Meet my newest creation: #9 - "Die fesche Wienerin" - a double cake box four string guitar.
I had these two plywood cake boxes from Vienna lying around and couldn't resist turning them into an instrument... One was slightly smaller than the other (but exactly the same height) and individually they were too small for a full-scale guitar. But then I had the idea to combine them and make one guitar body out of two cake boxes... The boxes were a real pain to work with, because they're made from cheap and very flimsy plywood and they were not at all square. But eventually I managed to join them. I had to seriously X-brace the top, so it would be strong enough to withstand the pressure of four strings and to reinforce the joint of the two lids. The neck is made of mahogany. Since I don't own any power tools (with the exception of a drill) it's truly hand made: shaped with nothing but a handsaw, a rasp, a file, a little block plain, and loads of sandpaper.
The neck is finished with four or five coats of boiled linseed oil and buffed with beeswax. The body is finished with a few thin coats of spray lacquer. The side dots are made from Q-tips.
24.5" scale length, 15 frets, ball end nylon strings (the middle four from a standard six string pack).
I named her "Die fesche Wienerin" (something like "the snappy/jaunty/attractive Viennese").
Comments
Thanks, Bluesheart!
Awesome job you did with a great idea!
You're very welcome, Danny. And thanks, Carmen!
Very pretty! I like it a lot!
Thanks, Hans! Now I understand.
No need to apologize, Danny, there are no stupid questions! (I teach at a college and that’s what I tell my students at the beginning of every semester…).
Yes, this is a neck-through construction, but the neck doesn’t touch the lid (except from a small block of wood under the string holder - I had to screw the string holder to the neck, because otherwise the strings would have ripped it out of the flimsy plywood.) Everywhere else the top can vibrate freely. The construction looks something like this:
Forgive me the stupid question (I'm new to this CBG thing...) This looks like a neck through construction. If it is neck through, why did you have to brace the top? (The bracing is quite impressive btw). Doesn't the neck support the top?
Beautiful work!
Thanks, Bluesbob and Chribi!
I'm glad you find her attractive, Bob.
Meine Verbindung zu Wien beschränkt sich auf hin und wieder am Flughafen dort umsteigen, Chribi, aber es freut mich, dass meine Fesche-Wienerin-Gitarre auch einer echten feschen Wienerin gefällt...
Wunderbar, Hans! Als gbürtige Wienierin gefällt mir diese fesche Gitarre natürlich ganz besonders.