Soon to be finished? Cigar box guitar

[pete1951]

I had used this box to see if I could get an old speaker cone to act like a resonator, the experiment was a failure. It is now going to have a 6” cone added, then just a neck and strings and it’s done.


Cigar box guitars are ( if using a cigar box) usually too thin for really good tone as sound from the back of the cone is trapped and muted.
I have put some large grooves under the wood the cone stands on to get a little of that sound out.



Time will tell!
Pete

[Michael Messer]

Pete, I have just been reminded that you asked me to post a video of of my Schoen cigar box guitar. I'll get one done for you!



Shine On
Michael

[pete1951]

Thanks Michael, I’m sure the Schoen will sound better than mine, it look thicker, so more space for bass. But it would be nice to compare them.
Pete

[Bob Stockton]

It's a shame the speaker cone didn't work out ( although I'm not surprised ) - if you keep the voice coil you wouldn't need a pickup.

[pete1951]

I’m just about to fit this pickup to my cigar box guitar, but it looks naked






That’s better
Pete

Thanks to leedscitystompers for the cigar tubes

[bonzo]

You should be able to get some smokin' tunes now Pete! 😊👍🎸

[leedscitystompers]

Ooooh yesssss!!

Nice to see that tube going to good use.

❤️

[pete1951]

It’s a pity the box had been used before ( there are loads of unnecessary holes ) but despite the small body it has a good sound.




The neck has a surface mounted neck stick on the back. I didn’t want any wood inside taking up space ( more space-more bass)
Will do a quick video to show the sound ( yes I know you can’t see the sound but it’s the easiest way for my to do it) This also means the box could be replaced at a later date if a nice one turns up (yes I know you can get them on eBay, but I hate the idea of buying something that was designed to be thrown away)

Pete

[pete1951]

Now it’s in one piece and playable I have some improvements I would add to a second Reso-cigar box guitar. There is little space under the cone, and I feel that more space would be desirable. So the cone could be set higher, however this would mean that it would need a raised cover plate or very high hand rest. With 2 identical cigar boxes, I could make a cover plate out of one that would cover the cone hole and the pattern/ stickers on the cover would line up with the box underneath. ( it made sense when I thought about it, though it seems confusing written down). A higher bridge will also allow a 90 degree neck/heal angle that will mean more brake angle ( if I need it) the present tailpiece is understrung.
I’m fairly happy with the neck stick being screwed to the back, this means it comes off quickly and neck angle can be easily changed with a small shim. Hope to do a sound clip of some sort later today!
Pete

[pete1951]

Here we go, just noticed it’s a bit out of tune, but you should get some idea of the tone and volume. Most guitars made from a cigar box have little acoustic quality. My aim was to get a usable sound , hopefully it’s almost there. There is not much sustain and a danger it will sound a bit banjoish but on the whole a reasonable first attempt .
It sounds best when you play Arabian Blues, ( I can’t play in that style ) and the lack of sustain gives an ‘oud’ like quality .
Pete
It does show that a 6” cone can get a sound out of a very small box

[lonelyjelly]

I quite like the sound of that Pete, especially unplugged. I imagine you'll have a lot fun noodling away on it for years to come.

Good stuff :-)

Lew

[pete1951]

I got most of my fun making the thing, if I keep it , it will sit in a cupboard. I might make another ( with a few design improvements)
Pete

[lonelyjelly]

I'll keep my eye out for this or others in the future. Lovely playing too.

[lonelyjelly]

All being well, I'm looking forward to collecting this from Tony. Sounds great, and will be perfect to have for some sofa playing, learning and maybe even writing.

Out of interest Pete, what is that domed top slide you're using?

Cheers
Lew

[pete1951]

Dec 25, 2021 14:17:42 GMT lonelyjelly said:

Out of interest Pete, what is that domed top slide you're using?

Cheers
Lew

I saw the slide in a local music shop about 30 years ago. I think it might have been marketed by Picarto . When I got it it was 80mm long and still had tooling marks around it, at that point it was useless, much too long and very scratchy! However as I had a hacksaw and some wet-and-dry abrasive I could see it would be good after 5mins work. It has been my favourite slide ever since.

Pete


There were probably several people who didn’t know that slides don’t need to be that long and make an horrible scratching who bought these . Might well have been put of playing for years.