The Steel Guitar Forum

I was wondering if anyone had tried to use violin fine tuners, on a lap steel instead of the regular keys? Is it a feasible idea?

Why exactly? The regular tuning pegs on a violin are friction tuners, with a 1:1 ratio which are difficult to move as precisely as you might want especially on the higher strings, thus the fine tuners. The fine tuners, by definition, have a considerably smaller range than either the tuning pegs on a violin or the tuners on a steel guitar. The tuners on a steel are geared to allow a finer ratio anyway.

I owned an electric guitar with fine tuners on the bridge years ago, but that was because the guitar had a locking nut and the fine tuners allows for adjustments without unlocking the nut. Outside of that, I've never seen need for them.

The phrase "if it ain't broke..." comes to mind here.

Can't imagine them being tone enhancers..., but stranger things have probably happened.

I've never had issue with generic tuners on a lapsteel. They seem to work just fine.

However, if someone did feel a need for more "precise" tuning capability, there are guitar tuners available with different gear ratios that would provide this. 16:1 or 18:1 is a common modern standard. At the extreme, Steinberger "gearless" tuners have a 40:1 tuning ratio.

That would seem an easier modification than trying to adapt violin fine-tuners.