Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Wes "I'm Baaaaack" Yates on December 21, 2009 at 6:32pm

Try something in the 23" - 25" range. 24" is popular. It really all depends on you. Scale, tho can matter, won't matter as much in CBG construction. Mostly what is comfortable for your hands (smaller scale == frets closer slightly together). Check out the plans in the 'Free Resources' section above.

Remember, there are No Rules Here. Build and if it sounds good, bravo. If it sounds off, build or rebuild again.

-WY

Permalink Reply by Mr. Toad on December 21, 2009 at 7:23pm

Thak you Wes.

Wes Yates said:

Try something in the 23" - 25" range. 24" is popular. It really all depends on you. Scale, tho can matter, won't matter as much in CBG construction. Mostly what is comfortable for your hands (smaller scale == frets closer slightly together). Check out the plans in the 'Free Resources' section above.

Remember, there are No Rules Here. Build and if it sounds good, bravo. If it sounds off, build or rebuild again.

-WY

Permalink Reply by Travis "SlackJack" Woodall on December 22, 2009 at 1:40am

Jim, your "I just want to play" attitude is all you need!! Wes has built a lot more than I have so I agree with him...I have built several and used a different scale length every time just to experiment. The two I am working on now are 23" scale but I have built as long as 25 3/4 and as short as 20 and they both sound great. You will find that the shorter scales will create less tension on the neck and may change the keys you will be able to tune to, but that's just a good reason to build more than one!! Good luck, everyone on here is really helpful.

Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on December 22, 2009 at 2:54am

Jim,

If you are looking for a "guitar" sound... stay in the 23-25 1/2 scale length. If you don't know what you want, and you don't have access to builders with a variety of CBGs (how far to Wichita KS? hehehehehe) then just build. Building and playing CBGs becomes a passion and once you get your feet wet, you will want to try everything. I just finished # 192 and 193 last night with scale lengths from 12" to 43" and I can't wait for the next one...

have fun, let us see what you come up with....

the best,

Wichita Sam

Permalink Reply by Mr. Toad on December 23, 2009 at 5:02pm

Thank you all and merry Christmas.

Wichita Sam said:

Jim,

If you are looking for a "guitar" sound... stay in the 23-25 1/2 scale length. If you don't know what you want, and you don't have access to builders with a variety of CBGs (how far to Wichita KS? hehehehehe) then just build. Building and playing CBGs becomes a passion and once you get your feet wet, you will want to try everything. I just finished # 192 and 193 last night with scale lengths from 12" to 43" and I can't wait for the next one...

have fun, let us see what you come up with....

the best,

Wichita Sam

Permalink Reply by Steve Banks on February 3, 2010 at 1:26pm

If it's any help, I just bought a steel yard-stick looking thing from Stewmac that has a 24 1/2 and 25" fret scales on it. I just laid it on the peice, marked the frets sites off, and cut the slots with a fret saw I also bought from them. I would also think if you're used to a favorite guitar, you could just copy the scale off of it's neck. One thing I learned the hard way: that bridge placement is critical for intonation. A rule of thumb a guy told me was to make sure the distance from the nut to the 12th fret is the same approximate distance as from the 12th to the bridge. I don't know how scientific that advice is, but for what it's worth...

-Steve

Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on February 3, 2010 at 1:37pm

Steve,

Sounds like you're on the right track

the best,

sam

Steve Banks said:

If it's any help, I just bought a steel yard-stick looking thing from Stewmac that has a 24 1/2 and 25" fret scales on it. I just laid it on the peice, marked the frets sites off, and cut the slots with a fret saw I also bought from them. I would also think if you're used to a favorite guitar, you could just copy the scale off of it's neck. One thing I learned the hard way: that bridge placement is critical for intonation. A rule of thumb a guy told me was to make sure the distance from the nut to the 12th fret is the same approximate distance as from the 12th to the bridge. I don't know how scientific that advice is, but for what it's worth...

-Steve