New Creations

The attached photos are of the newest creations I've been working on for a couple weeks.

During one of the many excursions to the music store to lust over beautiful instruments, I saw a violin laying in a pile of crap.  It looked great to me, new, shiny, not a ding, so I asked the ol' gal who owns the place about it.  Her comment was, "It is a piece of Chinese shit, if you want it I'll sell it to you for $15."  So, 'Gitfiddle II' was in the works before the end of the day.

I ripped off the strings; fingerboard; cut the neck apart; modified what was left of the violin; built a neck of red oak; cut an opening in the back to install a pickup, and commenced to fit and glue the pieces together.  

There are a few little differences with this build and the previous Gitfiddle.  For example, I left the tailstock as it was originally, flexible, and replaced the original tuning pegs with modified guitar pegs to make tuning it less difficult.  And, the attachment of the headstock to the neck, and the neck to the body was a little less problematic, in that I didn't mess around with recessing anything.  I modified the original bridge to accommodate the lower action of the four guitar strings.  After all this, I tuned it to DGbd tuning, and fired it up.  It sounds great acoustically, as one would expect, because of the original construction, and through my amp it is awesome.  Sure it's no Strad, but it plays Chinese real good.

Next in line out of the workshop came 'Ol' Smokey'.  It is a twin to 'Big Red', the six-string I dubbed to be 'Almostafender', because it has a Fender Squier neck.  The box is a Tatuaje cigar box just like the red.  Everything is exactly the same.  I just wanted a black twin to the red one.

This week I finished 'The Spider' .  It is one of my favorites, not because it is such an unusual build, but because it incorporates the two hobbies I find most pleasureful . . . pinstriping and cigar box guitar building.  I sprayed a Tatuaje box a deep royal blue and added process blue and dark magenta freehand pinstriping to set it off from anything else I've done.  Added a silver black widow spider to give it a little character, and I'm happy, until I take a look at the back.  It just didn't light up my board, until I added the 'real' spider with exposed bones and a human skull.  Now, it's a real spider guitar, and it really sounds good, too.  I'm happy!

Busy Makin' Guitars

It's been very busy for me the last couple weeks, so I've not had much time to post messages here.  Between helping my friend with his school photo and sports photography business, and building guitars in the spare moments, there's been no time for writin'.  I'll be posting photos soon of several guitars I've been busy creating.  To tease a little, there'll be a 'Gitfiddle II', a black twin to the 'Almostafenderplank', and 'The Spider', which incorporates my other hobby, pinstriping.  I think you'll like what you see.

Guitars for GIs

A Chicago woman I know recently came up with a fantastic idea, which calls for any of us who build cigar box guitars to share the experience with service men or women, who may be in a war zone or stateside.

She is attempting to acquire names and mailing addresses for GIs, which she will share.

I like the idea and I hope to be able to make contact with a serviceman/woman who wants to learn to play, and I will provide the CBG.  It's the least I can do to show my appreciation for the sacrifice they are making to protect me in a world filled with radicals who are persistent in their violent mission to destroy our country.

This guitar is the creation of a fellow who calls himself

TinyGuitars (his moniker on CigarBoxNation),

and he plans to share it with a GI.

If you know of someone who is serving our country, or who is recuperating from war-related injuries, and you feel they may find some enjoyment from a little instrument, which produces big sound, please share your thoughts with me, and I'll take it from there.

Check This Out!

SHANE SPEAL 

Cigar Box Guitar Rag

Could I Be A 'Redneck'?

We've enjoyed Redneck jokes for years.  It's time to take a reflective look at the core beliefs of a culture that values home, family, country, and God.

If I had to stand before a dozen terrorists who threaten my life, I'd choose a half-dozen or so Rednecks to back me up.  Tire irons, squirrel guns, and grit -- that's what rednecks are made of.  I hope I'm one of those.

You might be a Redneck, if:

• You've never protested about seeing the Ten Commandments posted in public places.
• You still say 'Christmas', instead of 'Winter Festival'.
• You bow your head, when someone prays.
• You stand and place your hand over your heart, when the National Anthem is played.
• You treat Armed Forces Veterans with respect.
• You've never burned an American Flag, and never intend to.
• You know what you believe, and you're not afraid to say so, no matter who is listening.
• You respect your elders, and raised your kids to do the same.
• You'd give your last dollar to a friend.

God Bless The USA!

Snip, Snip, Snip!

A height-challenged, cigar box guitar playing, Texan was complaining to his buddy Bubba that his testicles ached somethin' awful every time he took the stage to play.

