Gender
Male
Location
Leavenworth, KS
Birthday:
April 8
I have a few cigar boxes of the pressed board/paper variety and would like tips on proper bracing, etc. when using these boxes. I have built 2 in the past, a diddley bow and a chugger. All I did for bracing was to scrape the paper from the inside…
Read more…Am I the only builder around who solely builds un-fretted, stringed instruments? Many builders here on CBN (and elsewhere) make some truly beautiful looking and sounding CBG's. Most, it seems, have moved onto more intricate builds: fully fretted,…
Read more…I'm trying not to get frustrated fooling with piezos and their placement on my git. I've built one cbg (well, two...the first was a home built box disaster) and played for months with bad sound. About a week ago, I posted about proper placement,…
Read more…A buddy of mine loaned me the DVD of Robert Plant and The Strange Sensation in concert a while back and I finally got around to watching it and WOW! In fact, I've watched it three times. You can find it on YT and it sounds good, but the DVD through…
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Comments
I occasionally play my old lefties, but favor my most recent ones. I just don’t run into that many lefties to give them to.
I recognize all those influences on your building practices. I got started with a DVD by Bill Jehle and then found the yahoo group which transitioned to Cigar Box Nation. I have read widely and experimented over the years. John Nickel’s playing convinced me I need to try 3-strings which sent me through a new round of experimentation. I eventually went even simpler with 2-string chuggers. Mt latest bolt-on neck design is the result of a rabbit trail triggered by my 3 (at the time) year old grand daughter. I ended up redesigning the 3D printed Banjo Ukulele by Andreas Bastian which ultimately led to my current bolt-on neck. You just never know where and when inspiration will strike.
it’s a new year, who knows what’s next. I’m always trying out new ideas.
I appreciate your detailed comments. Sorry I am so slow in replying. You have thought through the challenges of making CBG switchable between lefty and righty. My builds are simpler as I typically don’t put a piezo pickup in a guitar unless someone wants one and I don’t fool around with controls since they are available on the amp. With my current bolt-on neck style the orientation is decided at the assembly point. I simply put the position markers (in my case letters) on the other side of the neck and use the appropriate intonated bridge. The way I drill the holes in the box, you could easily take the guitar apart and reassemble it with the box in the desired orientation. You would need a new bridge though. I typically build lefties for me and righties for everyone else. I like testing new ideas first, so I end up with too many lefties on hand many of which I eventually part out later. That’s the fun of building.
Have a happy new year!
Your comments about building a guitar that’s suitable for play left or right handed are intriguing and interesting! Do you have any examples? I noticed you have not posted any pictures.