Zither tuning pins??

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by soulpatch29 on November 28, 2009 at 2:36pm

Will a drum tuning key work with them?

Randy S. Bretz said:

yeah I have on some builds, they work o.k, but you need the wrench to adjust them. That`s the only draw back to using them.

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Permalink Reply by Crow on December 21, 2009 at 10:31am

i've used zither pins for several projects. here's my thoughts.

cheap? certainly.
easy to install? YES.
keeps tune well? yes, if the holes are drilled right (i use 3/16 in hardwood, and go one size smaller in soft wood)
easy to retune? not really. after some REAL practice (a few years) i'm pretty good at tuning zither pins. but it's a SKILL.
wrench? pain in the ass.

easily the biggest drawback to zither pins is aquiring a proper zither pin wrench. an adjustable wrench *works* but the taper on the head of the pin makes the wrench roll a bit, and messes up the pin.

here's two instances::

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEGM8HZ_xow

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJZb7zJyKjg

after all this, i've moved on to using eye bolt compression tuners. they're adjustable, so you can really crank em tight to hold a tune, and a common screwdriver put through the eye can give plenty of extra leverage for fine tuning.

here:

http://www.cigarboxnation.com/photo/eye-bolt-tuner-w-string-b?conte...


have fun!!!!

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Permalink Reply by soulpatch29 on December 21, 2009 at 1:46pm

Thanks Crow

Crow said:

i've used zither pins for several projects. here's my thoughts.

cheap? certainly.
easy to install? YES.
keeps tune well? yes, if the holes are drilled right (i use 3/16 in hardwood, and go one size smaller in soft wood)
easy to retune? not really. after some REAL practice (a few years) i'm pretty good at tuning zither pins. but it's a SKILL.
wrench? pain in the ass.

easily the biggest drawback to zither pins is aquiring a proper zither pin wrench. an adjustable wrench *works* but the taper on the head of the pin makes the wrench roll a bit, and messes up the pin.

here's two instances::

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEGM8HZ_xow

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJZb7zJyKjg

after all this, i've moved on to using eye bolt compression tuners. they're adjustable, so you can really crank em tight to hold a tune, and a common screwdriver put through the eye can give plenty of extra leverage for fine tuning.

here:

http://www.cigarboxnation.com/photo/eye-bolt-tuner-w-string-b?conte...


have fun!!!!

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Permalink Reply by Rick Hayes on April 1, 2011 at 12:06am

I just joined CBN a short time ago, and when I googled zither pins, it brought me back here. Judging by the submission dates I am a couple years behind everybody else. Just came into some zither pins and, since all my builds are basically $0 budget, wanted to try them in some new builds. Each is an experiment for me. Saw your videos, excellent work and thanks for the ideas- I will be stealing them and working them into my available materials. Thanks

Crow said:

i've used zither pins for several projects. here's my thoughts.

cheap? certainly.
easy to install? YES.
keeps tune well? yes, if the holes are drilled right (i use 3/16 in hardwood, and go one size smaller in soft wood)
easy to retune? not really. after some REAL practice (a few years) i'm pretty good at tuning zither pins. but it's a SKILL.
wrench? pain in the ass.

easily the biggest drawback to zither pins is aquiring a proper zither pin wrench. an adjustable wrench *works* but the taper on the head of the pin makes the wrench roll a bit, and messes up the pin.

here's two instances::

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEGM8HZ_xow

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJZb7zJyKjg

after all this, i've moved on to using eye bolt compression tuners. they're adjustable, so you can really crank em tight to hold a tune, and a common screwdriver put through the eye can give plenty of extra leverage for fine tuning.

here:

http://www.cigarboxnation.com/photo/eye-bolt-tuner-w-string-b?conte...


have fun!!!!

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Permalink Reply by Rand Moore on April 2, 2011 at 5:48am

The first time I heard of zither pins being used on a cigar box guitar was on a cigar box ukulele being shown off by Pat and Patrick Costello back in 2008. Here is a few photos extracted from their video with a URL. Might be worth a watch.

I thought it was an interesting design concept, which might work well for you if you are planning to go with zither tuners.

 

-Rand.

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Permalink Reply by Wade on April 2, 2011 at 8:52pm

 

My latest 6 string was built with zither tuners and they work well. They are also great because kids can't make them go out of tune! As Crowe said, they are a pain to use the wrench. I'm sure there is somone that could make a better, cheaper wrench- I picture something like an old bleeder wrench that you would use on a radiator in your home. Anyone out there with tooling skills that could make them?

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Permalink Reply by Len Davidson on October 25, 2011 at 5:21am

I have also tried hose clamps on one build.  Very rustic looking but they were quite difficult to tune

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Permalink Reply by Bill Williams on June 28, 2012 at 6:59am

the wrench isn't a problem for me, my dad bought me one to use with my autoharp.  I just need to find out how to install the stinkin pins  Zither pin wrenches can be easy to get if you have access to a piano/harpsichord tuning supplier, which I don't since my dad died

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