As he was always whining about his problem, Bubba finally suggested he go to a doctor to learn what could be done to relieve the problem.  The little guy took the advice and went to the sawbones for help.

The doctor told him to drop his drawers, and that he would take a look.  The dwarf dropped his pants.  The Doc lifted him onto the examining table and commenced to examine the little guy.

The doctor placed one finger under his left testicle and told the dwarf to turn his head to the side and cough -- the usual method for determining a hernia -- "A,ha", said the Doc.  Same thing for the right nut.  "A,ha", said the Doc, again, as he reached for the surgical scissors.  Snip, snip, snip on the left side, and snip, snip, snip on the right side.

By this time, the little guy's eyes were buggin' out like a stomped-on-frog, and he was terrified to look down, but he noted with amazement that the snipping wasn't painful.

The sawbones told the dwarf to pull his pants up, and to tell him if it still hurt.

The dwarf was overwhelmed with joy as he pranced around the doctor's office, discovering that his testicles were no longer aching.  "Geez, what did you do, Doc?", he asked.

The Doc replied, "I cut two inches off the tops of your cowboy boots."

Some Days Are A Bummer!

Yesterday my wife asked why I didn't do something useful with my time, instead of spending every waking moment in the workshop messing with cigar box guitars.

She suggested that I go to the senior center and hang out with the guys.  So, off I went, and when I got home last night I told her that I had joined a parachute club.

She said, "Are you out of your mind?  You're almost 70 years old and you're going to start jumping out of airplanes?"

I proudly showed her that I even got a membership card.

She said to me, "You dummy, where are your glasses!  This is a membership to a prostitute club, not a parachute club!"

I'm in trouble again and I don't know what to do!

I signed up for three jumps a week!

Life as a senior citizen is not getting any easier.

A Little History

Because the cigar box guitar is a primitive homemade instrument, there is no standard for building it.  Physical dimensions, construction techniques, or string types are limited only by the creator's imagination.

Around 1840, cigar manufacturers started packaging and shipping cigars in small, portable boxes, which were similar to what we are familiar with today.  These boxes were soon to become the vehicle for performing 'blues' music.

The earliest evidence of cigar box instruments dated from 1840 to 1860s.  The illustrated proof of such an instrument is an etching of two Civil War Soldiers at a campsite with one playing a cigar box fiddle (copyrighted in 1876). The etching, which clearly shows the cigar brand 'Figaro' on the cigar box, was created by illustrator Edwin Forbes, who worked for the Union Army. It was published in Forbes' work 'Life Stories of the Great Army'.

In addition to the etching, plans for a cigar box banjo were published by Daniel Carter Beard, co-founder of the Boy Scouts of America, in 1884 as part of 'Christmas Eve with Uncle Enos'.  These plans showed a step-by-step description for a playable 5-string fretless banjo made from a cigar box.

Most of the earliest cigar box instruments would be crude and primitive, but this is not the case for all.  Some of the fiddles built in the late 1800s were well constructed and very playable.

Cigar box guitars and fiddles were also important in the rise of jug bands and blues music.  As most of the performers were Black Americans living in southern poverty, many could not afford a 'real' instrument.  Using these, along with jugs, washboards, and harmonicas, Black musicians performed blues music during gatherings.

The Great Depression of the 1930s saw a resurgence of homemade musical instruments.  Times were hard in the American south and a popular pastime was to sit on the porch playing and singing the blues away.  Musical instruments were beyond the means of everybody, but with an old cigar box, a stick, a couple discarded wires, and a guitar came to life.  The sound coming from these crude instruments was raw and gritty, much like the lives of the people playing them, but it is a sound that is as much of our life today as it was back then.

Due to interest in jug bands and the 'do-it-yourself' culture, a modern revival of these instruments has been gathering momentum.  Modern-day cigar box guitar builder and performer interest has fueled the fire, as cigar boxes, strings, and other necessary hardware is relatively inexpensive and easy to acquire.  The creation of the modern cigar box guitar can be seen as a means for an amateur to become a luthier, and implementation of many personal touches, such as the addition of tuning machines, electronic pickups, metal resonator cones, to say nothing about 'design' of the instruments, is their stage for creation.

And, the desire of many musician's for a more primal sound is another factor supporting the Cigar Box Guitar Revolution.  Blues guitarists, in particular, have taken to the cigar box guitar in an attempt to play Delta Blues in its purest form.  The instruments can be fretted or fretless, and can be played with a bottleneck slide or 'picked'.  Either way, the sound is unique to this instrument, and it has an 'earthy' quality that takes the player and listener back in time.

