Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by c# merle on February 26, 2014 at 11:39am

How much time & effort do you put into your builds?

1; too much time really. but the thing i've garnered from building and selling is that people want the unusual, so forget using tonewood for the boxes - an everyday item, such as a cigarbox or biscuit tin made into a guitar turns way more heads than a superbly crafted wooden box.

2; sell locally. get out there and play them suckers - corner of the street or an open mic, whatever, just let people know it doesn't just look cool or some kind of gimmick - you can play some seriously good music on it .

you won't get rich but you could get by

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Permalink Reply by G.S.Monroe on February 26, 2014 at 12:38pm

In some ways this thread has wandered off topic. I appreciate all the input, but I was primarily concerned about if I am basically overbuilding and in the process pricing myself out of the market. I'm currently struggling to improve my playing skill, but that also takes time & practice. I've felt that building the best instrument that I can build, profiling the necks with rasps and shavers, using quality wood & components, would pay off with bringing higher prices. So far though that has not been the case. I do have a vendor booth at a local farmers market, but I see the same crowd there week after week and I think I have met the local demand. Ebay sales have remained slow, and reviewing the "Sold" history in the Cigar Box category shows that the lower cost, lesser quality builds are were that market is. Which is why I asked this question hoping to get second opinions & viewpoints from other builders. 

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Permalink Reply by Randy S. Bretz on February 26, 2014 at 1:27pm

Greg your biggest problem is your an unknown really. Most established builders have been doing it awhile and have good size customer base with probably some well known players as customers. Yeah I agree with Merle try and keep the builds simple with a descent price, hell try doing some bonus gifts included in the sale such a slide [ wine bottle slides are cheap ], pick and strap. Or combo builds like a cgb amp and a build. Also I don`t want this to sound harsh but if your going to build something it helps to know how to play it...I`ve seen some of your demo vids. Maybe you could get Dewy to do the demo`s for you he`s an excellent player. Of coarse if I ever thin my hoard of builds I`d be asking top dollar too, in hopes no one would buy one...lol.  Just try some simple no brainer builds...rustic beatin up ones...like you just found it in grandpa`s barn look.

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Permalink Reply by ChickenboneJohn on February 26, 2014 at 10:25pm

Hi GS, I think you are taking far too a simplistic view about selling stuff. It is not all about cost vs quality. Repeating what I said before, reputation and experience count for a lot...it's taken maybe about 8 years for me to become an overnight success. 

People who are selling low grade stuff at rock bottom prices are not making any money because they don't need to make money. If you want to make a success of it I'm afraid you won't find any magic answers by spending time on internet forums, you have to put in the hours (and months and years and mileage) out in the real world. You need to work long hours (I start at 6.30 am typically), give up your weekends by driving thousands of miles to get to guitar shows and festivals...(for example, out of 4 continental European road trips I made last year, the toughest was Bremen, Germany and back from the UK in a weekend for 2 workshops and a gig..thats about 1700 miles plus 2 x 3 hour sea crossings and overnighting on the floor of a tiny apartment after lugging 1/2 ton of gear up 2 flights of stairs from the van to make sure it was all safe.  I don't want to big myself up here by telling you how hard I work, it simply is what you need to be prepared to do if you want to make a living at it rather than dream about it. Harsh I know, but it's reality.

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Permalink Reply by Old Fingers Green on February 26, 2014 at 1:21pm

I'll throw in on this since I'm about to move to a place with a workshop so should hopefully be selling more.. Ebay serves a purpose but I've never sold one on there because a quick look shows that (in the uk at least) the overall quality is fairly poor, very much "stick in a box" types which is all well and good and serves a purpose but a large portion of people who see these on ebay aren't going to tell the difference between a "good" or "bad" CBG. I think if you want to sell a good quality instrument for a good price then targeting sales is a good idea. Any of my instruments that have been sold for a decent amount have been directly to bands. I'm fortunate enough to know a few musicians and I now have orders standing by from musicians I've never met because they musicians tend to talk. Try local bands or like has been suggested some open mic nights. If you want to sell a high class instrument it has to be to somebody who knows what they are looking at (Or somebody with throw away cash) so targeting musicians has to be the best way.  

