Hello, all, and Happy New Year!

I just finished repairing a Martin Backpacker; the neck was broken off at the first fret.  The original tuners are Martins...and very heavy relative to this insrument (about 8 ounces). 

Does anyone have suggestions for lightweight tuners in say, the 4 ounce range?  I'm hoping for closed gear tuners; open gear tuners are pretty light, but, hey, the gears are exposed.  I've been through the major luthier supply catalogs, but all closed gear tuners are in the 1/2 pound range.  Thanks!

Thanks for the feedback, folks.  To the first question:  "What's my problem with open tuners?"  Answer:  it's a Backpacker guitar.  I don't want underbrush or moon dust catching in the gears! 

In terms of open gear tuners in general, those stupid "press in" fittings don't do it for me.  I much prefer the threaded inserts used with closed tuners. 

I like Waverlys, but generally speaking the cost of tuners should not exceed the value of the instrument without tuners...in this case, the guitar costs about $200 brand new.  I paid $40 for mine (including, at no extra cost, the broken neck).  I paid about $140 for the last set of Waverlys I purchased.

Might there be a market for lightweight (~4 oz.) closed tuners?  Adding half a pound to the end of the fretboard would seem, well, silly if a well-balanced instrument is desired.  Any weight which contributes to sound is fine, but does the weight of the tuners contribute to sound?  

Somehow I feel this posting is filled with bad grammar...

I had a customer in my shop recently, and one of the things we discussed was the weight of the guitar and especially the neck.

I placed a mahogany neck in his hands, and then a rosewood fingerboard. Next came a double action truss rod and finally a box of Gotoh tuners. You could see his eyes light up when he realized why guitar necks weigh so much.

I am on the same page wanting a light weight tuner, but I dont want plastic or cheap and unreliable tuners to go out on my guitars. I am especially interested in the carbon fiber neck inserts as a replacement for a truss rod also.  The only problems I can see is the question of how the weight of all of that hardware affects the overall sound and volume of the guitar.

 Have you seen the Hipshot guitar tuners?

 I have found in general that a light tuner like Gotoh Kluson replacements enhance the top end giving a more open woody sound .Die cast tuners seem to give a more midrange focused tone.At least that is what happens with my guitars.

Regarding moon dust...

A Martin Backpacker was taken on one of the early Apollo space missions.  True to NASA policy, I'm confident that the effect of moon dust on the instrument was studied in detail...

When my wife saw the instrument, she suggested I fashion the headstock in the shape of a handle on a paddle as used for a canoe.  I suspect she was alluding to my lack of playing skills and the need for a more practical use for the guitar. 

For those who have not seen this guitar (although mine is serial number 149,XXX), I'll post pictures later this week.  Plus, I'm rather proud of my repair job.