Cigar box guitar page john anthony guitars, luthiers. There are two kits, or amp modules, id recommend for making your first cigar box amp. Cigar box guitars are just thata guitar that is made from an old, empty cigar box. The thickest string goes on the left, if you are looking at the instrument from the front. Place the bridge bolt in place, as well as the eye bolt at the bottom of the guitar and tune it up. Now, i could write a huge post about how to string up your cigar box guitar, but to be honest there is a wealth of information on the internet and thousands of videos, so check out the video below by fordummies on how to string an electric guitar. Simple lap steel guitar i call this lap steel guitar simple because it is basically just a blank with strings attached. Free guitar plan download by jaguitars john anthony. How to build a 3string cigar box guitar free plans.
The second is a low voltage audio amplifier njm386d lm386, which can be found. Before making the guitar, i decided that it should be made from either foun. I use it and the pocketknife to shape the headstock into the shape i want. Over the past day and a half max and i made a pair of cigar box guitars. One cigar box styles vary one set of strings 3string cigar box guitar pack, acoustic medium three tuners with bushings and screws. They got a wooden cigar box, put a hole in it for the sound to get out, put a stick in it and a few wires from the screen door and a guitar. The tool crib 11 free guitar plans, 20 guitar building. Cigar box guitars are nothing new but there has been a resurgence in the art of building and playing them. I like to use the wood file because i can file away little bits of the headstock at a time without going overboard. How to build a fretless cigar box guitar1 astons music. Other planslinks cigar box guitars, other plans 3string cigar box guitar these are easytofollow plans that started the cigar box guitar revolution. C cigar box many tobacconists will give cigar boxes away free. From the mid until early cigar box and home built guitars have been made by. We guarantee that the boxes we supply will work just fine for building a cigar box ukulele.
From the start the idea was to make these out prototypes for a proper build further down the track, but happy to say that even as. A fully illustrated, easytofollow guide to building your own cbg cigar box instrument building book 1 ben gitty baker 4. Cigar box guitar cigar box guitars author david sutton. For those feeling a bit intimidated by the plans above, the cigar box guitar should be a great place to start. These are nominal sizes and will certainly be smaller than the given dimension. People didnt have extra income to buy guitars, so they got creative. Cigar box diddley bow kit assembly instructions product. For these particular cigar box guitar plans i used maple and black walnut for the neck, headstock, fretboard and fretboard markers as well as the bridge. Various ways to build your cigar box guitar cigar box. Cigar box guitar kits to build and play in this guide im going to talk about how you could put together a full cigar box guitar in as little as 30 minutes, using nothing but a regular screwdriver and a. Cigar box guitars are often associated with the depression era, when regular guitars were handmade and cost a great deal of money. Gitty crafter supply 10 main street suite 201 rochester, nh 03839. This was one of the first plans drawn up in the range, and is in. The onestring banjo, the cigar box guitar, and similar vaudeville favorites are giving way to the tantalizing ukulele, and the home mechanic, to be up to date in his musicla craftsmanship, must fall in line.
This is the first one ive ever made so it was a bit of a learning experience. Just a quick post to let you all know that the cigar box guitar plans page is now live. How to build a cigar box guitar video by glenn watt. How to build a 3string cigar box guitar free plans this free 8page guide will show you all of the steps needed to build your first 3string slide cigar box guitar. How to build a cigar box guitar by jim snow updated sep 2010.
Forward this short ebook will help you play chords on your 3 string guitar. The objective is to make the top surface of the neck flush with the top surface of the box. This involves notching the box to fit the neck and cutting holes in the box to let out the sound. After that, youll follow a clear, stepbystep plan filled with crisp, colorful images to build a 3 string, fretless, cigar box guitar. The guide makes it easy, outlining all of the parts and tools you will need along with helpful hints on where to get them, and with clear, photoillustrated instructions on. I usually end up paying a dollar for them at a place near my house.
