo. You can install them perfectly and if the nut has too much grab it will hose up the tuning every time, if you are using the trem. You can find this type of problem on guitars with locking tuners (no string wraps) and a standard type nut. The graphtech nut is advertised as 500 times more slick then a standard nut. I have them on a few guitars that use to have standard type nuts, I think they're a world apart.

 

 

Not strong and as I mentioned, not a put down to the OP at all.

It's

[BryanMichael]

I'm always shocked that people will spend $400 on a guitar, and won't spend $80 on a good tech that can cut a good nut and fix the bridge and set the guitar up properly. Fixes 99.9% of all problems, plus they will TELL you that "hey! The B string tends to be sharp after the 7th fret..." or other such things.

 

[Snowcow]

S - T - R - E - T - C - H those strings.

[DaveAronow]

...or learn how to install strings and no, that isn't meant as a put down.

 

That was my second question after any nut binding problems....... How are you installing your strings?

 

Tuners, contrary to popular belief do not slip unless they are spinning inside the wood itself, or unless there is some obvious mechanical malfunctions with them such as being severely stripped.

 

The gear mechanism simply doesnt allow for slippage. You can litterally get a pair of vicegrips and try to twist a tuner gear into slipping and all you are going to do is spin the tuner in the wood.

 

The one thing a tuner CAN do to cause tuning issues, is be loose in the gears as ijn when there is a little play between the gears enabling you to move the tuner back and forth a little before the geqar catches, but even then, it will eventually catch and wont detune on its own if you tune UP to pitch instead of going sharp and tuning down. This is one reason among others tuning up to pitch is always reccomended as opposed to bringing the pitch sharp and tuning down.

 

"Upgrading" to new tuners as a standard mod to low end guitars or any guitar for that matter, is the single biggest waste of money I see people consistantly making. Change them for whatever reason you like. For aesthetics, for "mojo", or if you think it will help with a sale, but most likely your original ones, even crappy ones still work fine.

 

Upgrading tuners for 'tuning stability is the number one biggest waste of money and non neccessary mod I see people doing regularly.

 

The next question I would ask is what kind of temperature and humidity swings do you have in the area your guitar lives, because some guitars are way more sensitive and succeptible to instability than others and even small changes will cause tuning issues.

 

Third question would be, do you have anyone in your house that likes to fuck with you, or any ghosts or anything?

[Orange Jackson]

 

The real answer is haveing a nut proporly cut.

 

 

 

My take is that, even a properly cut nut made out of bone, or Cyclovac, is not as stable as tusq xl (on a guitar with a trem system). The difference is short term relative stability vs. long term consistent stability.

 

It is not so much about the nut slots, though that is an issue, but more about the actual material the nut is made from that is causing friction on the string. When you push the trem arm down it makes slacked strings, when you let up, some of that slack gets caught behind the nut, and so it knocks you out of tune (and so the Floyd Rose system was created). That is your biggest culprit with a trem system anyway, and tusq xl nuts solve that particular problem to a very high degree.

 

 

 

BTW, I see that they are making Xl nuts in white now, that's cool.

[BoneNut]

Here you go. I found this on the Epiphone forums. There seems to be quite a few threads about so you may want to sign up.

 

http://forums.epiphone.com/default.aspx?g=posts&t=15775

[docjeffrey]

Certain types of Bigsby's pull strings unevenly and then don't return them to pitch. The B6 is the worst offender because it doesn't anchor to the top of the guitar. If the hinge has any lateral play at all, you're screwed. The B5 and B7 are a bit more stable because they are coupled to the top of the guitar.

 

Your Wildkat should return to pitch if the bridge, nut and the moving parts of the Bigsby are properly lubed. I use old fashioned Vaseline on my two Gretches with Bigsbys. Any friction points including the handle, top and bottom of the spring, and each end of the bar where the strings attach have to be kept lubed.