It is said that Lightnin' Hopkins was one of the first performers to play a cigar box guitar, and he had this to say about it . . . "So I went ahead and made me a guitar.  I got me a cigar box, I cut me a round hole in the middle of it, take me a little piece of plank, mailed it onto that cigar box, and I got me some screen wire, and I made me a bridge back there and raised it up high enough that it would sound inside that little box, and got me a tune out of it.  I kept my tune and I played from then on."

Reference: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

'The Revelator'

My friend Wichita Sam, whom I met on the CigarBoxNation.com site, encouraged me to build a resonator guitar and after he shared some crucial thoughts with me, I set out to craft what turned out to be a nice instrument.  The box is a basic Chateau Fuente QueenB cigar box with an oak neck and poplar fretboard, modified to accept hardware store drain covers for the sound holes and a resonator made of a paint can lid.  The bridge biscuit is my creation, which includes a piezo transducer pickup sandwiched between spanish cedar and balsa woods wired to an output jack to amplify sound.  The backside art is a pic of an old bluesman bangin' on a real resonator guitar.  Sam was right, this simple design really does work, and the accoustic sound is amazing, but when I light it up throug the amp and lay on a slide, it really comes alive with a gritty delta blues twang that vibrates to my toes.  Thanks, Sam for showing me the way!

'Blackeyed Susan'



Blackeyed Susan is the result of a knawing desire to incorporate a little art with guitar building.  I have always liked the effect one gets from burning designs in wood, and a recent trip to a crafters meet at the local fairgrounds set the fire off inside me.  After searching the web for the best deal on an adjustable burner (from Nibsburner.com), and waiting for delivery, I commenced to design the neck and body of 'Susan'.  The burner arrived and I made the leap into pyro design with a little help from my granddaughter Maggie, who thought a blackeyed susan flower arrangement from a coloring book was the only choice. That design went on the back.  The front design is my creation allowing for two of the leaves to act as sound hole cutouts, and the other two for balanced decoration. This basic design leads to the vine growing up the neck.  Note the flowers at the critical fret locations.  It is setup with a piezo transducer for amped sound, but it sounds great accoustically.  Another fun project with a little creativity thrown in for grins.

'almostafenderplank'

It has been my goal during the months of building cigar box guitars to create a six-string CBG using a Tatuaje cigar box as a body, because the Tatuaje is a large box just waiting to become an electric guitar.  My first thought was to create my own neck, but that suddenly changed, when I discovered that my tool shed didn't have the necessary gear, and I was not about to make the investment at this time, I'm too much of a novice for that leap. 

So, the time came a couple weeks ago while searching the web for various parts to enhance my hobby.  I ran across a used Fender Squier neck and various other items taken from used or discarded guitars. 

I couldn't resist the temptation so I bought, at greatly reduced prices, what I needed to fulfill my goal.  Take a look and let me know what you think.

The tricky part about creating this creature was fabricating the various pieces into a playable instrument.

First I layed the neck and bridge on top of the box to get a sense of where it should be placed to allow for proper scale length, while maintaining a comfortable playing surface and balance.  I carefully measured and marked the surface for future positioning, while keeping in mind that the box must be cut and reinforced to establish the integrity necessary in a payable guitar, and at the same time planning where the pickup, volume pot and output jack were to be located.

So, using a little Montana 'Injunuity' (my heritage had to come into play) and a bit of Kentucky windage, I measured twice, so I could manage to cut once.   Out came the tools.  Apart came the box.  Oak pieces were cut and glued where necessary to the inside of the box.  Cuts were made in the proper places.  A variety of files were used to finish the parts fitting process.  Once all the pieces were finally fitted and assembled (several times to satisfy my anal expectation), I made up the wiring harness, soldered wires, and bench tested the creation.  Everything worked, and it fit together nicely.  So, the only thing left was to add a nice finish to the box and to do the final assembly.

I couldn't wait to light this thing up and to hear how it sounded, and I was not disappointed.  It sounds great.  Deep bass and rich treble tones were emitting from my amp, and I was about to wet my pants.  I had just built my allmostafenderplank six-string guitar out of a cigar box and a bunch of discarded parts.

Damn, I love it when a plan comes together!

I think I'll do this again, just for grins.

