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I'm looking for very serious feedback to this potentially life-changing question; I've been traveling a lot these past two weeks and haven't been very in touch with the Forum and expect that in my absence the Forum has taken a more serious and useful direction.
When I received my new (second) violin about 6 weeks ago, it arrived with a fine tuner only on the "E" string and since this is a beautiful replica of a Guarneri 1740 Heifitz, that made sense. And although I'm a beginner, and loved the fine tuners on all strings on my first violin, the thought of "poofing up" this beautiful instrument by putting fine tuners on all strings, just made me cringe.
In these past 6 weeks I've become very adept at fine tuning each string using only pegs and am thankful for that for that experience. But I tune my violin before each and every practice, as probably everyone does, and using fine tuners on each string would be so much easier and quicker, but I'm really torn over it.
So here's the question on which I desperately need feedback; if I do add fine tuners to all strings, am I consciously flawing this beautiful replica; is it a reasonable thing to do; am I somehow less of a man by doing so; can my children ever have respect for me again; will my wife now view me only with contempt.
This could be a life-changing path that I take; I desperately need guidance!!!
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Well, it is a replica and not the actual 1740 violin.. so it is not like it would risk marring a precious antique.
If it may get you to play more or make playing easier at all, I would say you should try it. Since fine tuners can also be taken off later should you decide it was not what you wanted, there is no real risk involved, is there? Might it be possible to find some that have a "period correct" appearance?
For that matter were fine tuners (even just on the E) in use in 1740? I haven't been able to find a historical reference on when they started being used.
But in any case, I would say you should try it and see if you feel it is worth having them on it. If not, take them back off. I don't think you'd need to cut or change anything on the violin, would you?
"This young wine may have a lot of tannins now, but in 5 or 10 years it is going to be spectacular, despite the fact that right now it tastes like crude oil. You know this is how it is supposed to taste at this stage of development." ~ Itzhak Perlman
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Tailpieces are replaceble, aren't they? So it is not an unfixable step that you can't take back...
Go for it!
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Go part way and just add the A string fine tuner. the G and D are a lot easier to tune without them.
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You know what, you guys are absolutely right! I've got nothing to lose except my pride,,, and I actually lost that about 45yrs ago.
And you're absolutely right Kevin; just a fine tuner on A would actually make life easier!
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Yep, it's also my understanding that they're not actually bolted into the violin, just added to the tailpiece, and removable. Anything to make life easier I say, including the fingerboard tapes if needed. I've been guilted out of removing mine, but I can't get around to removing the tape for 4th finger, it seems I still need it.
I don't see anyone here who would think the worse of you for using fine tuners, and your wife will have to live with it.
If you think you can, or you think you can't, you're probably right.
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I vote to go for it... change it out and enjoy the beautiful piece. If you have a hard time tuning it, you'll be pissed off before you even begin to practice. Not what you want to do when trying to concentrate on playing.
"If you practice with your hands you must practice all day. Practice with your mind and you can accomplish the same amount in minutes." Nathan Milstein
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What kind of strings do you have on that violin? With synthetic strings you don't need tuners as much as with steel core strings.
As most people said above, just put on the fine tuners and if you ever feel like it later, take them off. That is also my vote.
There are fine tuners that are barely noticeable.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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I started out with four fine tuners and now I have only the one on the E string but instead of trying to hide it by finding the small one I put on a gold one and it sticks right out. Gold color that is.
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My pegs are so stuck and hard to turn smoothly that fine tuners on all strings is a must hehe. There is surely something I could put on them to make them smoother though, but I'm scared they will slip then!
"It can sing like a bird, it can cry like a human being, it can be very angry, it can be all that humans are" Maxim Vengerov
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The best thing I have found is Hills peg paste.
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Put them on for Pete's sake I mean Fred's sake. You can buy four you like or get four that match the one that is on it now.
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Lmao!!! Thank you all for the emotional support! I'm gonna do it. I actually bought three fine-tuners to match the one on the E string, when I bought the instrument; I just haven't been able to bring myself to put em on.
And that's correct, it's not an invasive/destructive addition, so absolutely no physical harm can come of it, it was the thought of "ugly'n up" a beautiful instrument.
FM, I have the Di Addario Pro Arte' s on it; sounds great but every string needs a slight adjustment before each play; that's what makes the peg tuning on it so difficult, it's so close to being right on, but then I have to back off each time to do a more macro adjustment to get it where it needs to be.
Btw Robyn, loved your "Campbell Cover2"; yeah, at this point, my wife has learned to put up with a lot of BS from me, lol; I just thought this might be the last straw 
Thanks All
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Haha Fred, when I meet your wife next yeàr, I'm gonna dig out some dirt on you and post it on FM, so you'd better be nice to her from now on. No more BS! Lol
I am amazed at how old people of my age are.....
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LOL! 
Do it! Put those fine tuners on! The violin should be your friend! The violin has to FIT YOU and not so much vise-versa.
@NV: Kevin is right - Hill peg compound. Had troubles with my pegs also. Now i can tune it without fine tuners... even E.
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See Naska, I want to be like you when I grow up;;; able to do away with fine-tuners altogether, able to play a solo in front of an audience, able to jump off buildings only tethered by a rope, LOL!
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I guess I understood all wrong was peg paste was, though it was for slipping pegs not stucked ones.
"It can sing like a bird, it can cry like a human being, it can be very angry, it can be all that humans are" Maxim Vengerov
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NoirVelours said
I guess I understood all wrong was peg paste was, though it was for slipping pegs not stucked ones.
In my case it was combined: slipping-stucked. They stuck, because i had to push them in too much to avoid the slipping =)
@ftufc:
LOL! I can tune it without the fine tuners, but don't do it often because it's not usual for me =) It's like i CAN go outside without shoes, but i don't need it because i have shoes and it's more convinient. I've got used too much to use fine tuners so i tune with them even lower strings, but i just wanted to say that peg compound made tuning with pegs only possible for me =)
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