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First CBG build what would you do?

What wood do you all recommend for a fretless neck on a 3 string CBG?

Next Do you all put truss rods in the neck?

Thanks all

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Permalink Reply by Lester Harper on March 24, 2012 at 1:01pm

That is amazing man sounds awesome. I have had some injuries in the military that are taking their toll on me so I am shutting down my archery business and just going to build and play some instruments Here is a few of my bows

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Permalink Reply by Michael P Barclay on March 24, 2012 at 1:24pm

Beautiful work brother. My wife uses an Osage Orange bow built by our coppersmith Larry Shaw, he makes recurves and long bows, recently he has been laminating bamboo to the bows face, very snappy "o)

Here she is shooting the turkey target, she killed it.

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Permalink Reply by Lester Harper on March 26, 2012 at 4:03am

Very cool I love those 3d shoots

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Permalink Reply by Andy Eight Spades CBG on March 24, 2012 at 11:07am

Poplar is great as long as you laminate a 1/4" fingerboard on it. I like it because of the cool grains ranging from pitch black streaks to green hues.

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Permalink Reply by Habanera Hal on March 24, 2012 at 12:48pm

Personally, I will never build a neck from poplar again, even with a laminated fretboard. Remember you will need to cut a recess (assuming a neck-through design) where the neck passes under the cigar box lid to allow the lid to vibrate, and that weakens the neck. Also, if you want to cut vertical channels in the neck where it enters the box for a sharper joint that will weaken it too. Stick (no pun intended) to woods like oak, cherry or maple, or be sure to reinforce the cut-out area with another piece of 1 x 2 cut to fit inside the box. But by all means, remember - There Are No Rules in the CBN world! Experiment and do what works for you!

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Permalink Reply by Lester Harper on March 24, 2012 at 1:03pm

Thanks for the awesome advice! I have access to a ton of hardwoods and exotics so I will stick to those. I appreciate the great advice.

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Permalink Reply by Dan F on March 25, 2012 at 1:22pm

See my blog post for my first two CBG's. Both are birch veneer about 1/2 inch thick; one has a fret board which helps stiffness. Both are new and have not stood the test of time + string tension.