OOOPS! Got to re-work the conversion project

I got a new wiring harness in.  The problem I now face is that the pots on the new harness are much larger than the old ones:

This means I have to move them up (towards the strings) just a bit.  But there is no room for the 5 way switch if I do that!

Here is one possible layout (thanks to the magic of  photoshop-ignore the “cutouts” on the right of the picture- used those to copy and paste!):

I did have a few dings to fix in the body, so I am taking adavantage of this opportunity to do that.  First step, of course, is to fill the old holes and sand down the body again.  here is stage one:

I will keep you updated as I move through the re-work!

Some more 3 string playin’

Courtesy of Shane Speal

The (almost) finished product

Today I assembled my 6 string conversion.  I put on one string to test it out and I do have a wiring issue.  Probably won’t have time to track it down until after the holidays however.

I suspect the problem is I got the 5 position switch a little to hot when I was re-soldering some connections.

Anyway, here is what she looks like:

Progress on the project

Took some time off  from posting for the Thanksgiving holiday.

I had the box all painted and a few coats of clear coat- and it was looking sweet!  So I began to assemble the guitar…then disaster struck!  The clear coat was dry- but apparently some of the paint underneath was not- so I made some blemishes on the guitar.  (long sigh……)  So I have sanded it down and am going to re-paint and clear it.

Here are some pics BEFORE I had my issue:

Conversion project- Day Three

Sorry, I missed a day of posting!  I also took yesterday off from this project.

On Friday I started fitting the inside supports:

All the inside supports are poplar or oak.

I test fitted the neck support.  Due to the size of my cigar box, some of the neck support will stick out past the box:

Then I made all my cut outs for the electronics:

Today I have to clean up the box- including some wood putty work.  Then it should be ready to paint.

After that I will hook up the electronics and move into final assembly.

The Conversion- Day 2

So today I cut the holes for the bridge and neck.

First, I put the faceplate back on the old body, so I could trace where the old bridge hole was:

Then I transferred that to the cigar box and drilled relief holes around the entire tracing:

Then I cut it out and test fitted the bridge- the template/faceplate helps to make sure I am putting it in the right place:

So here is where I was at that point:

Then I laid out the cut for the neck and cut it out.  This is a tricky one!

Then I had to sand and test fit the neck.  I have a bit more sanding to do to get the neck to fit perfect, but it is close already:

Next I have to build the blocking inside the cigar box that will help to support the neck, and give me a way to mount the bridge.

The Conversion Begins…..

Earlier I did a post about how I wanted to convert a cheap electric guitar I  have into a Cigar Box Guitar.  I have done some planning, and started work last night on this project.  Here  are some photos and comments:

The Guitar

The faceplate:

I removed the neck (4 screws) and the the backplate.  The backplate removed:

I had to cut the yellow grounding wire to take the faceplate off:

Then I cut the wire to the input jack and the old body was just a shell:

Then I took my cigar box- which will NOT look much like a cigar box when I am done.  I think I am going to paint, rather than stain, this project.  I laid the faceplate in the proper position so I could use it as a guide to cut the holes for the pickups:

The hard part is yet to come.  I have to cut a pretty tricky hole for the neck to fit and build bracing to hold it in place.  There is not much room to work with in a box this small!

Then I have to cut the bridge hole.  Then drill for the tone and volume knobs.  If Iscrew up any of them, I have to start all over!

Here is another GREAT homemade guitar

This guy uses a four string!

Another interesting 3 string guitar performance

I think it is pretty darn cool!

Another example of someone playing a CBG

No, this is not me…I don’t have that much talen!