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First build and it's a kit - can I just cut it off?

Hopefully I've successfully uploaded some photos to illustrate my query and that somebody will understand what I'm trying to say.

My CGB kit from GME arrived today and I'm thinking that I just have to dock the neck so it is no longer a "through neck" so that then I can fix the ash tray bridge on top of box when it comes in the mail. GME were out of them so I got the kit minus bridge and ordered the bridge from MRWS. I assume the maker has left it open for me to choose 'cos he didn't have the bridge to include in the kit. I'm worried I'll bugger it up by chopping off bits I can't glue back on.

Ok, so I assume if I chop off the end where the strings would have been anchored I'll then have to chisel out the neck so that it's flush with the fretboard so that the neck closes. Yeah? That won't alter any magic formulae I hope.

Next query is re the humbucker pickup (that's also coming in the mail with the ashtray bridge): do I have to laminate/glue and clamp bits of wood to the underside of the neck that's inside the box so that I don't weaken the neck when I chisel out a housing for the pickup? Is it recommended to have it all shaped and coming out of the box for strengthening purposes or is it just cosmetic?

First build and first post, so I'm all over the shop trying to anticipate unfixable errors . . . and waffling, sorry. Plus there's the bonus of Xmas with some people being unavailable - such as the bloke who sold me the kit.

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Permalink Reply by darryl kernaghan on December 21, 2016 at 12:11am

The kit is just wrong, a hard tail bridge and a piezo, almost work against each other in my mind, just a personal take, but we'll make it work, i do feel a bit sorry for Greg though, it would be very confusing on a first, the good thing though, once he absorbs it all, he'll be a hell of a lot more knowledgeable about the basics

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Permalink Reply by Moritz Voegeli on December 21, 2016 at 12:26am

My words Darryl an thanks for helping Greg!

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Permalink Reply by Greg Hamilton on December 21, 2016 at 12:57am

Hey thanks for all the advice and assistance. Can I give you a call tomorrow sometime or at a time of your choosing/convenience? As I, and a few others, have already noted GME are closed until 04/01/17 so I'm buggered until then. I'm thinking about asking for a refund when they're back. So in the meantime I might have a go at making a basic CGB from scratch. Good bunch of people on this site eh?

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Permalink Reply by darryl kernaghan on December 21, 2016 at 1:53am

check your messages, i gave my number, 10, 12 hrs ago, any time's cool, but my mobile rings out quick, we'll work something out

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Permalink Reply by Greg Hamilton on December 21, 2016 at 2:00am

Yeah thanks, I know I've got your number. Ok I'll call tomorrow.

Permalink Reply by Timothy Hunter on December 21, 2016 at 10:08pm

oops , i counted the 12 frets from the wrong end.. you are right this is an atrocious kit. what were they thinking???

checking back their 4 string kit also has the same fretboard in the pic... looks like they are trying to salvage dodgy guitar fretboards by cutting them down and throwing them in with a CBG kit... glad now i didnt get one as these guys are only 30 to 40 minutes up the highway from me...

I mean $55 for a cigar box and a neck blank with no work done on it? come on a bit dear...

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Permalink Reply by Greg Hamilton on December 21, 2016 at 10:35pm

Jeez they are close neighbours of yours! I really haven't set out to give Anthony a bad name though. It's just with him being closed over Xmas and no way I can contact him to see if we can sort this out ..... well it seems he's being convicted in absentia.

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Permalink Reply by Ron "Oily" Sprague on December 23, 2016 at 5:46pm

Greg,

I think Anthony will respond to my message, yours, and anyone else who contacted him about the fretboard in your situation. We're not trying to hang him, just trying to get him to rectify your situation, and prevent it from happening again.

Like Moritz and Timothy, I believe that these kits contain castoff factory second fretboards, that were cut down and repurposed. They actually can be used for a short scale CBG, but the fret markings are wrong.

Been thinking about this some, and you could actually use the existing fretboard. You could approach this a coupla ways. One would be to remove the existing fret dots, fill them with wood glue and sawdust, and stain the result to match the fretboard, then install proper fret markers in the correct locations. This is a fair amount of work, so let's consider that, since the fretboard looks to have been repurposed, embrace the repurposing ethos. Get one of those furniture stain pen kits used to fix scratches, and try to recolor the existing fret dots. Then, put a dab of white paint at the proper fret locations, or even better, get a single hole punch, and punch out some fret dots from some old credit cards, then glue them with PVA glue at the 3, 5, 7, 9 and 12 frets (double dots there) and then at the 15, 17 and 19 frets. It's a relatively easy fix.

For the neck, use the existing cutout, as in your first or second pic. Also, I'd put the larger of the two support blocks at the neck join, not at the tail, as that area gets more bending stress. Now, you won't have a tail extension. But you don't need it. Get yourself a decorative, fan shaped metal hinge, and use that to attach your strings. Put one side of the hinge against the tail end of the box, and screw through it into the wood block on the inside. Make sure the hinge can fold flat to the top of the box. Usually, these hinges have three holes, so you can just thread the strings right through them. There are hundreds of examples of these on the CBN website. Here's one:

http://www.cigarboxnation.com/photo/71tail

You can salvage this. It would be in the spirit of CBG building. But Anthony still needs to know that his repurposed castoff fretboards need fixing.

Hope this helps, and Merry Christmas!

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Permalink Reply by Greg Hamilton on December 24, 2016 at 12:14am

Thanks for that Ron and for the thought that you put in to the above. All looks a bit too much for this little black duck though. I'll go for the return option and hope that I can recoup my $145 investment (including post). I omitted to add that they forgot to include in the kit:

Transducer/Bug Pickup
Chrome output jack and Plate
250k Volume Pot

So rather than request they send the missing bits I'll request refund.

darryl kernaghan has fixed me up with all the parts (and some extra bits and pieces) to make my first CBG. It seems I should have used this forum for my first build rather than go for the crummy kit.

Permalink Reply by Moritz Voegeli on December 20, 2016 at 11:57pm

... or US$ 94.20: that's probably not cheap but cheapest china ware, if not manufactured in a north korean prisoner's camp... you can't get anything you want for «an apple and an egg»...