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William McCauley's Comments

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At 1:54am on July 21, 2012, MichaelS Country Boy Guitars said…: I only get the feedback thru etsy, but I can't see how an e mail would hurt.

At 5:26am on July 15, 2012, MichaelS Country Boy Guitars said…: I get feedback from my sales, all good so far. I have not followed up to far after the sale though. Are you an etsy seller also?

At 4:03am on May 25, 2012, Michael Fred Johnson said…: As a fellow old fart you will appreciate pressures of time and understand why the hut has only been completed 4 months before the 66th

At 5:17am on October 9, 2011, Hippy Chip said…: Good to see another "mick" building the good stuff. hope you enjoy your new toys as much as I do, Good luck

HIPPY CHIP

At 4:31am on October 9, 2011, Hippy Chip said…: I am going to post my first video right now---a little hillbilly lookin' thing that I have to keep for myself!

At 8:03am on October 8, 2011, Hippy Chip said…: the "big dog is 11x20x3. The neck is solid maple. the fretboard is bolivian mahogany. the box is redwood frame with aromatic cedar for the soundboard and bottom,redwood bracing, and custom bridge and tailpiece.It is fretted at 26 inches. I haven't quite figured out what strings to use yet, but I think it needs some fat ones to bring out the tone.

At 1:25pm on July 26, 2011, Uncle John said…: Hey, William! Thanks for the comment on my grand daughter's video. :)

At 11:32am on October 2, 2010, Mark Lillo said…: No I have not used finger joints. I just miter the corners and glue it up. I don't feel the need to brace anything, they are quite solid once they are glued up. The top and bottom of the box has a rabbit joint that the top and bottom fit into.

At 5:46pm on September 30, 2010, Mark Lillo said…: Hi, thanks for the comments on my walnut build. Yes I did build the box for it. I build all my boxes.

At 7:12am on July 9, 2010, Eric Townsend said…: Oh man, just thought -- are you suing your slide right? remember to use your middle and/or first finger to mute the strings behind the slide. otherwise you get that weird dual note ringing that can make everything sound out of tune...

At 6:46am on July 9, 2010, Eric Townsend said…: AND - I discovered a little trick when recording (and playing) -- I ran through a little compressor effect into the amp...evens the level out --- a little more forgiving and 'present' all over the neck

Also -- a good practice thing you can do is get ANY repeating simple bass line or Root/Fifth pattern -- or even a single open drone root note with a little drum beat under it -- and just start sliding around on your CBG to make a melody or explore scales -- it'll allow you to 'tune' your ear when sliding into notes more easily (not distracted by larger fancy rhythm arrangements, you're just hearing if the notes you hit CLASH or MELD --- and you can discover 'blues' scales and 'indian' scales ---

and the last thing for making a CBG NOT sound like crap? Just make the build SOLID SOLID --- all the joints and surfaces tight and good 'break angles over the nut and bridge. and maybe even little glued-in support strips of wood in the inside corners of your box.

Take a glance at my first build -- a PAPER THIN basswood box from a crafts store -- and this thing rings loud and long almost like a full acoustic guitar. a miracle. but I got to think its from choosing the heavy and stiff strip of Poplar and then reinforcing where the neck joins the body...

best of luck and just keep with it -- always keep the CBG next to the couch -- you'll get the hang if you just keep noodling around.

Best, ET

At 6:46am on July 9, 2010, Eric Townsend said…: Hi Will, thanks for the note on the tuners --- I just saw your Sunday post here that your CBG "...sounds like crap. had to restring it several times...can't play guitar..."

the 'can't play guitar' thing might have something to do with it. It'll just sound like out of pitch sliding around if you're just winging it with no knowledge of the fretboard. But I I know some people who can play a little pretty well, but literally have no idea how to tune a guitar or string it properly, so their guitars go out of tune and they don't know it and then stop playing. (A successful Punk guitarist I know has full command of his guitar and music, top notch -- but when I see his headstock it looks like a 4 yr old strung it up: half the strings are wound on the wrong side o the posts etc.

and fretless slide work isn't very easy at all-- don't beat yourself up too soon -- so much goes into the feel and intuition and ear for pitch and vibrato of some quality on held notes --- so just listen to a ton of CBG and slide work to burn the FEEL into your bones. Will make your playing better just through osmosis, and you'll luck into a tasty solid note or two and go "THAT'S IT!" (like your first good golf swing...you want to recreate the feeling again right away).

And if you strung up the guitar a little weakly, that'll make it sound dead, some pieces of wood you use for the neck might be a little soft and have dull spots when you fret a note with the slide in the middle of the neck (so good to use a STIFF harder piece of poplar or other).

But I discovered a little trick when recording (and playing) -- I ran through a little compressor effect into the amp...evens the level out --- a little more forgiving and 'present' all over the neck