Punch II

I've been more involved than I like in school photography recently, so my luthier hobby has slowed down.  But, I have found time to create a couple interesting instruments.

Punch II is the result of a web search where I stumbled across a very nice looking black box that I thought would make a nifty cigar box guitar.  An oak neck, poplar fingerboard, tuners, frets, strings, a simple bridge, a piezo pickup, and voila, I got myself a rockin' CBG.  The sound hole is a little different, but it allows this little critter to crank out a nice mellow acoustic sustain, and when it's plugged in it'll blow the windows out.

Chords

It's been awhile since I last posted.  But, the interest has not diminished.  I've created a few more guitars, which I'll add photos later. 

But in the meantime, for those of you who read this and are interested in learning to play or build, read on.

The basic chord charts for a three-string guitar should get you started, and when you've mastered them, you'll be pickin' and grinnin' with the best of 'em.

Guitar Case with Amp

It's about time for me to consider how I'm going to carry around with me, any one of the sixteen guitars I've built.  So, a couple weeks ago I got the hairy idea for building a case, not just any ol' case, but one which is a little unusual, and which would include an amp for the days when I decide to do a street-corner gig.


After a little noodling on the idea and a sketch or three, the vision of an oak box large enough to handle any of the cigar box guitars, with the exception of the bass, and complete with storage area for picks, slides, amp cord, extra strings, and built-in amp, I hit the workshop.


The top and body framework is covered in 1/4" oak veneer (1-1/2" lid, and 2-1/2" body) and hinged with a brass piano hinge to match all the other metal trim pieces.  Inside is a padded velvet body cavity which will accommodate any of my guitars, and adjacent to this is a padded neck rest with leather strap to secure things.  On the lid is a velvet covered pad which holds the guitar in place when the lid is closed.  To keep things out of sight and secure is a neat little area with hinged lid held in place by a wood turn-'shoe'.  Next to the storage compartment is a recessed area (a margarine container salvaged from kitchen trash) which is a recess for the speaker mounted in the lid . . . maybe, if I do a street-corner gig, someone will toss in a coin or six to show their appreciation for an old guy banging out sound on a groovy looking instrument.  And, finally, I installed another monster amp provided by my friend Ty from Guitar Fuel.  I already explained the amp thing in a prior post, so I'll spare you the repetition, but suffice it to say this is a cool case with a real purpose. 


Yes, I'll build one for you, just lay on some long, lean, Green.

Latest Bargain

Last month I cruised out to the local fairgrounds swap meet to check out other people's junk, I mean treasures, and in the process I came across a lady selling, among other things, a guitar.  Like I need another guitar . . . I already explained that I suffer with GAS, Guitar Acquisition Syndrome!  Oh well, what's one more, right?

I looked it over carefully, and under the grime I discovered it was a 'Prestige' brand, which I knew nothing about, but I knew it wasn't anything near the quality of my Martin.  The strings, what were there, were in tough shape.  One tuner needed attention.  But, under closer scrutiny and wiping away some of the dust and crud, I realized this thing was ding free and that all the internal bracing was in tact, and structurally it was sound.

Now to the good part.  I asked the gal what she had to have for it.  She said, "Forty bucks."  I said, "No, I don't really want another guitar, and besides I'll just cut it up to make a resonator, so thanks anyway, but I'll pass."  She came right back at me asking that I make an offer.  I said, "No, I don't want to insult or offend you."  She said, "Make an offer, I'll probably take it."  I said, "OK, twenty bucks."  She said, "It's yours."  I paid the lady and took off for home to see what a mistake I really made, wondering if she was pissed at the person who owned it and was getting 'even' by giving it away . . . nah, it was too grungy, and she seemed too nice.

Well, after a good scrubbing and a wax job; a new set of strings; and tuning, I discovered that I had just 'stolen' a pretty damn nice guitar.  Not high-end, but it plays well and the finish is flawless with nice edge binding, rosewood fingerboard with solid frets, what I think is maple top, and the sides and back appear to be mahogany.

So, off I went to the internet to research my prize.  I could only find one guy who claims to own a similar model, and nothing about the manufacturer.  The guy says it was American made in the '60s for distribution through Sears and that it was produced for only a short time. But, that all I could glean from my web effort.

That's alright, nothing like a 'good deal' to make the world a better place.

The 'Gitfiddle'

I remember, as a young guy, how fascinated I was with Paul McCartney's Violin Bass Guitar, so I decided to create a little guy from a rat violin I found in a secondhand store.

