After viewing a couple of hundred pics of CBG builds I see that anything and everything has been built. Very inspiring.
So is it ok to use the ideas of other builders when building?
kentr
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Hi Taff,
Those all look great to me. I built a fretless about 30 years ago using a snare drum and DIY neck, I found it a it too dark at the time, and did something with it, ???? but I have always wished I'd of kept it, and so, the next time i was able I brought another snare planning to repeat the build. now may be the time.
My piccolo banjo became a mini longneck. 8" pot using 3" of steel tubing, a tone ring turned by me, and a WeatherKing head, It shows up in the "Banjos on the wall' pic. That is the pot i used to make the jobro last year, .
That one turned out to be a real hoot to play, soft with bare fingers, loud with finger pics, and then I added a thin ele pickup to blast through an amp, when called for.
So last year I went a bit overboard with steel, I have a dog bowl CB slide steel in planning for this year. here is a lap steel made last year. i used a scrap 2"x6", used tuners, scratched plexi for the fretboard cover, and used strings, The B-benders are made from a brass door hings and scraps. I had a pick up. Total investment was around $15. Plays fine, but the acoustics are much more forgiving for learning steel.
Hi Kent, I can see you will not get bored any time soon. Here are a few banjos I have built.
A Minstrel banjo, fretless with gut strings, using a pot from a Bacon and Day mando-banjo - a box banjo using a Gibson Mastertone neck - a wood top banjo, my design - a piccolo banjo, made from a ceiling downlight - banjo Mandolin wood top conversion. No copies here, I find it more challenging to use the "suck it and see" approach. My versions of what's already out there.
Cheers Taff
I would really like to play that wooden top. I can almost hear it and it's mellow, sweet and soothing. the complete oppisite of the hotrodded Bowtie masterclone I still keep around to take out every so often to play and annoy some folks and give myself a headache.
Here is one more that I built last year. I named this one "Cloudburst" for the cloud inlays. I cut and inlayed them.
It's tuned , from low to high, Low D-G-B-dD-gG-bb-dd- for 11 strings, with a Laurence pedal steel pickup. Sounds good but really takes concentration to play well. -The 11th string was added later.
Well,
That's good news. There are lots of great ideas that merrit copying. , And then the "what if' kicks in, and now there are 9 build projects on the cards. "Cards" being the 5"x8" filing cards that i've used to plan out projects for many years. A bit primitave and old school perhaps, but I'm old, they are in my price range, by stacking they can be used to make "carbon copies" to make changes in design, but keep the original, and they still work when the power goes out.
CBG 2- uses a cigar box, close to done, 3- uses a "My Fathers" box, a tossed out tenor neck, 4 strings and tuned in 5ths, ala mandolin. Here's hoping my wife might play that one. 4- is a re-re-remake of the old "banjacaster", which will turn out as a BanBoxCaster, 75% complete, 5- a panjo, using the aluminum pot I've been using for parts washing and a thin tin pan that just fits the wash pan.
kentr
were all copy cats over here!
Hi, I have built a whole range of guitars over many years, and like nearly every other builder of acoustic guitars, I started by using the X braced style top that CF Martin invented in the 1800's. I still use it, but many others have moved on and developed much more complex arrangements.
Sometimes builders will all come up with the same idea, who knows who was the first. Many years ago, I started using bolt-on necks, instead of a dovetail. I did not make a big deal of it as I thought I was the only one, and that I should be doing a proper joint, tenon, or dovetail. But I felt better about the idea when I saw Taylor guitars were doing it also. Who knows who was first?
Taff
Hi Taff,
It has been banjos that I've been building, and have tried out nearly anything to use for the pot. But finally I needed to admit that it takes the expensive parts to get the
expensive sound. - I don't really enjoy that kind of sound much anymore, even though I still keep one of those around.
One of the things that appeals to me about the CBGs is the better bang for the buck, the creativity, and the possibilities. An art form that can make music.
As I built, tinkered, repaired, and studied over the years , one thing that kept on showing up is how the builders had cut corners, found ways to build cheap,
That's OK, and many cannot afford to buy a vintage, high end anything. If you're building an instrument at home, some of those cost cutting ideas can help.
I just watched the vid of your hubcap guitar. I'll be searching for a hubcap. A big one with a spot in the middle for a biscut bridge.
Kinda looks like a banjo, but with a different sound and two octaves.
kentr
Kent, That is a excellent question. I find others builds inspiring and they often jump start my creativity, but typically I put my own twist on features in builds that catch my attention. Sometimes I'm curious as to how others have implemented something I want to try out. Ultimately, we all come up with our own approaches and style based on our tools, abilities, and preferences. That is part of the fun.
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