Have you thought about building your own cigar box ukulele but youre unsure if you have the right stuff? You may have looked at all the ukuleles for sale at multiple online sites. Maybe you dont need a professional instrument, but just a beginner ukulele. Maybe youre looking for that perfect, unique Christmas gift. With the wide range of prices, maybe youve thought its time you considered building your own. A cigar box instrument can offer the best of both worlds, one that is simple to make and at the same time offers a high quality, well playing instrument. Check out these insider techniques and youll see that you can put together a beautiful, good sounding, acoustical instrument, provided you start with the stuff presented here.
There are four basic ukuleles"baritone, tenor, concert and soprano. No matter which you choose, your primary consideration in building one, whether youre building from a kit or from scratch, is the box. Its the most critical element in a good cigar box instrument. Think about each of these four elements when choosing and preparing the box. 1. Choose the right box 2. Reinforce the box 3. Dont skimp on hardware and attachment methods 4. Follow the rules
Cigar box ukuleles are an outgrowth of tramp art culture where the idea was to build using leftovers that were meant for a completely different initial use and were like headed for, or already in the trash heap. So bear in mind that your sound box, that most basic element of any ukulele building kit, depends in this case on using discarded, although oftentimes extravagant, very well constructed and enchantingly beautiful, packaging material. You will find many sizes, shapes, length to width ratios, thicknesses and materials when looking at cigar boxes. It is best not to use all-cardboard boxes in the construction of your ukulele. Pick from whatever boxes are available, but bear in mind the following guidelines for optimum size depending on the instrument you are building.
Baritone Ukulele use a box between 9 and 11 long Tenor Ukulele use a box between 8 and 10 long Concert Ukulele use a box between 8 and 10 long Soprano Ukulele use a box between 7 and 9 long
When choosing the length you wont have much control over the width, but remember that anything less than 6 in width will have a tendency to reduce the acoustic effect, and as a rule wider is better. Deep can be better too, up to a limit, with a minimum depth of just over 2. Dont overlook the need for reinforcing your box. Use x blocks glued inside the corners of your box with top-quality Titebond II wood glue or equal. A thin, even coat of glue on two sides of each block is all you need. Place these blocks so they float above the bottom of the box. This bottom of the box is usually solid or laminated wood, and will become the sound board for your instrument, and not allowing the blocks to touch the bottom prevents any interference with soundboard vibration. Use a 3/16 x 3/8 support block glued on its edge inside the soundboard directly below or very near the location of the bridge. This will reduce the slight indentation of the soundboard caused by string tension.
Use a damp cloth and a straight edge to remove all paper inside the box that can interfere with getting a good wood to wood glue line at blocking locations. Dont skimp on screws and other fasteners in your box. Use only the best. Use a template to mark all fastener locations and press the mark with an awl or nail set to provide a good starter for each fastener. Pre-drill fastener pilot holes and drive screws with hand tools only.
This is important. Dont forget number four on the list, follow the rules. You may have heard that in the cigar box ukulele and banjo world there are no rules. There really are just two. Rule #1 is Do it your way, and rule #2 is Dont forget rule #1. Pay attention to the basic box preparation steps above, use a good box for your purpose, use your creative imagination, and, above all, follow the rules. Good luck and good building.
There are four basic ukuleles"baritone, tenor, concert and soprano. No matter which you choose, your primary consideration in building one, whether youre building from a kit or from scratch, is the box. Its the most critical element in a good cigar box instrument. Think about each of these four elements when choosing and preparing the box. 1. Choose the right box 2. Reinforce the box 3. Dont skimp on hardware and attachment methods 4. Follow the rules
Cigar box ukuleles are an outgrowth of tramp art culture where the idea was to build using leftovers that were meant for a completely different initial use and were like headed for, or already in the trash heap. So bear in mind that your sound box, that most basic element of any ukulele building kit, depends in this case on using discarded, although oftentimes extravagant, very well constructed and enchantingly beautiful, packaging material. You will find many sizes, shapes, length to width ratios, thicknesses and materials when looking at cigar boxes. It is best not to use all-cardboard boxes in the construction of your ukulele. Pick from whatever boxes are available, but bear in mind the following guidelines for optimum size depending on the instrument you are building.
Baritone Ukulele use a box between 9 and 11 long Tenor Ukulele use a box between 8 and 10 long Concert Ukulele use a box between 8 and 10 long Soprano Ukulele use a box between 7 and 9 long
When choosing the length you wont have much control over the width, but remember that anything less than 6 in width will have a tendency to reduce the acoustic effect, and as a rule wider is better. Deep can be better too, up to a limit, with a minimum depth of just over 2. Dont overlook the need for reinforcing your box. Use x blocks glued inside the corners of your box with top-quality Titebond II wood glue or equal. A thin, even coat of glue on two sides of each block is all you need. Place these blocks so they float above the bottom of the box. This bottom of the box is usually solid or laminated wood, and will become the sound board for your instrument, and not allowing the blocks to touch the bottom prevents any interference with soundboard vibration. Use a 3/16 x 3/8 support block glued on its edge inside the soundboard directly below or very near the location of the bridge. This will reduce the slight indentation of the soundboard caused by string tension.
Use a damp cloth and a straight edge to remove all paper inside the box that can interfere with getting a good wood to wood glue line at blocking locations. Dont skimp on screws and other fasteners in your box. Use only the best. Use a template to mark all fastener locations and press the mark with an awl or nail set to provide a good starter for each fastener. Pre-drill fastener pilot holes and drive screws with hand tools only.
This is important. Dont forget number four on the list, follow the rules. You may have heard that in the cigar box ukulele and banjo world there are no rules. There really are just two. Rule #1 is Do it your way, and rule #2 is Dont forget rule #1. Pay attention to the basic box preparation steps above, use a good box for your purpose, use your creative imagination, and, above all, follow the rules. Good luck and good building.
About the Author:
To learn more about building your ukulele here or email me at Walker Hayes and Ill send you a follow up with pictures.
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