So i got these knobs

[azrael]

but the head of the shaft wont even fit in

that's what she said!

>_>
<_<

I wouldn't say it's dumb to do it by hand, you just have to be careful.

[anchovie]

I tried hand drilling some knobs and they broke when the bit caught and twisted the metal insert inside the plastic.  I would probably take a file or Dremel to the pot shafts before I drilled knobs again.

Using the Dremel on the inside of the knob works for me, easier to let it whizz around in there than hold it against a pot.

[ralphw]

>Not sure which model you got specifically, but the first one lists "for knurled shafts", which probably means they don't have a set screw.

I too am looking to match knobs and pots, it seems like many of the sites have difficulty listing complete specs for their stuff.
For example, the KNOB24 through KNOB31 knobs are listed, but without the shaft diameter specified.  Only the outer diameter
of - 8mm - is listed.  It seems unlikely that the I.D. (inner diameter) would be only 2.5 mm thinner, since that's 1/20 of an inch per side.

I have a shopping cart ready to go on Futurelec, but am reluctant to spend even $5 on knobs that won't fit.
I'm ordering about 20 pots and miscellaneous parts needed to finish an SN-Voice and MIDIBox.

- Ralph

[theundeadelvis]

I drill hole in a section of a 2x4" just large enough that I can press the knob into it (hole pointing up). I can pop them in and out quick, drill them, and not scratch them at all.

[zombiwoof]

You need to be careful when ordering knobs or pots that you know what the shaft size is.  Import spec uses metric 6mm shafts, U.S. spec is 1/4" (6.3mm).  As noted, suppliers don't always have these specs shown, I email them when I am unsure to find out what the spec is before I order anything.  I've had this problem with guitar pots/knobs, too, and another thing I've run into is different knurling on knurled-shaft pots.  For instance, there are some really nice Bourns 1/4" shaft metal case guitar pots out there now, the problem with them is that they use an 18-spline knurl, and the common U.S. spec (Gibson, Fender pots/knobs) is 24-spline, and 18-spline knurled knobs are difficult to find.  So always find out what the specs are before ordering, especially if you are ordering a large quantity.  It sounds like your pots have 1/4" shafts, and you ordered knobs for 6mm shafts.

Al