Albeit guitar manufacturing has come a long way in the past hundred years, there is a long history to show that you don't need much to make a guitar. All you need is a box to resonate the sound, a plank of would to act as the fretboard, a few screws, and some string. On account of its simplicity and instant reward factor, it is still pretty fun to build one of these traditional homemade guitars.
Yet, it would be a little silly to ignore all of the great things that have happened to guitars in the last hundred or so years. With this in mind, we are going to be bringing this cigar box into the modern era by amplifying it with a piezo contact pickup and a volume knob.
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You will need:
- 10K-Ohm Audio Control Potentiometer with SPST Switch (Model: 271-215 | Catalog #: 271-215)
- 90dB Piezo Pulse (Model: 273-066 | Catalog #: 273-066)
- 1/4" Mono Panel-Mount Audio Jack (Model: 274-255 | Catalog #: 274-255)
- a cigar box
- 3 feet of 1x2
- 1-1/2" section of half round
- 3" section of half round
- (x3) 1/4" x 3" eye bolts
- (x3) 1/4" wing nuts
- (x3) 1/4" nuts
- (x3) 1/4" washers
- nylon guitar strings
- 5-minute epoxy
- 10K-Ohm Audio Control Potentiometer with SPST Switch (Model: 271-215 | Catalog #: 271-215)
- 90dB Piezo Pulse (Model: 273-066 | Catalog #: 273-066)
- 1/4" Mono Panel-Mount Audio Jack (Model: 274-255 | Catalog #: 274-255)
- a cigar box
- 3 feet of 1x2
- 1-1/2" section of half round
- 3" section of half round
- (x3) 1/4" x 3" eye bolts
- (x3) 1/4" wing nuts
- (x3) 1/4" nuts
- (x3) 1/4" washers
- nylon guitar strings
- 5-minute epoxy
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I am just finishing my first build and about to start a second (just like this one shown in this 'ible).
You actually want to get 6 1/4" washers as they tell you to put one on the back and front of the headstock for each eye bolt. Being out of washers, I fashioned some from an old bread pan, it's quite classy :) It's also nice to have things like random files, a coping saw and some good clamps help the process.
Other than that, I drilled into the bridge side for my jack and used a spade bit to widen the hole enuf so I could fit it in. It makes sense to put it on the bottom, but I like it on the side. I taped my piezo right under the bridge on the bottom of the neck.
It turns out feeling like a 3-string diddley bow to me, but I could see how lowering the bridge and nut down and adding frets would produce a different instrument altogether.
For fret markers, I have been using stickers and then taping over them with clear packaging tape. It's easy and that's all I really need.
http://www.cbgitty.com/?p=87
This site helped me setup the wiring for the guitar. Use alligator clips to replicate it then check it with an amp to see if everything is working right before you solder it in.
Great ible!