Locking tuners almost always come with shorter posts than standard guitar tuners. Normal tuners are typically 23mm tall, measured from the base of the string post to the centre of the string hole. Locking tuners can come with posts as tall as 23mm all the way down to 18mm.

The reason locking tuners have shorter posts has everything to do with a guitar string’s break-angle over the nut. Locking tuners do not have windings around the post, drawing the string lower than the string hole as it is tuned. Instead, the string is locked in place at the top of the post. A lower post sets the string at roughly the same height as a standard set of tuners, maintaining the same break-angle.

Staggered tuners are made for use on guitars with flat headstocks (any Fender Strat or Tele, for example). A guitar with an angled headstock will maintain a sufficient break-angle without the need for pairs of lower posts.

From right to left – pairs of 19mm, 20mm, and 21mm posts

Without shorter posts, especially on E and B, the strings would sit almost parallel to the headstock – far from ideal! You could use a string tree but staggered tuners should remove the need for one entirely.

You can view all of our locking tuners HERE