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Permalink Reply by mark bellamy on April 23, 2012 at 11:06am

I havent been a member long and just saw this,what type of neck would you use?  how would you decide which type to put on.  i am inexperienced at this .  I was forced out of the army due to injury and always wanted to build musical instruments, specifically cbg and banjo and other type re-purposed material instruments/folk instruments.  I am still looking to find that pie pan banjo that pops up in google from a makers fair.

Mark

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Permalink Reply by Leroy Ginter on January 3, 2013 at 6:44am

I'm in the very new-to-this camp. And also very late to this discussion.  I've built 2 CBGs so far. The first was a slapped together piece of garbage. :)  Not much effort.  Not much positive result.  The neck was a hunk of lumber.  And the box was a a bit of scrap wood with a pizza box for the back.  Looked like garbage, and played the same.

The second build had a neck from an old Kent guitar.  It looked nice but I still had lots to learn.  It's an acoustic that plays more like an electric.  

I have recently acquired another acoustic guitar that I want to use.  I'd like to build the neck  myself but want to build this as a gift and I think that I'd be better off using the harvested neck.  I wasn't thrilled with how I attached the neck on my second build and I was wondering if anyone had pictures of how they attached an acoustic neck to a box.  There are probably many different ways.  I just like to know what others have done and what worked for them.

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Permalink Reply by Mark Bliss on January 3, 2013 at 7:32am

Man, you did dig up an oldie......

I'm not going to re-read the whole thing, so excuse me if I repeat something already posted into this thread. Well as I recall there were some things not to be repeated anyway........

My immediate thoughts about what you propose are that the two major obstacles are how to join the neck to a box, and how to get the scale length to work out for a fretted instrument. Neither are impossible to conquer, but both create a situation where just making a neck might be the same or less intensive a project IMO!

 

Anyway, one of the most simple joinery solutions would be to fit a neck block to the box, drill and dowel, glue and screw from the inside of the box.

 

Theres several possible solutions for the other problem and some have been addressed elswhere on this site, the easiest is probably to find (or build) a box longer than the average cigar box.

 

I saw a punch box/oak neck CBG in an "antique shop" a few weeks ago. Typical looking build, slab head, grommets, metal corners, hardwood bridge and nut. Fairly attractive build. Picked it up for inspection, slackened strings, no neck set so the action was way high as you moved toward the bridge, I didnt even bother to try to tune it up and check the intonation, but it looked quite off by eye, looked at the tag- $325. Now I wont knock that, but I will say, for that price I would gladly build a guitar with good intonation and action, a piezo, and have a practice amp you could plug into and try that thing out! Hell, I'd even throw in a KLB instructional CD for that price!

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Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on January 3, 2013 at 8:07am

Lero6y,

Since you "still have a lot to learn" after two builds, my question is what's the rush?  Why not drop back and build a 3 stringer properly (lots of free instructions available) and learn the basics that goes into a stringed instrument.  Then, step up to learning how to fret on a 3 or 4 stringer.  May take several builds but the CBGs will be yours.

 

If you eager to have a 6 stringer that is yours (well only partically, since you didn't build the neck),  I would suggest you scavenge an electric, try to do a bolt on attachment (much easier to get right) and voila.... there it is....

 

or, if you are eager to have a 6 stringer CBG acoustic that is really playable (and playability is more important than you having built it), then buy one.   The learning curve is steep and you're likely to go through enough $$$ trying to get it right that you could just buy one.

 

If you decide to build, it's easier to learn in smaller steps and more gratifying... of course ask for help along the way....

 

the best,

 

Wichita Sam

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Permalink Reply by Leroy Ginter on January 3, 2013 at 11:07am

Thanks for your reply.  The reason that I'm leaning toward the premade neck is because I would like to make this as a gift for my niece.  She's graduating in spring and I'd like to make something that is definitely playable.  I do have full intention of building my own neck and I do realize that I won't get it right the first time.  Fret-less would be the easiest but I want to try my hand at fretting it.  I just don't think that I can build enough to get good enough so that she will like it enough.  But that is my plan.  And I have been accumulating boxes for a while.  I wish that they were bigger boxes but that's the way it goes.  I can't stretch them.  The way the neck is set up, the bridge has to be off the neck.  (25 1/2" scale.)  It's not ideal but I'm not sure what else I can do.

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Permalink Reply by Dave Hill on January 3, 2013 at 8:28am

Hey Josh, I totally agree. You have to screw it up a few times for before you become good and skilled at what you do. I think it was Emerson that said..."I never encountered failure, just minor setbacks"

Yeah we have all been there! I guess its what makes building a guitar soooooo addictive......Dave

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Permalink Reply by David L. on January 3, 2013 at 8:37am

I recycled an old beat up 12 string neck for a nephew who has wide fingers so wanted a wider than normal 6 string neck.

It was interesting to do but a bit time consuming using a photo slide box (12" long to fit the scale) and wood to metal dowels (screw it into the wood then use a nut on the other end) so I could bolt it on (in the end I also glued it as a belt and braces measure).

 

Wooden dowels and glue would have been quicker - but others had commented on the wood to metal dowels so I wanted to give them a go.

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Permalink Reply by Leroy Ginter on January 3, 2013 at 10:59am

Hey!  Thanks for the Pictures.  The one that I did was similar. Only I had a bolt going in from the outside to a nut that was attached to the inside.  I think I may try your way.  

 

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Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on January 3, 2013 at 11:19am

Leroy, 

How big a box do you need to get the bridge onto the box surface?   If you're need a longer box, let me know, might have something I could send you....

 

Congrats on the upcoming celebration.

 

the best,

 

WS

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Permalink Reply by Leroy Ginter on January 4, 2013 at 9:07am

WS,

I temporarily forgot about the rake handle, 2 string I made.  Not sure how I forgot about that.  The one on the right is the one that I built from the old neck.  I had to add an extension to the box so I could add the bridge.  The neck that I have for my next build would be very similar.  I'd need a box about 13" long.  I've yet to find anything that long from any place I've been getting boxes from.  I could actually build one.  That would lack the character of an actual CB.  If you have one, that would be great.  Find out how much it would cost to ship it to North Dakota and I'll let you know. I'll keep looking for options around here.  

Thanks

LG

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Permalink Reply by Craig Mayhem on January 4, 2013 at 9:52am

drew estates undercrown gordito boxes are 13" long

13 X 6 3/4 X 2 3/4 "

I get 'em on ebay

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Permalink Reply by Leroy Ginter on January 4, 2013 at 10:31am

Thanks.  I'll look into that as an option.

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