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Comment by Dave Hughes on October 25, 2010 at 5:45am

Hi Don, your guitar is beautiful, a real work of art. Ever since I first stated looking at CBG I fancied a 3 or 4 string Gibson, probably something like a studio shape. One thing I can't get my head round is the size to make the body. Did you scale down a drawing of the real guitar and if so how much did you reduce it by. Any help would be great.

Cheers
Dave

Comment by Don Goguen on May 21, 2010 at 3:16am

Thanks Crow for the very high praise. It, like all complex projects, was solved one step at a time. This is only the 3rd instrument I've built. I'm working out many kinks in the process while I build, so it is mostly slow going. I have most of it drawn out and detailed in Cad. If there were interest, I would be willing to publish them to pdf's.

I'm an old studio guy who has managed to collect a decent variety of instruments. Your good old primitive instruments have there place, so no more talk about throwing perfectly good instruments under a truck. I'm a challenge junkie, so I tend to take things to the extreme.

As to sound, it exceeds my expectations plugged in. It has good tone acoustically but does not project like a regular acoustic guitar. I took a specific design approach based on what I know about acoustics (audio engineer by trade) and research into guitar design.

The pickups I build are specifically designed for 3 & 4 string instruments. Typically you will find 6 string single coil pickups with 42 gauge single build insulation and Alnico 5 magnets. When I started building my own cbg pickups, I discovered that the classic Tele builds didn't translate when built to 3 & 4 string pickups. So I experimented till I found the right formula using 42 gauge heavy formvar wire and Alnico 2 magnets. The results are a pickup that has good bass and highs that are full but won't take your head off. This design in combination with the types of tone woods I used combine into an instrument that has a kind of magic in your hands. There is a great deal of detail in every nuance of fingering an picking. The 3 string tele I built has this as well but the acoustic body on this one adds a level of depth to the electric sound.

I have a number of builds left before I could even consider building instruments for sale. Right now I'm at the phase where every build is like one of my children. I'm not sure if one should even consider purchasing an instrument from one as green at this as I. I would suggest waiting till I have a few dozen under my belt first. Besides, looks aside, you should be figuring out what suits your style best. That is what I'm doing with these builds. Most on these boards are blues oriented. I'm more Folk, Americana stylistically. What I've built here is not as well suited for blues and the action is too low for slide. The tele in my other photo album is better suited for that.

Again thanks for the input. I'm going to continue to build and will post what I have on this board. The next design is a resonator build using a 6 1/2" Ukulele resonator and cover. It is on the drawing board now but will likely start it in the next couple of weeks.

Comment by Crow on May 21, 2010 at 1:49am

i build highly functional primitive cbgs, and i'm very happy with them. i typically find myself thinking i'm the most happy out of all the guitars i own, with my simple neck-on-box guitar, and that i don't really feel like playing "nicer" guitars, and that i have no need for all the extra effort to build one.

you sir, have build the most beautiful guitar i have ever seen. i love my cbg, but i'd throw it under a truck for one like this.

i'm just speechless. the arch-top appearance, the wood bridge, that gorgeous over-hung fret board.... just beautiful.

how does it sound? how much would it cost if someone wanted to buy it? (or have one built like it?)