In it, he covers some of the more advanced techniques involved in building a highend solidbody 6string electric guitar using a cigar box body. Im tuned to g, if youre not then ill leave it you to. Simply add your own 1 x 2 x 34 hardwood plank for the neck. Josh gayou of smokehouse guitars created this 179page guide back in 2010, and decided to give it away for free to the cigar box guitar community. Cigar box guitar plans rare corojo cigar box guitar build. This gives a powerful sound when amplified and over driven. You need a piece of hardwood about 36 x 2 x 1 x 50 x 25 mm.
Build your own 3string, electrified cigar box guitar and make some sweet sounds. Before the 1950s, when factory guitars became less expensive, many folk musicians built their own stringed instruments. This page has plans for most of the standard guitar scale lengths and also has headstock layout plans too. There is also the chance your kit will come with a plain wooden box the one shown in the listing photos is a good example of the size of box included in the kit. He uses john pearse acoustic guitar strings, gauged. However, that doesnt mean that the instrument lacks anything a lap steel guitar needs, and it can be played just as well as any other lap steel instrument. Using acoustic guitar strings is recommended by shane speal, the king of the cigar box guitar, and im not one to argue with the king. Wooden cigar boxes, which were solidly constructed connoisseur objects, became a popular choice for the instruments bodies. A completed cigar box diddley bow, built during the writing of this guide. How to build a cigar box guitar free plans download. Most of the parts can be found at a hardware store. These are the plans that inspired shane speal to build his first cigar box guitar. Thus, an american tradition was born, and today, the cigar box guitar is enjoying a folk revival. Cigar box guitar for sale on etsy s guitar box guitar plans see wide video below 2 cigar box guitar videos.
This article is intended as a reference for anyone who wishes to build a guitar, but does not want to spend a great deal of time or money on the project. The size and style of the cigar box in your kit will most likely be different from this one. The scale is the distance between the nut tuning peg or head end of the strings and the bridge. Gitty free cigar box guitar plans download free plans file size. Not yet because i dont use that particular tuning here. Wooden cigar boxes, which were solidly constructed connoisseur objects, became a. If you cant find a cigar box, an intact pizza box will also work. Five years ago, make featured an electric cigar box guitar project volume 04, page 76. Thanks go to ed vogel for the original article in make, volume 04. Quick start how to build a cigar box 3 members like this john red dog mcnairs unique take on cigar box. These plans are based on the cigar box guitar that rockabilly legend, carl perkins played as a child. Advanced cigar box guitar building guide by joshua gayou.
Chances are, youll want to plug it in and annoy your neighbors. Tools needed the following tools are what we recommend for completing this kitthey are the same ones we used when making. The projects author, ed vogel, designed a simple instrument using only parts youd find at a hardware store. There are no rules as to length but 24 is a good start so we will use that. The process is similar to stringing up a cigar box guitar except you will be using 3 strings instead of six. Cigar box guitar pdf now at, brought to you by make magazine.
Shop our selection of microcontrollers, 3d printers, robotics hardware, crafts projects, and kits for makers and diy enthusiasts of all ages. The simple set neck design is very effective, think les paul junior for sound quality. Thread through the hole from the back, over the bridge then through the tuner hole. One cigar box styles vary one set of strings 3string cigar box guitar pack, acoustic medium. After my blog posts on paul mccartneys one, let alone the mike snowden shuffle ace from a couple of days ago, i figured it was about time. The objective is to build a cigar box that will take the vibrations of the guitar strings and pump out the sound. Maple, walnut, oak, cherry and mahogany are great choices. It has a stick for a neck, some wire or old guitar strings, something to tighten or loosen the strings to get it in tune, a resonating body the cigar box and something to fasten the strings onto, a bridge, a nut and thats about it. Put neck stock in the box with about 1 12 sticking out the side and measure 34 the way into the box from where the tail end meets the box. How to make a simple cigar box guitar metric included.
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