Stradpet Fine Tuners

[PaxDomini]

Ive been using their hill type loop titanium tuners for a while and they are very high quality, but i saw this on Amazon and was intrigued. Has anyone tried these types of fine tuners?

Amazon.com: STRADPET Violin Built-in Titanium Fine Tuner set for BALL-end string, Violin and viola accessories : Musical Instruments

[Davide Sora]

11 hours ago, PaxDomini said:

Ive been using their hill type loop titanium tuners for a while and they are very high quality, but i saw this on Amazon and was intrigued. Has anyone tried these types of fine tuners?

Amazon.com: STRADPET Violin Built-in Titanium Fine Tuner set for BALL-end string, Violin and viola accessories : Musical Instruments

Extremely uncomfortable, you have to thread the string through the small hole in the piece of the fine tuner, removing it and inserting it again with the string installed (try to imagine doing it in the middle of a concert and perhaps in low light and without the appropriate tools). Also, the separable part is likely to get lost when the string is not installed.  I never liked this system, which in any case is not an invention of Stradpet but of Bogaro&Clemente, which makes them in carbon fiber and so even lighter. If the lightest possible is what you are interested in, they are undoubtedly the lightest possible, but in my opinion they are not worth it and are often too light for me. I would say stay with others you have used before. When I tried them (the carbon ones, though) I always replaced them with those of the other type.

[Dave Slight]

I’ve tried both the Stradpet, and the carbon B&C version.

They are a nice idea, which is very impractical for the musician. Since the claw is only held in by string tension, once the string breaks, the claw flies out and is lost.
Even if you don’t break a string, players aren’t used to the tuner “falling apart” when changing a string. So it just causes problems which don’t need to be there.

With the B&C carbon ones, I was able to modify them to stop the claw falling out, but it’s really hard to thread the string through the tiny hole from underneath. Even then, due to the thickness of the carbon, and the height of the ball end, it used up a lot of the clearance to the arching. Anything with a full arch, the ball end is almost on the belly.

Now I use the titanium ULSA tuners, which I find to be perfect, but Wittner are also dependable with some minor adjustments.

[Don Noon]

I haven't used this version of the StradPet fine tuner, but the problems mentioned look extremely annoying.  I have used a  Hill-style Stradpet fine tuner, which was OK... except that the adjusting screw was waaaay too long for my sensibilities, and I had to cut (grind) it down.

[PaxDomini]

2 hours ago, Dave Slight said:

I’ve tried both the Stradpet, and the carbon B&C version.

They are a nice idea, which is very impractical for the musician. Since the claw is only held in by string tension, once the string breaks, the claw flies out and is lost.
Even if you don’t break a string, players aren’t used to the tuner “falling apart” when changing a string. So it just causes problems which don’t need to be there.

With the B&C carbon ones, I was able to modify them to stop the claw falling out, but it’s really hard to thread the string through the tiny hole from underneath. Even then, due to the thickness of the carbon, and the height of the ball end, it used up a lot of the clearance to the arching. Anything with a full arch, the ball end is almost on the belly.

Now I use the titanium ULSA tuners, which I find to be perfect, but Wittner are also dependable with some minor adjustments.

really? i bought a B&C one (still being shipped from Canada) 2 weeks ago to be a nice fine tuner for my A string on a high arch violin. I thought it would be a good solution since the other options for ball strings are quite large and would scrape my violin

[Violadamore]

Stradpet, huh?  If they make a guitar gadget, I've thought of an unforgettable trade name name for it.........  

[Mark Norfleet]

I agree with Davide and David.  I hoped I had found  a great solution to some frequent tuner troubles, but in practice they are a nuisance.  I think I have a few if anyone in the US needs to prove it for themselves...

[Dave Slight]

On 9/19/2021 at 5:36 PM, PaxDomini said:

really?

Yes, really.

[Davide Sora]

On 9/19/2021 at 6:36 PM, PaxDomini said:

I bought a B&C one (still being shipped from Canada) 2 weeks ago to be a nice fine tuner for my A string

Probably as an additional tuner in addition to that of the E string (you didn't specify this in your first post), or if used on all four strings, the ultralight weight could be a valuable advantage. The problem of the inconvenience when replacing the strings remains, but if you can live with it I think it might be a good solution.

[PaxDomini]

Yes i guess i forgot to mention that I use hill style fine tuners for my E and was looking for a light weight tuner for my A string. The BC tuner arrived but it does not fit my tail peice, I might take it to my luthier to fit it.

[Mark Norfleet]

I installed one of them on a customer's violin a few days ago and will happily re-confirm that they are a nuisance.  They work well once installed.  It just occurred to me that putting a dab of silicone sealant on the front edge of the tuner which serves as a pivot against the TP, might be a good idea as it would tend to hold the tuner in place while changing strings.  It's also a good idea to run the screw all the way in once the string is put on to make sure that the string ball does not contact the top, and shorten the screw if it does.
I warned the player of the hassles of this style of tuner.  He was interested in changing how much his TP dipped on the treble side and has a degree in mechanical engineering, so he seemed to have a good idea of what he was signing up for.  I would not normally put one on an instrument.

[Dave Slight]

2 hours ago, PaxDomini said:

Yes i guess i forgot to mention that I use hill style fine tuners for my E and was looking for a light weight tuner for my A string. The BC tuner arrived but it does not fit my tail peice, I might take it to my luthier to fit it.

Before you do that, check the A string will fit through the hole in the tuner plate.