Kidney Bean to Keystone Grover Buttons Swapout Question

[ShoalsRanger]

I have a Les Paul Special that came with kidney bean Grover tuners. I don't like the look of the kidneys so I have ordered a set of chrome Keystone buttons for Grover tuners from Allparts and plan to swap them out Monday when they arrive. I am not changing the entire machine head, just the buttons/keys.

I have done many forum searches on this swap here and elsewhere. There doesn't seem to be a definitive answer and the OP who asks this question never comes back after he receives and installs the new buttons to let everyone know how the swap went (one of my pet peeves). One thread involved an Epiphone swap out and one member said it worked fine, but I don't think he was talking about this particular swap. Then the thread went off into a tangent regarding Gototh swapouts and Grover to Kluson conversions.

My question is, will this be an easy swap?? Is it as simple as unscrewing the old kidney bean buttons and popping on the new Keystone buttons?

 

[truckermde]

Yep. Take the screw out, keep track of the little washer, and swap buttons. Easy peasy

 

[ShoalsRanger]

Yep. Take the screw out, keep track of the little washer, and swap buttons. Easy peasy

Thank you sir!!

 

[ShoalsRanger]

Oh, for those who are interested, the chrome keystone Grover buttons are back in stock at Allparts. Every online dealer had been out of stock on these for quite a while until a couple of days ago.

 

[Paul46]

Done this loads of times, very simple as stated above. There should be 2 little washers, a plastic white one and a black one on each shaft, just be careful they don't go awol. Probably not a good idea to change them over a thick carpet...absolute buggers to find if you drop one!

 

[Cjsinla]

Is that $20 per button?

 

[ShoalsRanger]

Is that $20 per button?

$20 for set of 6.

I originally purchased these from The Stratosphere b/c they were a few dollars cheaper but it got lost in the mail and they refused to ship a replacement or refund me. I had to open a Ebay case just to get my money back. Ridiculous. I will never order from them again.

Allparts is awesome and I should have ordered from them to begin with. I can't wait to see what they look like after I install them and I'm hoping the chrome matches...which I'm sure it will. Most sites that carry these have them in nickel and chrome.

 

[Malchik]

Huh, I've only heard great things about Stratosphere.

 

[ShoalsRanger]

Huh, I've only heard great things about Stratosphere.

Yea, me too. It was disappointing. It was the first time I have ever had a problem purchasing anything on Ebay. I understand how sometimes sh*t happens and things get lost in the mail, but for a retailer to just ignore it and move on is disheartening. I sent them several emails and messages over the course of two weeks and never got a reply. The only time I heard back from them was after Ebay customer service stepped in and gave me a refund, they put a follow up comment to the negative feedback I left for the transaction on Ebay. It was a smart-ass comment that said "Sorry your item was lost by USPS, wish we had control". LOL.

 

[ShoalsRanger]

Geez, I just found these by Hipshot on Ebay. They are supposed to fit Grover shafts. I found a couple of older threads on here about them. I think these are less "bright and yellow" in person than in the pics. I'm going to order them and see which ones I like best and the loser gets to go on one of my acoustics. For $10 and free shipping it's worth a shot.

FML.

 

[sk8rat]

Geez, I just found these by Hipshot on Ebay. They are supposed to fit Grover shafts. I found a couple of older threads on here about them. I think these are less "bright and yellow" in person than in the pics. I'm going to order them and see which ones I like best and the loser gets to go on one of my acoustics. For $10 and free shipping it's worth a shot.

FML.

link? I want to get a set also. nevermind I found them.

 

[Donal]

My question is, will this be an easy swap?? Is it as simple as unscrewing the old kidney bean buttons and popping on the new Keystone buttons?

As stated already, just simply unscrew the old ones and screw on the new ones

Edit: Just realized I should have posted in the Custom Shop section. Mods, move the thread if you would like. Thanks!

If you think you will get more qualified answers

Edit: Which section? ...

 

[Donal]

Geez, I just found these by Hipshot on Ebay. They are supposed to fit Grover shafts. I found a couple of older threads on here about them. I think these are less "bright and yellow" in person than in the pics. I'm going to order them and see which ones I like best and the loser gets to go on one of my acoustics. For $10 and free shipping it's worth a shot.

FML.

I prefer these as well

 

[pomaranc]

Geez, I just found these by Hipshot on Ebay. They are supposed to fit Grover shafts. I found a couple of older threads on here about them. I think these are less "bright and yellow" in person than in the pics. I'm going to order them and see which ones I like best and the loser gets to go on one of my acoustics. For $10 and free shipping it's worth a shot.

FML.

I have those, not bad but they are transparent for some reason so you can see the screw, I think they look better than kidney beans but since I got them I kinda wish I would have just gotten the grover deluxe tuners instead.

 

[HCRoadie]

I like. I know it's an Epi but it is still easy to swap. And it is still a Grover tuner. These are the hipshots
[URL=http://s191.photobucket.com/user/arpadium/media/guitar%20stuff/IMAG1605_zpss1wwyqwx.jpg.html]

[/URL]

 

[ShoalsRanger]

I like. I know it's an Epi but it is still easy to swap. And it is still a Grover tuner. These are the hipshots

Thanks. They certainly are transparent but its not too bad at all. Looks pretty sweet.

 

[ShoalsRanger]

...Nice buttons. I had no issues with plastic flash anywhere, they popped right on no muss no fuss. Yeah, you can see the screws thru 'em, notably if you're holding the guitar, or the light is behind them, but doesn't really bother me at all.

Good product. Might pick up another set or two down the line.

Found this post by BrianB in an older thread. They look good and seem to be the only ones available online that will fit Grover shafts without having to drill or mod the plastic.

 

[wmachine]

What about these?
6 x Guitar Machine Head Knobs Imitation Jade Tuner Tulip Buttons Light Green | eBay

 

[jeffy]

Thanks for the heads up. Been meaning to order some from Allparts. Though I kinda like the kidney beans since everyone else hates them.

 

[chasenblues]

What about these?

There is no hole for the screw in the center that connects/holds the button onto the tuner shaft.

Like this,