Fitting Flamenco Pegs

by Aaron Green

Originally published in American Lutherie #82, 2005 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Seven, 2015



While it is the tradition for flamenco guitars to be fitted with pegs instead of machine gears, the historical rationale was economic in the same way as was the choice of cypress for the back and sides. These days the cost difference between pegs and gears is not usually reflected in the total cost of the guitar to such an extent that a guitarist would pick one or the other based solely on their budget.

It has been my observation that in the last few years, more and more guitarists are requesting pegs for their guitars. There are some very compelling reasons for using pegs: They are quicker than gears; they are lighter than gears, which can help the balance of lighter cypress-bodied guitars; and from an aesthetic point of view, pegs are hard to beat.