Hi,
i bought a cigar box guitar and iv read it can be fitted with top 4 strings from a standard guitar. iv done this but am finding it impossible to tune! iv used my tuner and tuned to E, A, D, G and it sounds terrible as soon as i play a chord. i also tried tuning top string to E and then tuned string to string by ear as i would on my guitar, still sounds awful!
any one have any ideas?
thanks
Replies
http://www.ebay.com/itm/The-Smokin-Stogie-Electric-Cigar-Box-Guitar...
he sold another one but this was before i complained about mine. this one appears to have the bridge too far up same as mine, its hard to tell if the frets are correct. he hasnt listed anymore yet and ebay havnt got back to me about changing my feedback despite saying they would respond in 72 hours!
I made a cbg tutorial dvd a few years ago, its free with my cbg purchase: http://www.jagshouse.com/cbg/cbgvideo.html
Jag
http://www.chickenbonejohn.com/page12. (scroll down)
http://www.wegottickets.com/event/191295
So for £25 you get all the materials with his building tuition (I think they usually make a 3 string fretless)
plus a starter lesson on playing your new CBG.
It would be a great opportunity to see and play some quality CBGs and also to come away with a playable one you have built yourself.
Sorry to hear about your unfortunate experience, but let this be a reminder to all-research before purchase and buy from reputable sources!
Just a tip, a premade fingerboard is only an option if your scale length matches something "standard" and 23 1/4" is not standard. Fret spacing must be calculated to match your specific needs.
Parksjam is his ebay name. he sells cbg regulary apparently and has recieved positive feedback for them hence why i bought it. he told me my guitar was one of hhis favourites, the fretboard is so bad that i can see the random placement of frets with the naked eye! the first few frets seem ok and basic chords sound almost in tune but i like my power chords...
i will be keeping an eye on him on ebay. hope he shapes up.
You should say who thie guy is. Tell us his name so others won't buy from him. Thats the only to stop people like him. He's a rip-art -artis
David the guitar in that pic looks gorgeous! i now want a 6 string cbg =)
my fretboard is glued on so should be removable. i noticed there is a 1/2'' gap on the neck above the nut so the new fretboard could be placed higher and then overlapping onto the box should be straightforward.
im imagining the tailpiece could be extended past the bottom of the box to accomodate the bridge if required. think iv seen pics of that before. would this affect the sound of the guitar?
i found some uke fretboards for sale but they were too short and too wide...
the builder claimed the frets were pressed not glued (shame there in the wrong bloody place!) but i dont fancy removing and replacing them, as that would probably look crap and id rather let the pros handle that...
Here's a possible solution if you don't want to completely tear down and rebuild the old unit or render it down for parts-
1) Gently apply heat to the frets to loosen any glues and lightly carbonize the area-carefully remove frets.A soldering iron or woodburning pen works well for this.
2) Apply heat to bare fretboard and try to remove. If the builder actually applied the frets directly to the neck instead(I can't tell by the picture) then fill the slots with filler. I prefer titebond and fine sawdust to the commercial putties.
3) Cover neck with new, blank fretboard. Loosen and move bridge to whichever location on the body sounds most awesome to you. Measure the new distance between the nut and bridge positions-multiply total in centimeters by 0.9439 for the first fret, again for the second etc until you have as many fret positions as you want (this is Uncle Crow's method).
4) Mark the fret positions with marker or woodburning pen for fretless (visual guide only) or saw new slots and install frets for fretted. If your fretboard height has changed, shim or trim the nut and bridge until the action suits you.Play it until the strings break!
Now if you've never built or modified a guitar before it might be easier to try to purchase one from a reputable dealer(I too have heard great things about Chickenbone John)-or, set this one aside, build a few, see what works and rebuild it later...I just listed the measures I would take so you know what you'd be in for. Also, if you have any music stores nearby, they might recommend a local luthier-IF said luthier will work on a homemade instrument he or she can dial in these adjustment for you, but it will be pricey...
Best of luck.
18" is the standard length for a tenor ukulele, which also coincidentally has 4 strings. Perhaps a search for a tenor uke fingerboard will turn up something?
You could run the fretboard onto the box surface similar to how I added an acoustic guitar neck with overlapping fretboard to a box
but the box needs to be long enough so you can put the bridge in the right place for the scale.
Adding the fingerboard will lift the strings higher which should let you get a lower string action making finger picking easier. Ask CBGitty about the scale length and provided the nut position to where the saddle needs to be will fit the neck/ box you can either fit as above with overlap onto the box lid or even saw of the extra from the bottom of the fretboard so you have no overlap.
Do any of the frets actually sit where they are supposed to be? You could refret the ones out of place (the guitar will look a bit trashed).
Like Chris suggests you could pull out the frets and go fretless.
You could end up spending a load of cash to end up with something that isn't as good as it should be and not what you really wanted (not sure how to word that better). It might be worth just having a think about what you want and whether it is worth considering buying one from a reputable seller (like Chickenbone John) but only if you can get over to try several out, or find out if he is selling at any guitar shows near you. All CBGs are different and string set up for slide will feel crap if you are used to low action electric guitars so you need to try several to find one with the feel you like (no disrespect to those who set up for slide I realise they are supposed to feel like that :O) ). Or better still have a try at building your own because then you will get exactly what you want - the one positive thing from the ebay sale is the "builder" used some good parts to get you started. Also it gives you the option to add electronics if you wanted.
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