News
VIDEO - The Shane & Ben Radio Hour (or something like that)
Shane Speal stopped by this week and sat down with Ben Gitty for a little pickin' & a-grinnin'. In this impromptu broadcast, they cover a diverse set of cigar box guitar topics like:
Diddley bows
Two finger octave runs on a 3-string guitar
Two finger movable chords on 3-string
Approaching cover tunes and more.
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11th Oct 2017
VIDEO LESSON: Lionel Ritchie's "Easy Like Sunday Morning" on 4-string cigar box guitar
This is what happens when Shane messes around at work! He stumbles across a Lionel Richie classic. LOL!!!
Tune your 4-string cigar box guitar to Open G (G-D-G-B) and play along to
Easy Like Sunday Morning.
Make sure to sing the "AHH AHH AHHs," too!
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6th Sep 2017
The Extended Heel - a Pro Tip from Master Builder Jack Bowers
Recently C. B. Gitty customer Jack Bowers shared one of his building techniques with us, a great way to add some extra stability to a neck without having to do more bracing inside the box. His method is simple - add an extension onto the bottom of the heel, out over the back/bottom of the cigar box.Jack has built over 700 homemade instruments, so when he shares a tried-and-true building tip, we take notice! See the photos below to get an idea of how he does it.Here's what Jack wrote us about thi
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14th Aug 2017
Jack Bowers celebrates 700th instrument build and offers up a few thoughts on the magic of making
Today I am working on the 700th instrument I've built in the last fifteen years. This is a mark I imposed on myself, that I felt I would never achieve. Like a goal in the distance I had to move toward it.Number 700 is a 2x4 Douglas fir stud that was a part of a wood shed being torn down. It was tight grained, very dry and begging to be refashioned from fire wood to something more musical. It has a Sitka spruce top and door skin on the back and even before the finish and hardware is on it I an he
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19th Jul 2017
BUILDING TIP: Brace Cigar Boxes With Corner Molding
Thin-topped cigar boxes deliver magnificent tones to homemade instruments. The drawback is they may require a little extra bracing to become guitar bodies that are made to withstand the abuse of stage and studio.
In this video, Shane Speal shows how to use common corner molding from a big box hardware store to quickly brace the box up.
This simple tip can be used on just about any cigar box intended for guitar building.
Watch the quick video below to see Shane's tip. After
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5th Jul 2017