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1st time resonator build.

I'm thinking about building a resonator style guitar and was wondering if anyone would share some tips, do's and dont's regarding their own experiences building one. What worked well, what did not, etc.

This would be my first from the ground up scratch build. Not looking to get too fancy with it but am shooting for playable and not horrible sounding ;)

Maybe someone could recommend some reading material that goes into resonator guitars and what makes them tick. I've seen many a home brew resonator that have used everything from floor drain covers, steamer baskets, bunt pans and manufactured resonators. I would all would "work" to a varying degree but not sure which to try. Or more importantly, what to avoid.

Thanks, Ron

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Permalink Reply by Don Barnhill on May 7, 2012 at 9:09pm

how bout the cone cbgitty.com sells for a place to start?

https://www.cbgitty.com/cubecart/cigar-box-guitar-resonator-cone-7-...

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Permalink Reply by Clock The Wolf on May 7, 2012 at 9:22pm

Well, many have had good results from metal cat/dog bowls... a bit stiff, but they have their own unique sound. and this guy makes a great cone: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Aluminum-Resonator-cones-for-Cigar-Box-Guit... Heavier than a regular reso cone, thus better for the sort of stuff related to this site...

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Permalink Reply by ron carlson on May 7, 2012 at 9:44pm

Both of those look pretty cool. I like the AL. one on ebay. The box I'm going to use is a bit large and that 7" or 9" one might work really well.

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Permalink Reply by ron carlson on May 7, 2012 at 10:03pm

How do you go about locating the bridge? Once you cut into your box to position the resonator, your kind of committed at that point. That doesn't leave a whole lot of wiggle room if you need to adjust some if you want everything to line up. Sorry if these are rookie questions. This is all pretty new to me.