Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Tim Pannabecker on April 4, 2019 at 8:03am

Will, you are asking some good questions, some of your questions are a function of personal preference.

since I’m new I will say that, for you to be happy, your guitar needs to be setup, with a scale in mind.  Meaning the distance between the nut and bridge, often 25” or 25.5”, in cbg’s.

Pit must be exciting to build your first Git, enjoy brother

Permalink Reply by Blind Lemon Cello on April 4, 2019 at 8:10am

If you can post a pick. 

Pic of big box I built, maybe help you.

Permalink Reply by KOOL DOG HOOCH on April 4, 2019 at 8:21am

Awesome build what are the box dimensions?

Attachments:

• 20190404_151951.jpg, 4.6 MB

Permalink Reply by Blind Lemon Cello on April 4, 2019 at 8:30am

Thanks!

16X9X3.5

Banjo 26.5" scale

DeArmond vintage Mustache pup, 10K+ ohm.

Testarossa is a nasty girl!!

Permalink Reply by Blind Lemon Cello on April 4, 2019 at 8:55am

PS

Gibson style tale piece and bridge. Bridge can be adjusted for height and each string for intonation. With the Mustache pup it is one of the best sounding axes in my studio.

Permalink Reply by John Sawyer on April 4, 2019 at 8:50am

There are multiple trade offs you have to balance...  

With a bigger box, you don’t want the bridge at the edge of the box as it reduces the number of playable frets on the neck.   At the same time, if you use a tailpiece at the end, if the bridge is too close to the middle of the box, your strings don’t have enough of a break angle (downward pressure on the bridge), and you end up with buzzing or low volume.

Personally, I like to put the bridge no further in than 1/3rd the box length,  the strings 2-3 inches back.. if the strings mount too close to the bridge, it can be a problem.

Some of these considerations are mitigated by the type of bridge.  Personally, I love a floating, banjo style bridge as you can set the intonation precisely.  I don’t care for the neck through design I generally make ‘neck to’ the end of the box design, then drill holes for string ferrules through the box...  (See my posted photos).

Take a look at the photo gallery, and see what others have done.   Lots of good folks here are happy to help, planning is the key to success, but don’t be too married to your plan as you discover problems, be ready to adapt,

Oh, make sure your fretboard is above the body.  A common mistake is not leaving yourself room to pick the strings as they are too close  to the lid.  This is fixed either  by raising the neck and fretboard, and/or angling the neck back a bit...

John

Permalink Reply by Tim Pannabecker on April 4, 2019 at 9:06am

17” box   And a floating bridge, mentioned by John ( great Bridge)

Attachments:

• 5F97A791-E406-426A-BD51-F00BDF5B123F.jpeg, 2.8 MB
• 5D139193-5B3B-4650-A80E-34B548488430.jpeg, 2.2 MB

Permalink Reply by MadGomer on April 4, 2019 at 12:35pm

John Sawyer's advice is very good. If you play sitting down especially, I think that approach sets you up for a comfortable playing position too. I have a similar sized box, intending to build it as a resonator with a layout pretty close to what he's describing.

Permalink Reply by KOOL DOG HOOCH on April 4, 2019 at 3:45pm

Thank you everybody for the advice. I have an old pancake Turner that I'm thinking about using for a tailstock for the strings and finishing nails for frets. Also considering springs for reverb (acoustic) any thoughts?