While tone and volume knobs all perform the same function, their shape and finish play a big role in the overall look and feel of your guitar. Here’s a breakdown of the three main styles available.
Top Hat knobs are the classic choice, most commonly seen on vintage-style guitars. They feature a tall cylindrical shape with a flat top and printed numbers.
Bill Arico does not play bass, but he built his gigging daughter one that finally stopped diving, on an ash kit with a hand-rubbed oil finish. Here are the ultralight tuners that fixed the balance, the three parts that did not drop straight in, and what you can copy.
Finishing is the one guitar-building step you cannot undo. So Steve Madden practiced on six plywood bodies first, then gave his quilted maple kit five thin coats of Tru-Oil. Here is his method, and how he fixed the binding when it turned yellow.
Doug DeLuca and his sixteen year old son turned a bare quilted maple top into a deep blue burst, and the figure still reads through the darkest part of the rim. Here is the dye versus pigment decision that made it work, why the edges are the darkest part of the guitar, and what you can copy on your own figured top.