It's not a cigar box guitar, but so what, there really are no rules when it comes to building small instruments. 

I haggled with the old guy who runs the place until he caved in and sold me the thing for much less than he had it marked.  Nothing like getting a bargain, right? 

After carting my prize home and into the shop, I quickly started ripping it apart.  Off came the strings, fingerboard, bridge, string retainer and chin rest.  Whoa, what next!  Gotta mark the spots where the saw will separate this little devil, and then carve it apart.  All the demolition took about 20 minutes, and I was in business. 

After the parts were separated and on the bench, I chose a nice piece of oak for the neck that would soon connect the tuner curl and the body.  After carefully measuring it for the correct scale length, I commenced to carve and shape the neck to fit the violin pieces remaining.  Once I had all the modifications completed, a really cool veneer laminated to the neck, and the fret slots cut, out came the epoxy and together went the curl, neck, and body.  Modified the string retainer to accommodate guitar strings and a much lower bridge.  Cut an opening in the back so that I could tuck a pickup and output jack in place.  Covered the opening with a specially designed piece, and that was about the end of the tougher stuff.  It wasn't long before the finishing touches were in place and it was ready for finish sanding, seal, paint in strategic places, and final coating with poly.  On with the strings.  Tune it to a fine D-F#-A and C, and I was ready for the blues on my new, well, almost new, 'Gitfiddle'.

Because the violin was made to be a well-resonating acoustic instrument, it makes a great little guitar and sound great without amplification, but when I light it up with the amp, it really sounds great.  

Damn, I like it when a plan comes together!

A Contest Entry

A couple weeks ago, I was invited by Cigar Box Nation to enter a contest which will be judged in June by Fretboard Magazine editors.  The prize is a custom made six-string guitar.  Not that I need another guitar . . . I already have G.A.S. (Guitar Acquisition Syndrome) . . , but what the hell, it will be fun to enter.  The only criteria is that the guitar must be created from a cigar box, have two or more necks, and be playable. 

So, I  pondered what to build and came up with the idea of using the ancient Chinese understanding of how things work . . . Yin Yang.

 

The Yin Yang symbol is an outer circle representing 'everything', while the black and white shapes within the circle represent the interaction of two energies, 'yin' (black), and 'yang' (white), which cause everything to happen, and they cannot exist without each other.

While 'yin' would be dark, passive, downward, cold, and weak, 'yang' would be bright, active, upward, hot, and strong.  The shape of the yin and yang sections of the symbol actually gives the sense of continual movement of the two images, yin to yang, and yang to yin.

I chose Yin Yang as the theme for this guitar, because music, the universal language of the ages, and the guitar with its dark bass and bright treble notes, complimentary opposites, represents perfectly through its music how things work together.

In the photos, you will see how I designed the necks to be similar, but opposite.  One is made of dark oak with a very dark ebony fingerboard, while the other is light oak with a very light monkey pod wood fingerboard, facing each other, with tuners to match.  The three-string neck is accented in black (Yin), and the four-string neck is accented in white (Yang).  This color scheme is carried on down the back of the necks to the tailstocks.  The box is a Saint Luis Rey Churchill, which worked well in that the oval logo was removed to create a sound hole between the necks, which I backed in screen to finish that portion.

Inside, I set up each neck with a transducer pickup which can be activated by a switch when being played, so that only sound from one guitar is amplified at a time.  The bridge is designed to accommodate each neck in one design, which tends to tie the two together visually.  To accentuate the Yin Yang theme, I added small silver plated black and white symbols to neck, tailstock, and bridge, as well as a larger example laminated to the back of the box.

Who knows how this creation will be accepted by the contest judges, but I don't really care, because it was fun to build and it plays very well, so win or lose, I win.

Try It, All You'll Have Is Fun!

Building a cigar box guitar is not difficult, because anything you do is OK.  There are no rules.  It can be as simple or as elaborate as you wish to make it. 

If you do a little research, you'll find that the current interest in cigar box guitars is a re-generation of the creativity and skills developed more than a century ago out of necessity, by folks whose musical opportunity came from the simple instruments they created from cigar boxes, broomsticks, and  discarded wire or string.  Today's creations are often more complex, but the basic concept is the same . . . producing beautiful music with a simple instrument. 

I'm a relative 'newby' at CBG building, but I've developed a few nice and playable instruments following  a few basic steps, which I will share with you.  So, let's get started.

CBG Building Steps

1. 
   
   Determine the basic design and style of the guitar you wish to build (3- or 4-string).
2. 
   
