Strat won't stay in tune

TTBZ

Just rebuilt my parts strat with a cheap "new" neck off eBay, and I cant get the bloody thing to stay in tune. Just strung up with Rotosound 9s. Nut seems smooth and I have no pinging when tuning. Trem is decked with 5 springs. I think it may be the tuners it came with as they seem to be unbranded vintage style ones and they don't feel particularly smooth or great to turn. Anything else to try before spending more money on new tuners? I had planned to get something locking anyway (prefer them for ease of restringing) but would be nice to get it playable for now.

Didn't have this issue with my old neck and Hipshot tuners, should have just kept that! 

Funkfingers

How good is the fit between the body pocket and the "new" neck? 

TTBZ

Not great so maybe that's it, the pocket is a bit wider than standard. It was the same with the old neck though and that was pretty solid.

BillDL

TTBZ said:

 I cant get the bloody thing to stay in tune .....

Do you mean that by the time you have got the 6 strings in tune the first ones you tuned have gone out of tune again (flat), and this keep repeating with each tuning, or do you mean that the strings are going out of tune after playing it for a short time after having it tuned perfectly?

The obvious thing that I'm sure you have already done, is to "stretch" the new strings several times until they hold pitch.

I would also wonder about movement of the neck in the pocket.

TTBZ

Yeah the strings have had a good stretch, about as much as I normally would for a new set. It stayed for a little while but then drifted back out and it won't stay. Looking at it now, it does look like the string alignment is off and the neck isn't sitting perfectly straight in the body so guess that's not helping. I've tried the thing where you loosen the neck screws with the strings on, and re tighten to get it seated better but hasn't seemed to do much.

I was planning on changing the body too eventually as it's just a cheap old thing that doesn't sound particularly great - but again I was able to have a pretty solid guitar with the old neck and tuners so was hoping to get the same with this one. Never had this much trouble keeping a guitar in tune before so not sure what's going on really!

I am half wondering if it's the strings - I've never used Rotosound before (usually D'Addarios) and just got them because they were cheap off Amazon with fast delivery - potentially fakes?

Danny1969

Is the nut fixed firmly to the neck ? ... if the nut moves it will never stay in tune. 

Funkfingers

TTBZ said:

Trem is decked with 5 springs.

This is not 100% guaranteed to eliminate movement.

How tightly are the springs adjusted?

Does the baseplate sit flush on the top of the guitar body? (The Sung-il two pivot vibrato fitted to some Cort and Squier Standard Series guitars was shaped so as to make it physically impossible to have it sit correctly.)

On a two pivot fulcrum vibrato, are the pivot post and threaded inserts perpendicular to the top of the body? Are they free from wiggle? Are the baseplate knife edges sharp or pitted/worn?

On a six screw fulcrum vibrato, are the pivot screws set to the correct height? (Overtightening will cause the baseplate to want to tilt up at its back edge.)

theatreanchor

I've never had a Strat stay in tune. I think it's part of their charm!

TTBZ

Funkfingers said:

TTBZ said:

Trem is decked with 5 springs.

This is not 100% guaranteed to eliminate movement.

How tightly are the springs adjusted?

Does the baseplate sit flush on the top of the guitar body? (The Sung-il two pivot vibrato fitted to some Cort and Squier Standard Series guitars was shaped so as to make it physically impossible to have it sit correctly.)

On a two pivot fulcrum vibrato, are the pivot post and threaded inserts perpendicular to the top of the body? Are they free from wiggle? Are the baseplate knife edges sharp or pitted/worn?

On a six screw fulcrum vibrato, are the pivot screws set to the correct height? (Overtightening will cause the baseplate to want to tilt up at its back edge.)

It feels really solid, I've got it screwed right down and the pitch doesn't wobble when I press down on it or anything.. The only things that have changed from my old setup are the neck and tuners, so I suppose one of those that's the problem! The nut seems fine, no play in it.

stickyfiddle

It’s the nut. 9 times out of 10 it’s always the nut

TTBZ

I've gone back over everything today and I think I've got it ok now. The 6 bridge screws were actually too tight as @Funkfingers pointed out, and therefore lifting the bridge a bit. My intonation was way off on a few strings which probably wasn't helping either. And I think I might just be too heavy handed for 9s haha.