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bhrb75 - Posted - 02/01/2012: 13:07:31
Just wondered what everyone's thoughts were on these. I was thinking about buying a set.
stringman711 - Posted - 02/01/2012: 13:27:02
Hi Brandon. I have a set on my Hatfield. They work very well. One note- They both turn in the same direction unlike standard or Keith tuners. Just takes a little getting use to.
spinley - Posted - 02/01/2012: 13:39:48
I have been using keith for as long as I can remember. Decided to try cheat a keys and here is my 2 cents worth. They are not as smooth as keith. But they are very easy to tune and set and they work very well. The mounting is quick and easy and I don't think they hurt the banjo headstock at all. They mount hand tight. If you have used kieth tuners before you will have a small learning curve to get use to which way they turn. No big deal though. I have ordered a second set so i am hooked on them .
Stuart
catching2nd - Posted - 02/01/2012: 14:46:07
I had a set for about a year. I loved everything about them except for their looks. They covered up my beautiful peg head cut and inlays. Setting them is incredibly easy and they do not come out of tune hardly at all. After using them a bit I had to rub some pencil led on the pegs where the strings ride because I was getting a kind of squeaking noise when using them. You can adjust the pressure on the tuning peg screws to set the sensitivity you'd prefer. You can loosen them a bit so that they will kind of snap down and up, or you can tighten them so it takes a bit more pressure to turn them but will give you total control between notes.
Other than their looks, there's only one other negative effect. When I removed them they had put some marks in the lacquer on the peg head. I've tried using a few different kinds of rubbing compound that have helped but not completely smoothed the area over. One note, I didn't over-tighten them at all, either. I tightened them by hand and used no tools at all to install them other than a screw driver to install the tuner buttons. I believe to remove the marks completely I may have to use some 0000 steel wool to lightly smooth the areas over.
chickenpickin - Posted - 02/01/2012: 15:46:30
Brandon, I just got a set from a hangout member and I really like'm. They are so much easier than regular D tuners. They stay in tune much better too.
I like the fact that they turn the same direction.
Tim
bhrb75 - Posted - 02/02/2012: 04:53:00
I used to have Keith tuners and I liked them ok but I don't want to use them again as I have old Grover 2:1 pancakes. The more I think about it, the more I'm leaning towards saving a bit more money and getting a set of Burlile Pittman style tuners. I know I'll have to drill the peghead but they are oh, so cool.
B.
arnie fleischer - Posted - 02/02/2012: 12:36:30
I've been using Cheat-A-Keys for the last 7 or 8 years and really like them. I also have Keith tuners on a couple of banjos and like them as well. I find that the Cheat-A-Keys work just as smoothly as Keith tuners and are fun to use, maybe because they actually bend the strings while Keiths re-tune the strings. They also hold their settings through string changes and rarely need adjusting.
Culloden - Posted - 02/04/2012: 08:08:46
I bought a set of these tuners from another BHO member who lives in the same city I do(Thanks, Brett). I have had no problems with them at all except for getting used to the keys turning the same direction. I use several tunings and I always had to unset my Keith tuners in the past. I bought a set of ebony tuner knobs from Stewart MacDonald to replace the pearloid knobs and installed small lock washers under them so the screws wouldn't work loose. I love the way they work. The only drawback is that they cover the peghead but my pegnead is rather plain anyway. These are probably not the only set I will ever own but I have been reading posts about the Apollo tuners and would like to try them as well.
