70's Fender tuner question

[omikin]

I have a Nate Mendel P bass which is a copy of his 70's precision. I love this instrument, but I wonder how authentic the tuners are as they aren't the ones with the really long stems.

Firstly - am I right in thinking they should be?

Secondly - if I were thinking of switching them out for some long stemmed ones, which should I choose where I wouldn't have to redrill? Gotoh seem to have some good ones.

Thanks for your help!

[gary mac]

These are the ones on my 75

[url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/httpwwwflickrcomphotosgmac190/10510662806/][/url]

[discreet]

And these are the ones on a 76 I once owned... *sob*





And these are the Nate tuners - I'd say they're close enough. The main difference seems to be that the Nate 'ears' don't taper smoothly down into the shafts like the genuine 70s Fenders do.

Edited December 14, 2013 by discreet

[jimbobothy]

Gary, Are the ones on your '75 original for the year? Very very nice lollipops but didn't know they came with basses that year.

[Bassman Steve]

I don't know the precise date they changed but they were certainly using the tuners you have on yours by the 70's. Probably the long stemmed 'reverse' tuners would have been around until about '67 I would hazard. There were also the 'paddle' tuners which were long stemmed but just plain ears and then the tuners you have there.

I would say they're period correct.

[discreet]

[quote name='jimbobothy' timestamp='1387018440' post='2307421']
Gary, Are the ones on your '75 original for the year? Very very nice lollipops but didn't know they came with basses that year.
[/quote]

I don't think they are lollipops - the pic crops the top of the tuners making them seem so.

[discreet]

[quote name='Bassman Steve' timestamp='1387018441' post='2307422']
I don't know the precise date they changed but they were certainly using the tuners you have on yours by the 70's. Probably the long stemmed 'reverse' tuners would have been around until about '67 I would hazard.
[/quote]

Yes, similar tuners were being used from the mid 60s. A registered trade mark symbol was added above the Fender logo in the early 70s and was the primary gear used on all basses until 1977. Then Fender started using Schallers up until around 1982. In fact the Nate tuners look a lot like the Schallers...

Edited December 14, 2013 by discreet

[Musky]

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1387019320' post='2307437']
Yes, similar tuners were being used from the mid 60s. A registered trade mark symbol was added above the Fender logo in the early 70s and was the primary gear used on all basses until 1977. Then Fender started using Schallers up until around 1982. In fact the Nate tuners look a lot like the Schallers...
[/quote]
Spot on, although the Schallers were introduced in '76. The older nickel plated ones still turned up on Precisions as late as '78 though.

[omikin]

Thanks guys! That's brilliant. Looks like I'll stick with the ones it's got on.

[discreet]

[quote name='omikin' timestamp='1387201081' post='2309222']
Thanks guys! That's brilliant. Looks like I'll stick with the ones it's got on.
[/quote]

It's always handy when the correct course of action is to do nothing...

Edited December 16, 2013 by discreet

[franzbassist]

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1387205249' post='2309297']
It's always handy when the correct course of action is to do nothing...
[/quote]

Cheaper too

[omikin]

Less chance of me ruining it, too...

It also means that the basses I've been drooling over are more expensive if they're 60's rather than 70's, however.

[Telebass]

The tuners on the Nate are Schaller BMFLs and do not have the longer stems. Schallers were used 76 on.

[Telebass]

If you REALLY want the longer stems but don't have spare wads of cash for the real thing, get a set of Wilkinson HWJB200 tuners. They have precisely the correct look, from the fron at least! Around 25 squids delivered off evilbay.