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first build- 2 questions

Posted by saul amerling on November 4, 2012 at 6:34pm in Building Secrets, Tips, Advice, Discussion

I am finishing my first  build using a mahogany box.   Should I glue the cover down to the box?  I assume I should, but hesitate to add too much glue and rigidity that might dampen vibrations.  Second question has the same concern- The neck is glued to the top(,front), but not the bottom of the box.  Would adding a piece of wood to take up the gap and allow me to glue the neck to the bottom (back) weaken the sound?  I want to do it just for the added strength, but not if it mutes the sound.

Any thoughts?

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Replies

  • Busyhands Slim November 5, 2012 at 12:22pm
    All the boxes I've seen (that are suitable for guitar bodies) have mahogany liners. They're tapered at the top so the lid will slide down over them easily.

    If you glue these to the sides of the box bottom, they'll keep the lid from moving around under pressure from the strings and you won't need to fix the lid to the bottom of the box.
  • Thomas "Duck" Petry November 5, 2012 at 10:10am

    Always good to keep the options open. You never know what you may want to do in there. :)>

  • Slowpaw Steve T November 5, 2012 at 2:14am

    Glueing the neck to the bottom of the box using an extra strip of wood will not weaken the sound, it will make the whole build more rigid, finish working on the neck/frets  before you mount it, do not glue the lid, lightly screw it down but add your electrics before you put the strings on (-:

    • saul amerling > Slowpaw Steve T November 5, 2012 at 10:04am

      Thanks for all the suggestions. I forgot to say that this is not an electric build.  I will just keep the hasps and see how it sounds!  Thanks

      • Slowpaw Steve T > saul amerling November 5, 2012 at 10:55am

        should still sound good acoustically (-:

  • Thomas "Duck" Petry November 5, 2012 at 1:33am

    I would say don't glue the box shut, because as soon as you do you will need or want to get inside to add a piezo or change something. Keep it simple and beware. Once you get the first one done, you will want to build another.

  • Dan Sleep November 4, 2012 at 7:36pm

    You are going to get a variety of answers. I never glue my lids down. If the box has a hasp, I use that, unless the hasp does not hold the lid down securely. If it is a paper box with no hasp, I put wooden blocks in the corners and screw the lid down.

    I attach the neck to the lid with screws, and do not attach it to the bottom.

    When I sell them, it seems like the first thing the buyer wants to do is see what is inside, so I open it up for them. No biggie, just what I do.

    I don't know if there is any significant difference in the volume or tone, as long as the lid has sufficient room to vibrate.

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