Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Bad Finger (Eric) on January 13, 2014 at 4:08pm

I look for a guitar in the box. Sometimes it takes awhile.

I prefer all wood with no paper.

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Permalink Reply by Bruce Myers on January 13, 2014 at 4:08pm

Ken, I have used both paper covered (wood) and stained/painted cigar boxes and like them both. Many of the paper covered boxes are like plywood but still sound good in my opinion. I pick boxes that are visually appealing and as long as they are wood construction I use 'em. I have found some boxes that are like MDF or particle board and didn't buy them for that reason, I don't use any of the cardboard boxes either although some are really cool looking. The smaller wood boxes make great amp boxes too and some of those are really nice. Something that is still 1-1/2" deep is still not a bad box. Some considerations may be how you intend to use them too like 100% acoustic or amplified. A bigger box may offer more volume for an acoustic only build. Checking out the cigar stores for empty boxes has become an addiction in its' self recently. Happy hunting.

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Permalink Reply by John Sawyer on January 13, 2014 at 7:03pm

What those guys said!  I'm building #13 and #14 now, and having a great time.  Half the fun is finding a nice box.  I really like the sound of the larger boxes, but I don't like the square ones... 2" deep, 10x7 works... I found the bigger the box volume the more they sing.

Like the others said... all wood.  I'm ok with paper over wood, I just glue down any stray corners and add several coats of lacquer to the top to give it a fighting chance.  

Here's my latest:

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Permalink Reply by Ken Mayfield on January 14, 2014 at 4:04am

This is a beauty. What did you use to get the neck black?

 

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Permalink Reply by John Sawyer on January 14, 2014 at 4:20am

Thanks!  I used the cheapest black stain I could find:  A cheap rattle can of flat black paint:  Spray a light coat, grab a rag and start wiping.    Once I let it dry for a day, I added a light coat of semigloss lacquer.    Oh, that is a poplar neck.  I haven't tried this on other woods.

 

The trick with black spray paint as a stain is to do it once.  When I did my testing, I found that adding a second coat and wiping down actually removed more color than it added.  If you have paint that dries quickly, you might need to dampen your rag with the appropriate thinner first...

 

John

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Permalink Reply by Gary Reichel on January 18, 2014 at 11:57am

I hadn't heard of that one before. Thanks for the tip!

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Permalink Reply by Piht Bull (Delta Dawg Guitars) on January 14, 2014 at 6:22am

also if you use oak or another hard wood with a lot of tannin you can put steel wool in a jar and fill it with apple cider venigar and let it sit uncovered in a window for a few days . as soon as it hits the wood it will turn it black . the more tannin the darker it will be . 

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Permalink Reply by John Sawyer on January 14, 2014 at 6:33am

I saw that trick... any pics of stuff you've done?

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Permalink Reply by 14 buck bass (aka antonio) on January 18, 2014 at 6:24am

great tip man thanks for that,  this is the good stuff.  appreciate that .thanks for sharing

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Permalink Reply by Bruce Myers on January 14, 2014 at 3:04pm

Nice build John.

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Permalink Reply by John Sawyer on January 14, 2014 at 3:34pm

Thanks!  Sold the darn thing to a friend last night... I was almost sad to see it go, but now I have 3 more on the bench to build!  Next up:  Adding a mag-pup!

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Permalink Reply by Piht Bull (Delta Dawg Guitars) on January 14, 2014 at 6:30am

i have used a lot of different boxes . at the moment my favs is Padilla and any Rocky Patel . I sand down the rockys top and bottom to get a better acoustics . in general the bigger the box the bigger the sound . but i dont shun ANY box .  they all are waiting on there time to shine . may just not be a guitar . 

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