softwood broomsticks

Posted by Havana Honey on August 22, 2010 at 12:35am

So I'm having a bitch of a time finding hardwoods where I live. Seems everyone orders them on-line, sight-unseen. (I can't speak the language and nobody will help me more than two minutes to source things)

I'm seriously considering just using a broomstick, (well - actually some farming tool - since brooms are woven of straw and short) if I can find one.

I'm wondering if it will bow over time, thinking machine heads won't fit on them very well, and wondering how to make a nut on something round.

I'm gonna look at your museum footage again, but any hints you have for me would be welcome!

I actually don't play guitar - yet - I don't have a lot of money and I'm a very small person with small hands living abroad, so learning on 3 strings just makes sense for me on all levels. Plus I love anything geeky and hate when the soul is high-tech'd out of something.

THANKS!

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Replies

Havana Honey September 9, 2010 at 3:36am

His strings look like they're over an inch above the neck!

So you think this is by design to reduce the tension a bit?
GI Junker September 9, 2010 at 2:36am
GI Junker September 9, 2010 at 2:34am

Theres a guy out there his name is Super Chikan ( spelled just like that) in anycase he uses broom handles or something similar. You can find him on you tube. He has very unique designs and builds his own stuff. Check him out. I have one of his videos on my page of him preforming.
Havana Honey August 25, 2010 at 4:17pm

I went back, and the wood shovel handle is actually about 10" to where it splits, so that takes up about a little less than half of its length. (and with it's width, it's almost as wide as the box itself) I was thinking I could just use it as the head stock and put a broom handle through it, but then it will be heavily imbalanced. Back to drawing board...

Do CBG'ers ever weigh down their boxes?

My kingdom for a wood store!

3 string guitar said:
thats way cool!! I have never seen such a thing!
3 String Blues August 25, 2010 at 12:31pm

thats way cool!! I have never seen such a thing!
Havana Honey August 22, 2010 at 7:32am

I like the twisty end!
Naz Nomad said:

I didn't even bother to flatten the spots where the tuners were mounted on this ... and the nut, just cut a flat-bottomed slot the same as you would for any other neck.
Havana Honey August 22, 2010 at 7:24am

Will this work? The shovel handle is too short to run the full length...Ugh. That's a lot of wood removal by hand...I was thinking bamboo as the connector, because it is strong enough I can take a slim piece and let it be the male piece and I can carve a female socket into the shovel and tail piece, giving surface area for glueing. Or do you think being made of two different materials will compromise it and contribute to bowing?

It's rotated correctly on my computer, but can't get it to upload that way - sorry if it's a pain in the neck!
Havana Honey August 22, 2010 at 6:54am

Thanks everyone!

This and a trip to my local hardware store has generated a lot of ideas - I'm going to try and draw them up and post them and get your opinions.

One thing I'm worried about is learning fretless and/or the best way to mark the chord locations on something round.

I'm really kind of sad about the wood situation, because I was REALLY looking forward to making a really nice fretted and veneered fingerboard. I took furniture class in the past and did everything by hand...but if I have to order tools and clamps and vice, etc. this project looks to be getting really expensive!
Naz Nomad August 22, 2010 at 6:26am

I didn't even bother to flatten the spots where the tuners were mounted on this ... and the nut, just cut a flat-bottomed slot the same as you would for any other neck.

With this one, I cut half the dowel away at the back to leave a flat surface for the tuners ... it's not gone out of tune so far.
J-Hob August 22, 2010 at 4:34am

I have built bass and guitar scale diddley bows from softwood broomsticks and they work just fine, no bowing that I can detect over 5 months, and seeing as you play them with a slide anyway it's doesn't really matter if there's a little bowing.

There's some photos from my diddley bow build here: http://www.cigarboxnation.com/photo/albums/diddley-bows-2 You should be able to see how the headstock was cut away little to provide a flat surface for the tuner, I just used a saw to do cut it.