noob question about scale / fretboard

so i bought some poplar 1 by 2 , cut it to fit the box , cut the box , just like in the how to . now i am noticing this 24.5 scale . does that mean the distance from the nut to the bridge is 24 and a half inchs ? cuz if so i need to cut 4 inches off the head stock part .

since its my first build , i wont fret it but will need to mark it , maybe just shapie marker , then a light coat of stain / sealer over that . i have some hollow aluminum tubing for the nut and the bridge . is that smart ?

do i need to notch it with a file ?

i have some piezos that i scrapped out of some junk , where should i mount them to get the highest output ?

whats the simplest aproach to drilling the tuner peg holes . i have some old single strat style ones .how do i measure the lay out ?

please help me out a lil here .

i made some amps already , but i am not that good with luthier / wood work stuff , more with wire and tape . thanks soo much for your time ,i will post sme pics soon .

here are the amps i made , the lil guy has mod'ed delay (long) and chorus , the metal amp has flanger , univibe and death metal dist .

http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/5545/sdc15242.jpg

>now i am noticing this 24.5 scale . does that mean the distance from the nut to the bridge is 24 and a half inchs ?

Yes, the "scale" is just the length of the vibrating string, from where it no longer touches the nut to where it just starts touching the saddle.

>cuz if so i need to cut 4 inches off the head stock part .

Only if you want to. You can leave the peg head as long as you wish.

>since its my first build , i wont fret it but will need to mark it , maybe just shapie marker , then a light coat of stain / sealer over that . i have some hollow aluminum tubing for the nut and the bridge . is that smart ?

Would depend on how thick the walls of the tube are. Aluminum is fairly soft. What kind of strings are you using? Steel strings could crush a thin-walled tube.

>do i need to notch it with a file ?

Depends on your playing style. If you are going fretless to play ol' style bottleneck blues, you could have a fairly high action and not need any notches at all. If you want to be chording, you might need to move the strings closer to the fretboard somehow.

>i have some piezos that i scrapped out of some junk , where should i mount them to get the highest output ?

Inside, close to the bridge. This just the opinion of somebody who's started out building CBG's. but it should get the ball rolling; if just to have people tell me what I said wrong...

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petey twofinger May 14, 2010 at 12:35pm

thanks for looking , that amp waas a nightmare build ! i broke like 10 drill bits at least , there are like 90 some holes i drilled , no kidding . it sounds fantastic with the uni-vibe effect .

the aluminum did not work out for the bridge and nut . the strings sat way too high . i cut the heads off of some machine screws for now so i shall see .

i used some finishing nails and fretted it yesterday . taking my time (back injury) a lot of pain .

will post some pics soon .

thanks again , i realize these questions have been asked before , but its tough for me to retain all the different posts and solutions . also its hard for me to read cause i crouch to see the monitor . i know i am a wreck .

thanks so much .
MichaelS Country Boy Guitars May 13, 2010 at 6:58pm

For the nut and bridge, juts try them you may want a small notch to keep the string from moving sideways but if the tube is hollow don't make it too deep. If they crush as Alan predicts, put in something else. They may create a neat sound. Oh yea and cool amps, I like the aluminum one.
Dianne Woods May 13, 2010 at 6:18pm

Very nice amps, great job.
Alan Roberts May 11, 2010 at 2:29am

>now i am noticing this 24.5 scale . does that mean the distance from the nut to the bridge is 24 and a half inchs ?

Yes, the "scale" is just the length of the vibrating string, from where it no longer touches the nut to where it just starts touching the saddle.

>cuz if so i need to cut 4 inches off the head stock part .

Only if you want to. You can leave the peg head as long as you wish.

>since its my first build , i wont fret it but will need to mark it , maybe just shapie marker , then a light coat of stain / sealer over that . i have some hollow aluminum tubing for the nut and the bridge . is that smart ?

Would depend on how thick the walls of the tube are. Aluminum is fairly soft. What kind of strings are you using? Steel strings could crush a thin-walled tube.

>do i need to notch it with a file ?

Depends on your playing style. If you are going fretless to play ol' style bottleneck blues, you could have a fairly high action and not need any notches at all. If you want to be chording, you might need to move the strings closer to the fretboard somehow.

>i have some piezos that i scrapped out of some junk , where should i mount them to get the highest output ?

Inside, close to the bridge. This just the opinion of somebody who's started out building CBG's. but it should get the ball rolling; if just to have people tell me what I said wrong...
petey twofinger May 11, 2010 at 12:38am

here is a link to that metal amp i made :

http://www.cigarboxnation.com/group/amps/forum/topics/metal-amp?xg_...

This reply was deleted.

Build a Cigar Box Guitar 101

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