unix-guy
Master of RTFM
Since I've talked to a couple others here (@Dale LeClaire, @nhgtrman) with the Charvel Pro Mod dk-24 that also had tuning issues, I figured I would share my experience and ultimate (as of today) solution for tuning stability).
The issue I was experiencing initially seemed to the guitar just would not remain in tune if I was bending or using the tremolo. I thought maybe the strings were binding on the nut or maybe the string trees.
On inspection, I couldn't find an indication that the strings were tight in the nut slots. No pinging, they moved smoothly, etc.
My other suspicion was the the trem was not returning to zero.
The problem was that I could get the guitar in tune and then play for a while and find some strings flat (they were very well stretched, so it was that). If I tuned back up and then happened to use the trem then things would go sharp.
I bought some lube and a SuperVee Mag Lok tremolo stabilizer to try and remedy both any sticking and also return the trem to the zero point.
After adjustment, things seemed a bit more stable but what I noticed after lots of testing was this: bending a string would cause the string to go flat... But if I did a quick slacking of the trem everything would be back in tune. Odd!
I bend strings all the time, so even though the trem dip fixed the tuning it was just not practical.
Another thought I had was that maybe the bridge posts were shifting.
I had looked before to see if this bridge (Gotoh 510) came with locking posts since the posts have holes down there middle. I couldn't confirm if it did... There are various sub-models and I couldn't find a clear answer. I tried various sizes Allen wrenches in the holes but nothing seemed to grab.
So today I decided to pull the trem off and see if the posts were the issue. With the bridge removed, the posts were definitely not "solid" - they had some slop.
I unscrewed one of the posts and was pleasantly surprised to see a black set screw protruding from the bottom! Got out my Allen wrenches and found the head is a 1.5mm and confirmed it was moving in and out of the bottom of the post.
Re-assembled everything, adjusted the bridge post height and then snugged down the locking set screws and tuned up. The tuning problem appears to be gone! So much better now
I don't think the Mag Lok makes much difference in the tuning stability BUT the big benefit is that it prevents any bridge sagging when bending strings, so the other strings don't go flat. Nice!
Hopefully this helps someone else down the road.
The issue I was experiencing initially seemed to the guitar just would not remain in tune if I was bending or using the tremolo. I thought maybe the strings were binding on the nut or maybe the string trees.
On inspection, I couldn't find an indication that the strings were tight in the nut slots. No pinging, they moved smoothly, etc.
My other suspicion was the the trem was not returning to zero.
The problem was that I could get the guitar in tune and then play for a while and find some strings flat (they were very well stretched, so it was that). If I tuned back up and then happened to use the trem then things would go sharp.
I bought some lube and a SuperVee Mag Lok tremolo stabilizer to try and remedy both any sticking and also return the trem to the zero point.
After adjustment, things seemed a bit more stable but what I noticed after lots of testing was this: bending a string would cause the string to go flat... But if I did a quick slacking of the trem everything would be back in tune. Odd!
I bend strings all the time, so even though the trem dip fixed the tuning it was just not practical.
Another thought I had was that maybe the bridge posts were shifting.
I had looked before to see if this bridge (Gotoh 510) came with locking posts since the posts have holes down there middle. I couldn't confirm if it did... There are various sub-models and I couldn't find a clear answer. I tried various sizes Allen wrenches in the holes but nothing seemed to grab.
So today I decided to pull the trem off and see if the posts were the issue. With the bridge removed, the posts were definitely not "solid" - they had some slop.
I unscrewed one of the posts and was pleasantly surprised to see a black set screw protruding from the bottom! Got out my Allen wrenches and found the head is a 1.5mm and confirmed it was moving in and out of the bottom of the post.
Re-assembled everything, adjusted the bridge post height and then snugged down the locking set screws and tuned up. The tuning problem appears to be gone! So much better now
I don't think the Mag Lok makes much difference in the tuning stability BUT the big benefit is that it prevents any bridge sagging when bending strings, so the other strings don't go flat. Nice!
Hopefully this helps someone else down the road.