   Choose the cigar box you will use (check out your local smoke shop or go to eBay).
3. 
   
   Determine tuners that will best fit your needs (available at your local music store or on eBay).
4. 
   
   Craft the headstock, neck, and tailstock to fit your design (take a look at what others have created, for ideas.  I generally use 1x2 inch oak available at Lowes).
5. 
   
   Determine design of string retainers on the tailstock (holes drilled in the tailstock, or an attachment which will retain the strings.)
6. 
   
   Determine tuner positions and drill holes in the headstock.
7. 
   
   Finish (shape and sand) the neck.
8. 
   
   Stain or paint the neck if that is your intention.
9. 
   
   Cut the fingerboard to length (determined by the type instrument you're building).
10. 
    
    Mark the location of the fingerboard on the neck, allowing for the headstock and 'nut' (the thingy that elevates the strings off the fingerboard and spaces them properly).
11. 
    
    Locate and mark fret positions (measure any commercial guitar, or go online for a guide).
12. 
    
    Cut fret slots with a narrow saw (I use a coping saw and a small mitre box, or you can use finish nails or even toothpicks).
13. 
    
    Stain the fingerboard, if that is your desire.
14. 
    
    Laminate the fingerboard to the neck in the predetermined position . . . see #10 ( I use Titebond glue and clamp in place).
15. 
    
    Cut small openings in the cigar box to accommodate the neck (this may require some careful forethought and planning depending on the box you're using).
16. 
    
    Fit the neck to the box and measure the 'bridge' location on the box (24-1/2" to 25-1/2" from the nut).
17. 
    
    Locate and cut sound holes in the box (again there are no rules, so be as creative as you wish).
18. 
    
    Finish the sound holes appropriately.
19. 
    
    Finish the box (stain, paint, decorate, or leave as it is . . . again, no rules).
20. 
    
    Locate 'key' fret positions on the fingerboard or leading edge of the neck and mark as you wish (inlays, cutouts, drilled markers, etc. . . these are the 3, 5, 7, 9, 12, and 15 positions).
21. 
    
    Laminate the neck in position to the box (I use Titebond for this, too).
22. 
    
    Create the 'nut' and 'bridge' and attach in position (I use super glue).
23. 
    
    Attach frets to the fingerboard (cut and file to fit . . . this can be tedious, so take your time so as to not screwup the edges of the fingerboard).
24. 
    
    Locate a strap button on the back of the box.
25. 
    
    Drill a hole in the back of the box for an output jack, if you are going to amplify the sound electronically.
26. 
    
    Design a plate to hold the jack securely to the box, if the material is too thick to accommodate direct attachment.
27. 
    
    Varnish or paint the finished guitar.
28. For amplified sound, I use a Piezo transducer (available at Radio Shack) for a sound 'pickup'.
29. Remove the metal transducer wafer from the plastic housing (carefully using a pliers to break the housing edges) and sandwich the wafer between two pieces of balsa using small droplets of CA (cyanoacrylate) glue (better known as super glue) on the corners of the balsa pieces.  Be careful not to get glue on the transducer, and to not damage the wires in the process.  Mark the outside of the balsa enclosure to denote the side of the wafer that has the circular white ceramic conductor.
30. Attach (solder) the transducer (pickup) to the output jack (you may need to add wire for the proper length).
31. Locate the pickup position on the inside of the box lid, left of the bass string and slightly forward of the bridge location.
32. Glue the 'marked' balsa side to the inside of the lid in the position described in #31 above. I use CA glue for this.
33. Attach tuners to the headstock.
34. Attach strings to the tailstock string retainer and to the tuners; tighten the strings (I use inexpensive medium gauge acoustic strings, #5-4-3 for my 3-string guitars, and #5-4-3-2 for my 4-string guitars).
35. Tune to your desire (I tune 3-string guitars G-D-G for a nice 'bluesy sound; and 4-strings D-F#-A-C; but, you can tune your 3-string to A-E-A; A-E-G; E-B-E; E-G-E; or you can simplify the process by using Knott Lenny's method -- tune to "say, you, see" -- sing the National Anthem, 'oh, say can you see, and you have a very playable tuned instrument). 

If you have questions about any details listed hereon, or if you need guidance, please email me a note and I will do my best to assist.

2-day Cigar Box Guitar Festival, August 27 & 28, 2010, hosted by Shane Speal's Cigar Box Nation at York, PA.  for more information, go to http://www.cigarboxnation.com/.