Cigar Box Guitars: building tips, music and the cigar box culture
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marcianx
- Male
- Chicago, IL
- United States
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marcianx's Groups
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It Goes To 11
115 members
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Steampunk Collective
76 members
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6 string CBG's
42 members
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CBG Tabs
111 members
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Best Deals Around
56 members
marcianx's Discussions
Scale Length
Let me second the idea of using mm measurements for marking fret lines. Much easier to do than using fractions of an inch.
Replied Jan 23
BUILDING MISTAKES
Oh, THIS is definitely the forum or me! LOL About half way thru my 2nd build. In my first build I destroyed the head stock while trying to slot it when I turned my router 180 deg. but didn't change…
Replied Jan 20
Show us your work space!
Here ya go... my lil thrown together 'workshop'. Gotta get another sawhorse and my router table setup.. but in the two weeks its been setup its been my refuge!!
Replied Dec. 25, 2009
◄ WTF!? How did I end up here, wearing this getup?!
Latest Activity
Amps, amplification, effects, hackwiring and general mayhem. Anarchists welcome
thank you... one of those "ah haaa" moments :>
a work of art! hard work making garbage look this good?! beautiful!
beautiful neck!! love the different color for the fret markers! are those individual cuts of wood or did you just stain them differently?
Nice work. I like the nut idea.
thx for the comments guys.. my son loves it.. he plucks away for all he's worth! lol
love the doorbell soundhole cover! very inventive
LOVE that headstock!!! Definitely gonna use that soon! Beautiful!
A place to discuss, dream up and create Steampunk instruments.
This is what I'm going after with my first build. I'm using a 20-22" scale, still undecided if it will be electric or acoustic, but I'm leaning acoustic.
marcianx's Photos
Marcianx's Blog
Disaster leads to learning experience...
...that I hope never to have to do again! LOL
Last Wednesday I was working on the head piece for my first CBG build. Drilling holes for the tuners that had just arrived. I was feeling pleased with the knowledge that I would soon be done with my first build and that I would probably have it ready before the new year and present it to my lil boy.
After looking at and measuring the tuners I realized that I was gonna have problems with the action/height of the strings over the nut. That lead to th… Continue
Last Wednesday I was working on the head piece for my first CBG build. Drilling holes for the tuners that had just arrived. I was feeling pleased with the knowledge that I would soon be done with my first build and that I would probably have it ready before the new year and present it to my lil boy.
After looking at and measuring the tuners I realized that I was gonna have problems with the action/height of the strings over the nut. That lead to th… Continue
Posted on January 7, 2010 at 1:57pm — 3 Comments
Adventures in first build land... 101?? no, 011 is more like it.
So I'm nearing the end of my first build and with it's many flaws, I'm still proud of it and I will hand it with much pride to my youngest son -- and hope with all my heart that he doesn't turn and swing it at his brother's head -- LOL, think I'm jokin'?.
I'm learning a lot w/ this build... like, how hard it is to work with purple heart(!!), damn shit is only slightly softer than concrete and will splinter whenever it damn well feels like it!! Now I remember why I have so much of this stuff lef… Continue
I'm learning a lot w/ this build... like, how hard it is to work with purple heart(!!), damn shit is only slightly softer than concrete and will splinter whenever it damn well feels like it!! Now I remember why I have so much of this stuff lef… Continue
Posted on December 21, 2009 at 5:41am — 2 Comments
Tools?? I got tools! Just no where to put 'em!
Today, while I was sweating away using a microplane to trim out a recess on the neck that will be under the box lid, I kept thinking to myself, "Damn, if only I could pull out the mini router table I could be done with this in no time."
The thing is stuck in a closet and I dare not bring it out just yet... not after taking over the dining room for the first week of my CBG build-- and feeling the wrath of the lil' lady (the silent kinda wrath, with knowing glances and grimaces.)
I spent this pas… Continue
The thing is stuck in a closet and I dare not bring it out just yet... not after taking over the dining room for the first week of my CBG build-- and feeling the wrath of the lil' lady (the silent kinda wrath, with knowing glances and grimaces.)
I spent this pas… Continue
Posted on December 15, 2009 at 11:30pm — 2 Comments
Sometimes... things just happen that way
I signed up with Ning 2-3 yrs ago, right around the time it came out. In fact, if I remember correctly, I created a couple different Ning accounts for separate purposes. Seemed like a good idea for a site and they had some big ideas.
I used it for a couple of days and left because it was so buggy and laggy that I couldn't even create a site, could barely play around with it. I had hoped to come back to it at some later time but never got around to it.
A couple of weeks ago (not long after I di… Continue
I used it for a couple of days and left because it was so buggy and laggy that I couldn't even create a site, could barely play around with it. I had hoped to come back to it at some later time but never got around to it.
