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Balancing the CBG in your lap...

Hey all,

Wanted some feedback here...

I am finding that in order to use my fret hand well (left hand), I CANNOT use that hand to "support" the guitar neck at all...doing that makes it real hard for me to move my left hand around quickly. Like Justin Johnson stated in his DVD, the CBG must be balanced in your lap so that your fret hand is free of having to hold the guitar up at all. The problem I have is I cannot balance my CBG on my right thigh...it's neck heavy and wants to fall downward at the head. So, I have to sit the CBG on my left thigh with the bottom outer corner straddled between my legs to make it balance. It balances perfectly this way and allows my fret hand to move freely (and fast) without supporting the CBG at all. But in that position, the jack/cord is sticking out the bottom side and jamming into my inner right thigh, so I have to spread my legs further apart a bit, which throws the balance off again. In hindsight, for me at least, it would have been much better to put the jack on the side up at the top (or maybe even coming out the bottom or even coming out the front), cause my hand/wrist/arm never goes anywhere near that area. Basically, I'm having issues trying to get the CBG balanced so I don't have to "hold it" with my fret hand.

Anyway, I bought a brand new strap, but just could not get it on (the leather is really stiff, LOL). I was really worried I was going to hurt the CBG trying to get it attached. It's not like the body is solid or anything. And I was worried if I put it on I'd never get it off, LOL. Seeing as how this balance issue has been something I'm still trying to figure out, I'm thinking a strap button at the head somewhere would have helped with the balance...maybe/maybe not.

Any balancing advice???

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Permalink Reply by Slow Blues Dani & Ol' Grey Bear on May 30, 2017 at 11:01pm

Have you tried using a right angle guitar lead? I find putting the guitar body's corner between my thighs works best too and a right angle guitar lead enables me to do this. Mostly I use a strap nowadays but if that's not an option then try the right angle lead.

Hope you find the solution.

Bear :)

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Permalink Reply by Snuffy Smith on May 31, 2017 at 5:27am

Yep, placing the body's corner between my things is the one position that gives me total freedom with my fret hand. The problem is my jack is poking me in the right inner thigh because it's coming out of the bottom right side. Hence, I have to move my legs further apart, throwing the balance off again.

I tried lastnight playing with it on my right thigh again. If I keep my arm resting on the CBG, it takes the weight off the neck and allows me to use my fret hand freely. The problem is that sometimes I lift my picking hand around the front to get a better angle depending on what I'm playing, and I remove my arm the body and end up messing with my fret hand again supporting the neck.

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Permalink Reply by Milt Haselmire on May 31, 2017 at 12:23am

Maybe consider moving the output jack to the front of the guitar. This is where I put mine and it eliminates this problem.

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Permalink Reply by Snuffy Smith on May 31, 2017 at 5:29am

I'm thinking whenever I buy another one, I'd like to have the jack placed on the side, but up towards the top

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Permalink Reply by Tommy Phillips on May 31, 2017 at 7:15am

This may sound strange, but my approach to this was to find an ugly tie at the thrift store and turn it into a strap for my CBG. It's cheap, so messing it up isn't a problem. It's easy to put knots in, to shorten it. It has a really nice made-it-myself vibe, too.

Attachments:

strap-1.jpg, 1008 KB
strap-2.jpg, 883 KB
strap-3.jpg, 1.1 MB

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Permalink Reply by Snuffy Smith on May 31, 2017 at 8:09am

That's cool. "Pick" actually sent me this lastnight:

https://www.couchguitarstraps.com/blog/2009/07/24/how-to-attach-a-g...

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Permalink Reply by the anonymous pick on June 1, 2017 at 7:40am

a few other ways around this .

if the box opens , you can add a counter weight in the back corner .

you could also use a right angle jacked cord that wont dig into your leg .

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Permalink Reply by Snuffy Smith on June 1, 2017 at 8:02am

"Right angled jack cord"?

I didn't even know they existed. Where can I buy one?

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Permalink Reply by the anonymous pick on June 1, 2017 at 8:43am

any music/ guitar shop should have em .. or ebay .

you can get even flatter ones , but they are not as good quality .. you can also just buy the ends and attach them yourself . (soldering involved though )

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Permalink Reply by Snuffy Smith on June 1, 2017 at 8:57am

Yeah, I think I've seen the cheaper ones you are referring too. They have a bit of a disc shape to them. I just emailed my rep over at Sweetwater to send me a link...I'll probably order it from them. Thanks Pick!