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Do you rework your personal builds till your happy with them?

I know we’re not building over priced name brands here. Still it’s a musical instrument. If you find things about your guitar your not happy with do you tweak it? Leave it and play as is? Or start over with a new project?

Tweaking my first build.

When I built it I thought of only using it to play slide. So the strings sat a good 1/4+ off the end of the neck. However that seemed to limiting. So the first thing I did was use a really thin threaded rod to replace the 1/4 inch. Then I lowered my bridge by 9/16. (removed a block of wood I had under the bridge ) Now I’ll be re raising my bridge back up by 3/16. The saddles are up to high causing some unwanted rattle. Bring the bridge forward to reduce the scale length. Had giving thought to moving the bridge pickup closer to the neck. This would mean I’ve have to remake the pickguard. It’s not that the pickguard would be hard to remake. All I did was paint it to resemble the old striped Teisco Del Rays. And I totally dig the way it turned out. But still..... Maybe later..... A work in progress

To scrap this build and start over I’d be out a bit over $5 spent on the oak for the neck. Wood for the body and all the plywood I got for free. Toss away stuff from work. All the hardware can be reused. But tossing is not an option! Because there is still wood I can cut into! I’ll keep at this thing till I’m happy with it! Or it resembles swiss cheese. For me it’s not how many I have. It’s what I can do with each one. It’s not how much or how little work goes into it. It’s how happy I am wile playing it that counts. It’s been a blast so far playing on a fretless neck! A lot more fun than I thought it would be.

Do you have pointers on tweaking or reworking a cigar box bodied guitar?

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Permalink Reply by Dan Sleep on March 9, 2014 at 1:11pm

I only do minor tweaking. If it is something major, I end up just building a whole new instrument.

That said, every time I build one "for me" I end up selling it, and have to build another one. It is an endless cycle.

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Permalink Reply by Scott aka Farmer Ted on March 9, 2014 at 2:10pm

I have three previously built guitars on the "to do when I get the time" shelf. Just adjustments before sending out to a new home. Build, tweak, adjust, enjoy...next.

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Permalink Reply by Craig Howard on March 9, 2014 at 3:50pm

Fix it till its broke!

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Permalink Reply by Cause the Blue rat on March 10, 2014 at 1:26pm

I did! I did fix it till it's broke!

There are so many wonderfully bad things happening with this guitar right now... Got the bridge re attached. Still managed to get it to far over to the top side. The scale length is where I want it. 24 5/8. Lowered the strings closer to the neck. Now the neck is bowing from a more center point. Causing it to be a real pain to try to tune. Neck is two thin for a four stringer. This may become a three banger after all. When played like a fretless. well you ever hear one of those toy pianos? The clanky sound like an old Jack in the box? THAT's what my guitar sounds like! It's the most God offal thing to listen to. It had a bad sound before I fixed it. Now it has a really bad sound. Played with a slide it sounds great! Wile it's in tune. May end up raising the bridge again. Using a wider threaded rod for a nut. Play this thing on slide only. As long as I can tune it. Guess that's my biggest hurtle now. Maybe I can add wood to the back of the neck to make it stronger? Strip of steel screwed on? Find one wide enough maybe use it as a fretboard? Instead of place markers on the fretboard I'll have screw heads. Willing to try anything I'm skilled enough to do .

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Permalink Reply by Bad Finger (Eric) on March 10, 2014 at 2:22pm

Funny I was just looking at the first guitar I built that's hanging on the wall as a decoration because the mistakes I made make it about unplayable, but absolutely fixable. I've just been more interested in building new guitars than fixing my first one. Part of me wants to play it and part wants to leave it as is for the memory. I only have 15 others to choose instead.

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Permalink Reply by John Sawyer on March 10, 2014 at 3:42pm

Agreed on the Memory... Sometimes we need to look back at why we got into this...

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Permalink Reply by Slowpaw Steve T on March 10, 2014 at 10:40pm

There are a lot of parts that can be recycled - necks can be saved but personal builds need changes and maintenance all the time if they're being used, i 've scrapped many builds and used the parts on new builds, if it is not right i change it however much it costs. (-:

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Permalink Reply by Cause the Blue rat on March 11, 2014 at 11:40am

Bad Finger, not sure how many of these I'd make. But know I want to be able to play on each one of them. Cringed at the thought of using this as wall art. I've fallen in love with this thing. Wont give up on love!

John, I'm looking to make memories with this ugly thing!

Slowpaw, I'm having to much fun to give up and start over. Figure what ever I try or do will be a learning experience. If I came to it I'd be like you, I'd be more than willing to use it's parts to make a new one.

I will not be defeated! I think I know how to fix the neck. Going to make a jig that will allow me to use my skill saw to cut a slot threw the back of the neck. Running lengthwise. Hoping to find a piece of steel stock thats a good 1/8 thick by around 1/2 inch wide. I'll cut to the length needed. I'll cut the slot. secure the guitar neck to something completely straight. Hammer the steel into the back of the neck. Drill from the sides of the neck threw the new piece of steel. Counter sink those holes. Screw threw the neck to secure the steel strip into place. Plug those holes and fill the slot. Sand an play!

Because the steel is running edgewise to the fretboard it'll be harder to 'warp'. AND secured to the wood from both palm and thumb side of the neck. Securing it like this makes the screws themselves the pressure points and not the edge of the steel running under the fretboard.

If this works I plan on doing this to all the necks I make for CBG. Even try different approaches and see which one works best.

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Permalink Reply by Bad Finger (Eric) on March 12, 2014 at 1:03am

Was easier and faster to build my second guitar than work on the first. Then I had an idea for a Diddley Bow. Then another guitar. And then thought I'd try a canjo. Or two. And more guitars. And then a tin inside a cigar box. Then resonators. Oh my! So many ideas. Then back to the first guitar. Could just glue on a fretboard and it would be just fine. But it says "remember where you started" to me.

Now I think I need to try a hollow body lap/tapping guitar.

I play the heck out of 3 or so of my guitars and pick up one or two of the others when the mood strikes. At some point it is silly to continue building. And that point was long ago, but I still do it.

Back to topic, I tend to do little reworking changes when I change to a new set of strings - either when one set wears out or I want to try a tuning that is not compatible with the current set.

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Permalink Reply by Uncle John on March 11, 2014 at 12:35pm

Hmm. Good topic. Sometimes they are players when I string them up. Maybe this happens 1 in 4 times. Sometimes they need tweaked. Sometimes I put them out of sight for a while. Sometimes they become players and sometimes they get stripped.

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Permalink Reply by jabes on March 12, 2014 at 3:58am

i've just 'revisited my first, built 3 years ago, tuners on 'upside down and a piezo under the bridge,now got a hand made pup ( kindly donated by cbn member Richey Kay) and t and v pots and the right tuners. may go back and fret it at some point. i was more work than i expected ,but had a good result...

..also had to make a new body for another one but generally they all worked out ok.....so far.

like your rat by the way...