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Tuner Peg Conundrum

Hi,
This is my first post but I am so glad to be here. Anyway, I just bought a 3 string Robert Johnson style CBG with a mahogany broomstick neck. It came with thumb screw tuning pegs with wing nuts for tightening. Maybe I am doing something wrong but when I try to tune the light gauge guitar strings to D-A-D, I have a helluva time not only getting tuned to a Tuner, but also to itself.
When I finally get the right note, I cannot get the string's tension to stay taut while I tighten the wing nut. I just end up cussing and frustrated. My partner has a 6 string Takamine which is a dream to tune compared to the CBG.
Should I replace the straight eye bolts with something else? Could my tuning technique be the only thing that is wrong? The broomstick is only approx. 7/8" in diameter so would drilling a typical 1/4" headstock hole for conventional pegs be Verboten?
Thanks in advance for your help.
Roger

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Permalink Reply by Roger Harris on May 10, 2010 at 4:44pm

Thanks for the insight Roger. I will check it out although one local guitar store is just right down the street from Walmart and I like to support local business. BTW, they are both 30 miles from me as I live on the end of the earth near a spewing volcano.
Roger

Roger Martin said:

The Walmarts near me sell both strings, picks,and entry level guitars and amps.But their in the kids toy sections so unless you have kids ,you wouldnt know they were even there.I dont have kids (any more,mine are in their 40's) but I ask several years ago about strings etc and was sent to the kids toys area.And yep thats where they are!

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Permalink Reply by Roger Harris on May 10, 2010 at 4:56pm

You read my mind Tracy. Those actually were my original thoughts even before I began surfing for a CBG. I guess I got impatient because I didn't have the time right then( a couple of weeks ago) to build one so ....
As far as who the builder is, I don't remember his screen name but he did have a Youtube clip of this now famous CBG and although the playing was a little unimaginative, I am certainly not Chet Akins, Eric Clapton or whomever you might consider to be beyond compare. Personally, I wish I could play like Jimi Hendrix. Anybody play his song Red House(i think that's the name of it) on a CBG? I stray from the point, the builder answered my questions promptly and courteously, shipped the CBG quickly and followed up to see that it arrived okay, so any fault in this transaction hangs squarely on my shoulders for not being a totally informed buyer. Actually, that is unusual for me because I pride myself on exhaustive research so as I said before, lesson learned, end of story.

Tracy Kennedy said:

Roger, Man ol' man you paid more in shipping than what that CBG cost to build. Ok, let me put my sarcasm away now.
I understand you want to make this CBG functional and you seem to be hell bent on doing so. At the very least I would use this CBG as a basis to build from. Gather yourself up some materials and build a new CBG. The first one I built cost me $12.42 ... The box was a $1 the 3 on plate tuners were $6.50, only needed one of the plates so make that $3.25. 3' of 1x2 polar @ .79 a foot is $2.37. Piezo $1.99, 1/4 jacks...2 in a pack $1.49, needed one so 75 cents, guitar strings were $4.50 for six, only needed 3 so that is $2.25. Add about 7% tax and its $12.42

I understands your cost will be higher in direct relation to commodity prices in Hawaii but you should still come in under what you paid in shipping for the one you have now. In the end you will be much happier with the one you built with your own hands than the one you paid for.

.Roger Harris said:
Wes, the shipping alone was more than $30 but that is what I come to expect living in Hawaii. I probably paid more than the guitar is worth but lesson learned. Take care.
Roger