 

I can't tell what kind of bridge those Kats have from the photos, but I have had horrible luck with roller bridges on my Gretsches. A plain old Tuneomatic type bridge works best for me if it is properly cut with ultra smooth slots. I also prefer plain old plastic or cyclovac nuts because of the vast changes in humidity where I live. They seem to be the most stable. I have not had good luck with graphite impregnated nuts. They expand and contract too much.

 

So do everything suggested in this thread and you will have a stable guitar. Also, in our climate, strings stay stable for about two weeks unless they are gigged hard (then it's one or two gigs). Even if you aren't playing the guitar, the strings are undergoing entropy. Eventually, they will not hold their tuning. That's when it's time to change them.

 

Use decent quality strings. Most of the big brands are fine (probably made in the same factory:-). I've been pretty happy with D'Adarrio's over the years.

[Fendert]

I know its not how I put My strings on, I learned from the local guitar tech here how to put them on properly.

 

and I always stretch my strings, and I always put some pencil shavings in the nut, and I never touch the tremolo.

 

So I'm pretty confident those are not the issues, I got 5 other guitars in the house and don't have an issue with any of them staying in tune like the Wildkat.

 

so I guess new nut is the best bet? a Graphtech Black tusq XL?

[Elias Graves]

I would try some pencil lead first. If that helps, it might lead you in the right direction.

 

That did NOT help on mine and, despite how rare it is for a tuner to actually slip, the cheapos on mine turned very freely. I had a spare set laying around so I swapped them out...more for appearance than anything else...but the tuning became much more stable.

 

EG

[Fendert]

 

Certain types of Bigsby's pull strings unevenly and then don't return them to pitch. The B6 is the worst offender because it doesn't anchor to the top of the guitar. If the hinge has any lateral play at all, you're screwed. The B5 and B7 are a bit more stable because they are coupled to the top of the guitar. Your Wildkat should return to pitch if the bridge, nut and the moving parts of the Bigsby are properly lubed. I use old fashioned Vaseline on my two Gretches with Bigsbys. Any friction points including the handle, top and bottom of the spring, and each end of the bar where the strings attach have to be kept lubed. I can't tell what kind of bridge those Kats have from the photos, but I have had horrible luck with roller bridges on my Gretsches. A plain old Tuneomatic type bridge works best for me if it is properly cut with ultra smooth slots. I also prefer plain old plastic or cyclovac nuts because of the vast changes in humidity where I live. They seem to be the most stable. I have not had good luck with graphite impregnated nuts. They expand and contract too much. So do everything suggested in this thread and you will have a stable guitar. Also, in our climate, strings stay stable for about two weeks unless they are gigged hard (then it's one or two gigs). Even if you aren't playing the guitar, the strings are undergoing entropy. Eventually, they will not hold their tuning. That's when it's time to change them. Use decent quality strings. Most of the big brands are fine (probably made in the same factory:-). I've been pretty happy with D'Adarrio's over the years.

 

 

I gig twice a week and I just want it to stay in tune trough AT LEAST two songs! I'm not playing the crap out of it either I play in a worship band so I mostly play Lead stuff, and I'm not even bending that frequently.

 

The strings I have always used are ernie ball slinkys I use 10's or 11's depending on the guitar on the wildKat I use 11's

[cephus]

 

I gig twice a week and I just want it to stay in tune trough AT LEAST two songs! I'm not playing the crap out of it either I play in a worship band so I mostly play Lead stuff, and I'm not even bending that frequently. The strings I have always used are ernie ball slinkys I use 10's or 11's depending on the guitar on the wildKat I use 11's

 

 

I have an epi 295 with a B7 bigsby and don't have any tuning issues. I did pay for a set up a while back, but I never had any problems before that either. When i change strings, I do stretch them to bed them in. When I tune up, I give them a good stretch as well. Then I shake the bigsby a little. I spend a few minutes with this step. I might stretch them and wiggle 3 or 4 times before the tuning is where it needs to be. One issue that I had when I first bought the guitar is that the rosewood base on the bridge wasn't 100% flush. Make sure it isn't leaning.

 

Spend some time tuning it and playing it and see whether the pitch is going flat or sharp and what you are doing specifically to make it happen.