Trying my first 2x4 steel build, but when I tried to bend the tabs down, the first one snapped off.
1. What's the trick to not snapping off the tabs,
2. Can pickups be glued on? Double side tape? Silicone? Gorilla Glue?
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Can you post a pic or two. Tabs on a 2x4? I'm having trouble understanding what you mean?
Step #11.
https://cigarboxnation.com/forum/topics/make-a-2x4-lap-steel-guitar
Okay, gotcha. It's a question about pickups not 2x4s. LOL. I was totally lost. I have no hands on experience with the Tiesco pickups but I could imagine its pretty easy to break those tabs accidentally. I don't think this is disastrous though. The pickup should sit about 1/4 from the strings, so a thin pickup like that might not even need a notch (or maybe just a very shallow notch) in the 2x4.
If I was in your position I'd probably just glue it on or use double-sided tape, or maybe use wire to hold it in place (provided you haven't notched the 2x4 yet). If you've already cut the notch, I'd probably just get a different pickup and save the Tiesco for a later project.
I'm still building proto/patterns. But my question then is, tape or glue is OK? I have several more p/u's coming, a couple 2 coil humbuckers, and I'm going to try fitting one of these
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KYMHBYM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_t...
Those tabs can be trimmed, just plastic. I'm also getting some of the cheap single coil units.
My second build will be a 2x6, possibly a baritone with a 30" scale. That might be that very nice piece of redwood I found...
Hi James. A couple of notable CBG pickups like the Lace Matchbook and the 12 Bar Blues Classic (used by Justin Johnson) use double-sided tape to mount so I wouldn't be concerned about that. It works fine provided you have a smooth surface for the tape to adhere to. Tape doesn't stick well to rough surfaces.
Glue would probably work but again, you'd need a very smooth surface for the glue to adhere to, so I'd be careful with that. You could also try wire. Just drill 4 small holes near the corners of the pickup and run a couple of pieces of bailing wire over the pickup (perpendicular) then down through the 2x4 and twist them on the bottom. Bailing wire fixes a lot of things.
I'm not sure what exactly made you want to use a golf foil pickup for a lap steel, but that would probably be one of my last choices if you're looking for the Nashville sound. I'd use a soapbar/P90 or a strat-style single coil or even a PAF-style humbucker before I'd use a Tiesco. Not that there's anything wrong with them, they sound great, but just probably not my first choice for that style.
The pickup you linked above would work great for a traditional cigar box guitar, but for a lap steel, I'd probably skip the mounting ring and just cut a notch in the 2x4. I recently did a lap steel build and I purposely chose a soapbar pickup. You can see/hear it here: https://cigarboxnation.com/video/2x4-lap-steel-build-demo
Thanks. I'm pretty damn noob, not just to pickups, but to music. Part of this is 'folk art' for me. I'm gonna noodle around and see what I can pick up (no pun intended).
I picked the gold foil because that's what Shane's plan called for. I have 2 humbuckers ordered, and I've decided I like single coils because of ease of installation.
I think I'll use tape. I saw a vid where I guy showed how to use tape and memory foam in a way that secured the p/u, but also made it adjustable for height. I'm gonna try that thin white packing material closed cell foam, it has a nice glossy skin on it, and just rip it out if need be.
This first stick is'proof of concept' for me, a plan-in-progress. It WILL be down and dirty, figuring what works and what doesn't.