"Southbound Katy" Rail-hopper Combo - Fully Fretted 3-string Open G Cigar Box Guitar/ Amp Combo

Catch the Katy, don't be stuck ridin' no mule!

This awesome-sounding cigar box guitar and amplifier combo features vintage postcard artwork of the famous "Katy" limited passenger train. Its name was derived from the name of the railroad - the Kansas, Missouri and Texas, and was immortalized in Taj Mahal's song "She Caught the Katy", which was featured in the movie The Blues Brothers.

The Guitar

Fully fretted to a 25" Scale, this 3-string acoustic/electric cigar box guitar is strung "low open G" GDG. The soundboard has been wrapped with a full-color reprint of a vintage postcard, printed on weatherproof (and scratch-resistant) polyester, creating a striking and powerful look. The hardwood neck has been stained a nice walnut color, which nicely sets off the box.

This is a "neck through" model cigar box guitar, where the neck runs through the inside of the cigar box. The cigar box is one of the nice big (and hard to come by) Arturo Fuente "Royal Salute" boxes, and we have added antique brass corners to set off the decorative effect. This guitar has a disk piezo pickup, so that it can be plugged into an amp. The scale length of this guitar is 25 inches, and it has a adjustable hardwood banjo-style bridge.

The Amplifier

The amplifier uses one of our DIY Wooden Box Kits. Measuring in at 6 1/8" x 7 3/*" x 3 1/4, it is ultra portable and great for busking. 

At the heart of the amplifier an 9V battery powered Artec SDA-T 2.5W amp board. It accepts the standard standard 1/4" mono guitar/amp cord as input, with a secondary option to use it as a powered MP3/Smartphone speaker by way of the 3.5mm Auxiliary Jack. Speaker output is through a single 3.5" 4W speaker.

A handy red LED power indicator is included to help prevent accidental battery drain. The amp put out a very respectable sound (especially with the gain cranked all the way up), and in our opinion are much superior to the smaller half-watt and one-watt amps! We've also hacked the board by removing the on-board trim pot and attaching a tone control, giving a finer control over the overall sound.

Both of these items are handcrafted here in the C. B. Gitty workshops in New Hampshire, USA. The wraps are printed here in our own publishing department.