A couple of weeks ago (not long after I di… Continue
Posted on December 12, 2009 at 4:22am — 1 Comment
Comment Wall (9 comments)
- At 12:34pm on January 27, 2010,
marcianx said…
- My new best friend! This little Marples pull saw (23 tpi) rips thru oak and purple heart like a hot knife thru you-know-what! The Shark pull saw is great for long pieces but in the few days that I've had the Marples, I've used it exclusively. Love this thing!
- At 5:40pm on December 27, 2009,
Tony Lazarski said… - Marcianix,
May All Your Dreams Come True. Peace & Love To The CBG Nation!!
Happy New Year, Great Boxes!!
Tony Lazarski
- At 12:58pm on December 25, 2009,
Scott Winburn said… - marcianx, thanks for all your kind words! Merry Christmas & happy building!
-Scott
- At 11:37am on December 18, 2009,
Lana Rae said… - Great to see you here! Looks like you are off to a great start!!!!
- At 9:47am on December 12, 2009,
Shane Speal said… - On behalf of the entire Cigar Box Nation, I would personally like to welcome you into the community. Whether you've already built your own cigar box guitar, are going to build one or are a performer who plays one, there are countless resources in here for you to get more out of these amazing instruments.
Here's a quick 'road map' to help you start navigating thru our community...
· The Free Plans section is our archives containing historic and modern step-by-step plans to build cigar box guitars, banjos, ukuleles and many other instruments.
· The Groups section offers specialized classrooms, discussions and various sub-groups of the Cigar Box Nation. Take some time to browse around and see if there's a particular cigar box group in your area or maybe a subject you needed help with.
· The Forum section is a place for people to ask specific questions to the general community. These questions may be about building, playing, selling and/or designing cigar box guitars and other related instruments.
· There is a Chat Feature at the bottom of every page at the gray bar. Click on Chat and a box will appear with the current chat. I am on the chat many times during the day. If you catch me in there, you can ask questions on building, playing and more. Also, there are many helpful members on there who will do the same. Pop in and say hi.
If you're a musician, make sure to post your own songs in the Music Player on your profile. Also post some pictures and tell us about yourself.
I'm truly glad you joined our community and hope it helps you enjoy these great instruments. There's nothing like a cigar box guitar...
Sincerely,
Shane Speal
Cigar Box Nation Code of Conduct
- At 3:54am on December 12, 2009,
marcianx said…
- thank you for the kind intros.. nice to meet both of you. I've looked at many of your posts and pics Tres. Your Punch CBG was one of the first ones I found here..
- At 3:23am on December 12, 2009,
Tres Seaver said… - Welcome aboard, Marcianx! You will find lots of helpful folks and information here on all things CBG (CBB, CBU, etc.) Feel free to poke around, ask questions, and post your stuff (photos, recordings, videos, etc.).
Most of all, have fun!
Tres.
- At 3:14am on December 12, 2009,
Penny Nelson said… - lol.... now people know that you have 12 years worth of cigar boxes you are going to be soooo popular....
Welcome, CBN is a fun place to be.
- At 12:22am on December 12, 2009,
marcianx said…
- I've been lurking around here for a few weeks, reading everything on CBG builds, tips and tricks.
I'm a cigar smoker, not a musician. I only discovered CBGs because I was trying to find something to do with my 12 yr collection of cigar boxes (10 packing boxes full) that was driving my wife crazy! LOL
I found that I could make woman's purses or build a CBG... guess which one I chose.. LOL! So I gave away half of my cigar box collection to my oldest son's school (have no idea what they are going to do with them, but I'm checking ebay to see if they turn up there :>).
I've taken the other half of the collection and gone through them one at a time with only one thought in mind, "would this make a good CBG?".
It's taken me awhile, but I started my first build this week... a mayorga robusto (one of my fav cigars), 3 string w/ a 20" scale for my lil'est boy.. all of 4 (and a half --as he would have me say it).
Since I have/had no knowledge of cigar playing/building, it's been an interesting ride.. learning along the way what a 'nut' is, what a 'bridge' is, what a 'fret' is (certainly changing my previous definitions of those words).
Last week I memorized the parts of a guitar, this week I'm building one.. that's jumping into the fire with both feet!
My plan is to build three CBGs straight away... 1st one for my lil'est boy, 2nd for my 1st born (my 'big' boy, all of 7) and the 3rd for myself. I've picked out the boxes for my boys (Mayorga and LaLuna robusto) but I haven't yet decided which one for myself. I have some gorgeous ones that I'd love to use, but I might need a lot more practice in building before I decide to take the plunge and use one of those beauts.
I live in a condo and only get time to work on my CBGs at night and on the weekends so I can't use power tools most of the time. Hand tools and the dining room table (my wife will rue the day she made me discover CBG building. HAHAHA) are what I have at my disposal.
that's all for now- runoutofspace
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