All Blog Posts (157)

Back Porch'r…

I work for a theatre company in Glasgow, Scotland, building props, sets and costumes. As a consequence, I've built a huge variety of home-made instruments. I hope to share some of them here.

Not a proper Progress Blog, but here's pics of Double Trouble along the way to completion.

An insane instrument for Sanddraggin (Mark). This is a guitar/bass combo with stereo output. The bass string has its own circuit with volume/tone/jack and a one string Stonehenge. The guitar circuit has volume/tone for both pickups (Stonehenge & DownUnder), a 3 way switch and it's own jack.



I fused two necks - figured maple for the 3 string guitar and a hardwood dowel for…

I set out to build a pine tele..This build was for my good friend JT to add to His collection ( strat,Les Paul,335 etc...).. Leo Fenders 1st telecasters and prototypes were in pine...being from NC I had plenty of it around! I glued 4 pieces ( 2 high and staggered em). The tele template I made is slightly different than a Fender with a shorter bottom horn. My goal here was to combine a bit of the new with the old, give a respectful nod to Leo with this being the teles 60th anniversary yet…

Someone gave me a beautiful cigar box but its small, 6 x 6 x 3" H, and I want to do it justice. Looking for suggestions.

A custom build for sid Workman and his brood of rockers.  Sid supplied the chunk of homegrown walnut, plus some other really unique woods I'll use.

January 12, 2012

This is it so far.  Who knows what it'll turn out to be...…

Ted Crocker custom instrument for Harrison Withers.  

A gorgeous slab of walnut from Sid Workman

Update:  January 5, 2012

I spent a lot of time letting the wood make up it's mind to what it wants to…

now I see a big old hole there,humm wonder went on there,don't think the guitar came that way for some reason,Paulie,whats with this,needed some room,humm,oh yeah for the beer cap,yeah right I forgot ,lol,lol

this is where we started,the pick ups were junk,one I didn't get any ohm readings at all,the other 2 double coil pick ups were reading about 4.5 on the meter,there was a beer bottle cap in the wireing,on one of the pots,a beer bottle cap ,how origal paulie,?what were you thinking,humm what,gezzzzz…

A simple account of planning, building, and inhabiting a new work shop...

 ** November 1, 2011 **

Yee Haw! Broke ground…

A local player commisssioned Me to make a Telecaster style bass. I decided to use pine because the very 1st tele's Leo Fender made were  pine...and to use Fender parts where possible. (neck/pickups/ and  pickguard). I modded the pickguard and headstock and made a control plate. The idea was to create my version of a tele bass....eventhough Fender has done one before in the 60s. Ill let You decide how it came out....but the guy who bought it loves it! I had a blast and a half creating it!…

I needed to slim down the next a bit since the tuners wouldnt quite make it all the way through. So I cut a made a bunch of cuts with the coping saw and then took the rasp to it. 

Since this build will have a bit of hardware it also required a few holes. I was going to stain the neck,…

I tested everything to make sure it would fit into the box. It appears there will be no problems.

Here is the electrical BOM. 

This the mechanical BOM. It may change as I am already considering a different way to mount the piezo.

I am not a wood worker by any means. My expertise with reaches it pinnacle with the building of a deck. Anyway here are my tools.…

My CBG just doesnt put out a lot of noise without amplification. Normally this doesnt bother me, the house is normally quiet so I can hear just fine. Or I hook it up to an amp and the whole neighborhood can hear me. But the other day I was in a public place with just a bit of ambient noise and while trying to show off for friends I realized I could barely hear what I was trying to play. 

But carrying an amp around can be a PIA, even one of those belt jobbers. Then I was at a local…