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Finding Cigsr Boxes

Where are the best sources to look for cigar boxes? Just starting out and need to pickup a stash of boxes to work with. What should I look for in a box? I’ve made a few traditional acoustic guitar and ukuleles so I know about wood. Are there certain types of cigsr boxes that are better suited for the task? I would imagine that having a box with a thinner top would help with tone & resonance. Any help is appreciated.

Thanks,

Mark

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Permalink Reply by Richard Haas on January 26, 2020 at 9:35pm

It seems to be getting harder to find boxes in the tobacco shops anymore for me. I ordered a big box of 10 cbg's through amazon and they were excellent. Different sizes was shipped and probably 2 or 3 aren't big enough for a cbg guitar but can be used to store parts in. They were in great shape with very little wear and tear showing..I've used 2 so far and they were paper covered but wood underneath the paper.

Also I have been picking up wooden boxes from walmart and they work out very good. Those are 8x8x1- 3/4. I found them in the craft section.

Hope this helps some for your venture into cbg building.

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Permalink Reply by Mark Ballard on January 27, 2020 at 5:25pm

Thanks for the info!

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Permalink Reply by Tim Ahlberg on January 27, 2020 at 1:37am

I ordered 20 boxes from Cigar International. They have 2 options.10 boxes for $15 for your average paper covered box and 10 wooden boxes for $25. I ordered 10 of each they are pretty decent. I'll probably build 4 or 5 from each type and use the rest for other projects.

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Permalink Reply by Mark Ballard on January 27, 2020 at 5:25pm

Thanks for the info!

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Permalink Reply by KOOL DOG HOOCH on January 29, 2020 at 10:28am

What are you looking for I have several sources and would be more than happy to help. $3-4 ea + shp(dep on source)

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Permalink Reply by Mark Ballard on January 29, 2020 at 1:02pm

Thanks! Would love to pickup an assortment of 10 boxes. For my first few builds I'm planning on doing "electrified" 3 strings. I tend to like the look of the all wooden boxes instead of the paper covered wood boxes but a mix would be good. Just love the simple look of the wood. Not sure what I need when it comes to size of boxes but really just kind of standard size (not too big & not too small)....LOL

Design I'm laying out is 25" scale if that helps. I've built traditional acoustic guitars so I understand the process. Just don't know what works best as far as a cigar box goes. Any help and guidance would be a blessing!

Thanks again,

Mark

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Permalink Reply by KOOL DOG HOOCH on January 29, 2020 at 1:19pm

I'm out of town for the next 2-3 wks. But in the meantime I'll put you together a mix. Here is a picture of an elec that I built with a paper covered wood box. You can also strip the paper off. Although I've never done it myself. Send me a friend request and we'll go from there.

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Permalink Reply by KOOL DOG HOOCH on January 29, 2020 at 1:44pm

I kind of forgot the pictures

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Permalink Reply by Dave Nyberg on January 29, 2020 at 5:42pm

I do it a little different than most. Because the thinner wood is usually the bottom of the box, I use that for the top of the guitar. It preserves the artwork of the box and also produces more resonance and volume than using the thicker lid of the box. It also allows the box to be opened from the back and gives you some storage for things like a small bag of picks, a slide and even a small music book. I also stopped using hinges for the tailpiece and switched to a string-through design using rivets as string ferrules on the top and bottom of the neck. I primarily build acoustic cigar box guitars, but I've done electric and acoustic/electric, too. Here's a photo of the inside of one of my builds. I get my boxes from local cigar and smoke shops.

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