[vadsy]

I’m putting together another partscaster and I’m debating on a set of tuners. Should I go locking or staggered?
Here is the breakdown.
I like the vintage styled Gotoh ones from StewMac and in this case the guitar will have a Bigsby and a neck shim, so should I avoid extra string winds or avoid the friction from a string tree?
I’m mostly looking to try something different with the new build and already have a Bigsby equipped guitar that stays in tune just fine with cheap MIM tuners so tuning isn’t a huge concern for me but I’m wondering what you guys would suggest if you had to choose between the two styles.

 

[jbealsmusic]

I’m putting together another partscaster and I’m debating on a set of tuners. Should I go locking or staggered?
Here is the breakdown.
I like the vintage styled Gotoh ones from StewMac and in this case the guitar will have a Bigsby and a neck shim, so should I avoid extra string winds or avoid the friction from a string tree?
I’m mostly looking to try something different with the new build and already have a Bigsby equipped guitar that stays in tune just fine with cheap MIM tuners so tuning isn’t a huge concern for me but I’m wondering what you guys would suggest if you had to choose between the two styles.

Why not both? There are locking staggered tuners out there.

If I had to choose between one or the other, I'd get locking tuners. But I'd also get roller trees.

 

[Ayr Guitars]

Definitely locking tuners. They make string changes a breeze.

I particularly like “Ratio” tuners by Graphtech. And Hipshot - who make staggered height locking tuners.

 

[Budda]

I'm a big fan of locking tuners myself.

 

[vadsy]

I was looking for the vintage looking ones and couldn't find with both locking and staggered options but someone posted these on TGP this morning...

GOTOH SD91 HAPM locking adj. height guitar tuners 6-inline Nickel

 

[jbealsmusic]

I was looking for the vintage looking ones and couldn't find with both locking and staggered options but someone posted these on TGP this morning...

GOTOH SD91 HAPM locking adj. height guitar tuners 6-inline Nickel

Those look like those check off all the boxes for you. You can buy them in Canada from these guys:
JAPARTS : GOTOH® Products

They undercut pretty much everyone in North America for Gotoh products, so you'd be hard pressed to find a better price anywhere else. You just have to email back and forth to get a quote for pricing and shipping.