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Permalink Reply by Slowpaw Steve T on February 26, 2014 at 11:34pm

I had a fine one this week, sold him  £100 model and he returned it, because the "frets were getting in the way of the slide"...i offered to de-fret it for him and change the bridge for free and just charge the return postage and he says firget it, gimme back my money...that's the 2nd time out of many builds i've had to take back, but like they say the best buyers are the educated ones...(-;

 

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Permalink Reply by ChickenboneJohn on February 26, 2014 at 11:56pm

I'd have politely told him that it's his playing that's the problem, suggest he shim the nut and bridge maybe...despite the temptation to say "feck off and learn how to play". I've not had that problem, and you can't really account for idiot punters, but it's a good position to be in if you have 100% confidence that you know what you are talking about. The customer isn't always right, sometimes they need a little bit of educating.

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Permalink Reply by Slowpaw Steve T on February 27, 2014 at 3:58am

i got it back today CJ and, as i suspected, it played beautifully.. (-;

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Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on February 27, 2014 at 5:42am

case of "buyer's remorse" compounded by "chronic butth***".  Regardless, you still did the right thing.  You will have a clear conscience.

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Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on February 27, 2014 at 3:05am

you can make "good enough", cheap (less than the price of a squire strat), if you mass produce.  For me, that was never the answer.  So, I build better quality for myself, play until I get bored, or want something different and send it down the line, either as a gift or for 2-5 times material cost.   The exception are labor of love builds or true "custom" jobs where someone comes to me wanting a very specific guitar with certain characteristics.

I'll never make a living at it, don't intend to, but have always covered my costs in materials and tools.,,,hmm come to think of it, I need to get out and buy that spindle sander.  I'm putting "wings" on my newest "favorite" CBG and that will do a better job.

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Permalink Reply by Comrade Paul on February 28, 2014 at 6:39am

My two cents isn't worth a farthing, but I'll spend anyway.  I'm fortunate enough to be able to build as a hobby.  I love guitars and I love woodworking so for me it's sawdust therapy.  I build for friends and family and give them as gifts.  I only give to those who play, and I try to tailor to their style of play - do they like acoustic, roots sounds, electric, lead, rhythm, etc.  My dad used to say about work; "If if was fun they wouldn't have to pay you."   But I think the really answer is: "If it's fun then you have be much better than everyone else."  So if you are making just ok CBG's for non-players you will likely be hungry, And know that eventually some mass manufacturer with plants in China will produce them and take away everyones entry market.  But if you truly become a luthier and make custom high quality instruments or even amazing novelty ones, there's maybe a market, but it's reputation based and a long hard slog to get there.  And likely when you get there you will have sucked all the fun out of the whole process anyway, but hey, it's a living.

I've only built seven real CBG guitars and I've found unless I accept a new challenge each build, its not as fun.  I've made some decisions early on in my jouney.  One - I want to build 'real' instruments that play well and last.  I am not making novelty boxes, I'm making musical instruments for real musicians to play. Two - I will use quality supplies, hey if a spatula makes a good effective tailstop than I might try it, especially if experience builders recommend it.  But if I'm going to make a resonator, I'm gonig to use Lowe's cones, not kitchen stirring bowls.  That's my choice.  I have nothing but admiration for the folks that use everyday items and make them sound great.  Maybe when i become a better builder I'll accept that challenge.  Right now I don't know enough to determine what will work and what screws the pooch. Three - I will not sell my builds; they still aren't that great and as soon as I do it will likely stop being fun. 

I wish you good luck in your efforts to earn a decent living and admire your work ethic.  It's a damn cold world out there.

 

 

 

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Permalink Reply by John Sawyer on March 4, 2014 at 8:03am

That, kind sir, is the difference between a hobby and a career...  :-)  My computer obsession was fun until I had to make it pay the bills...

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