Notes on Making Sound Boxes for Metal Resonator CBGs

Hi All...

For a long time I have wanted to build a resonator based string instrument, but I've put it off for a long time because of a poor success rate on prototype builds. I had lots of excuses. Chief among them was the difficulty of cutting an acc

The Boat Paddle Box -- The Traditional Stick Dulcimer Soundbox

Dulcimer Documentation Project, Anyone Interested?

Hi All,

I'm working on a user's guide for stick dulcimers and it's turning out to be more of a tech manual. Seems I'm unable to write in simple plain English. I was wondering if there is anyone in this group interested in assisting in reviewing / rew

Some Great Banjo Building Ideas Found Elsewhere on CBN...

Hi All,

In researching on CBN how best to build a banjo, I came across some great ideas that I'd like to pass on to this group, since most folks don't like to dig as deeply as I do.

I.) Routing 5th String to Headstock via Side of Neck Groove

The fi

CBD (Cigar Box Dulcimer) Tabs -- Diatonic Fretting

Hi All.

Wish I could play the guitar. Wish I could play chromatic. Wish I could play chordally. I can't do any of those things, but I can play melodies on my diatonic stick dulcimers. So I thought I should create a discussion on diatonic tabs. I have

Why the Mountain Dulcimer's drone sounds better than a Stick Dulcimer's

Maybe it's just my ear, but since I built my own MD, I have decided that the string placement/order on the MD is superior to that of a stick dulcimer (strum stick, strummer, call it what you like). When you do a "down strum" on the stick dulcimer, th

Placing the Resonator Cone

Building Round Sound Boxes for Banjos

Hi All,

Recently while in the States I came across a series of videos that describe in detail how to build round sound boxes for banjos. In "banjo speak", the round frame for the banjo drum (sound box) is called a "rim" and it's been described as one

My New "Thin-Walled" Sound Box Design

Hi All.

Over the past few weeks I've been developing a new "thin walled" sound box design. My inspiration came from professionally-made instruments which usually have very thin sides (usually 1.2 to 1.5 mm thick). I usually make instruments with a 0.

Which is correct? Fret Marker on fret 9 or fret 10?

Excuse my ignorance, but I come from a diatonic (stick dulcimer) background and we don't use fret markers.  Now that I'm trying to cross over to the chromatic world, I notice that there seems to be a lot of inconsistency when it comes to fret markers

My Flying "V" Dulcimer Project

Shortly before Christmas, David, the son of a teacher-friend of mine, after seeing and playing one of my paddle-box dulcimers, said he'd like a "Flying V" dulcimer (a flaming red one). So, from this suggestion came idea for this project.

So, this fir

Rand Moore My Mountain Dulcimer Project

My piezo isolation seems to be causing the treble response to be antenuated (less than before)

Hi Guys.

I have gotten back into messing around with piezo pickups after rejecting them a couple of years ago because I was unable to sufficiently isolate them -- they were too sensitive, picking up fingering and handling noise, etc. You know the sto

My Teardrop Project -- A stick dulcimer with a tear drop shaped body

Hi All.

I've decided I wanted to try my hand at wet bending wood, so I'm planning to build a teardrop shaped bodied instrument (most likely a stick dulcimer) by soaking the wood for the sides until pliable, then forcing the wood into a jig/form that

Here's a Readable Re-Write/Re-Draw of the article "How to Make a CIGAR BOX VIOLIN" By P.M. Pennell

Here's the Text, Photos and Diagrams from the article:

How to Make a CIGAR BOX VIOLIN
By P.M. Pennell
Popular Homecraft
February-March, 1940

Photo Right:

A young maker tries out his cigar box violin

Photo Below:

The kind of Cigar Box Violin that thi

5-String Banjo Discussion Area

Hi All.

The 5-string banjo is what usually comes to mind when I think of a banjo.

If you have a 5-stringer, or are building a 5-stinger, or are interested in learning to play a 5 stringer, then here is the place you can ask questions.

Here we lo

The 3-String Dulcijo and Other Diatonically Scaled Banjos with Re-Entrant Tuning

Hi All.

The "dulcijo" is a unique 3-string banjo-like instrument that features diatonically spaced frets, a short re-entrantly tuned third string, and a small drum resonator. It was originally developed in the late 1980s by Michael Fox of Hickory, No

Neck Attachment Techniques

Hi All,

There seems to be some interest in the question "What's the best way to attach the neck to the box?" and it is a natural follow-on discussion as attaching the neck is probably the next thing you'll do once you have your box built and your

Resonator Parts (Cones, etc.)

Reso Bowl Guitar: no cigar box in sight