Get Inspired To Build With These Customer Appreciation Photos

Every cigar box guitar builder needs some inspiration now and again. Why not get inspired by what other builders have made?

We love seeing what you build. And that's why we love receiving your photo and video submissions, along with your builder's stories, through our customer gallery link. We share your submissions on our website so that others see not only what you built, but also the specific products you used. In this way, you inspire another builder, and he or she encourages the next, and so on.

What follows here is a collection of photos submitted by you, our friends and cigar box guitar community members. Each has a builder or player (sometimes one and the same) in the picture along with a cigar box guitar, ukulele, or another beautifully crafted handmade musical instrument. So keep scrolling with your eyes peeled for that little bit of inspiration to jump-start your next build.

Here's Jackie S. with a four-string reso-ukulele he built from an old toolbox. 

Said Jackie of his build,

"I picked up an old Chicago toolbox from my brother's basement. It was around the size of a cigar box. I have wanted to make a cigar box uke for some time, but not just any cigar box guitar, a resonator cigar box guitar. While searching the internet for parts, I came across cbgitty.com. The photo tells the rest of the story. This project turned out to be one beautiful uke. And the box still has its original hinges and latches. It is strung as a baritone uke but is the size of a tenor uke. Needless to say, my ukulele collection keeps increasing."

Our question to Jackie is, are there ever too many ukuleles?

We think not. Especially when the ukuleles are as cool as Jackie's uke!

Next, we have Daniel G. proudly displaying the first cigar box guitar he's ever built.

Wrote Daniel, 

"A proud moment on my first build. My very first cigar box build. 25” scale, vintage Romeo & Juliet cigar box, f-holes, acoustic/electric, Bocote neck and fretboard, piezo pickup with attached springs on inside of box on neck for reverb. Hopefully my first of many more to come! I had a blast building it and many thanks to C. B. Gitty on the tuners, pickup, and volume knob!"

Well, thanks to you for your support and for proudly sharing your work with us, Daniel. First time or not, that's an excellent guitar you're holding!

Speaking of first-time builders, here's a boy who enjoyed a woodworking project, building this ukulele with his father, Charles H.

And here's what Charles had to say about this photo, 

"This was a father and son project, something to teach a few woodworking skills while ending in an instrument to play for years to come. This has a piezo pickup in it so we will build a cigar box amp to match next."

At C. B. Gitty, we love seeing family projects and Charles' is no exception. And Charles, we're confident that amp you and your son will build is going to rock!

Here are some more first-time builders who were skillfully assisted by longtime C. B. Gitty friend, Jim B.

Jim shared this with us about the builders in the above photo,

"A rainy Saturday is always a good time to be working in the shop; a perfect day to teach a class on basic cigar box guitars. The class consisted of 6 students, which included two father and son teams. We built Shane Speal basic cigar box guitars using parts from C. B. Gitty. The class lasted about 7 hours from start to finish. Most of the students were familiar with a guitar but had very few woodworking skills. I was smiling watching father and son teams working together. It gave me a warm feeling in my heart. By the end of the class, not only did they have a nice looking guitar for Christmas. Also, they learned some woodworking skill and learned how to wood-burn their fret marks. After all, was said and done. They wanted to know when was the next class. I had a great time teaching the class, and it makes me want to teach more of them."

As Jim mentioned above, seeing people discover the joy in handmade musical instruments really is heartwarming. And thank goodness there are people like you, Jim, that share their building knowledge that others may find the same joy.

About that fantastic guitar pictured above Rick wrote, "My tribute to Buckethead and his signature Les Paul. The guitar has a C. B. Gitty pre-wired pickup, knobs, hardtail bridge and machine heads. The box is an actual Cuban Cohiba that was gifted to me, so I had to make it special. With the help and guidance from C. B. Gitty, I was able to create (in my humble opinion) a masterpiece that should easily outlive me! Thanks, everyone for making me feel like family not merely a customer."

And thank you, Rick, for your endless kindness and support. We're grateful to be alongside you in the cigar box guitar community.

Now, how about all that for some inspiration?

Thank you so much, Rick, Jim, Charles, Daniel, and Jackie for sharing your work with us, and for inspiring builders from all corners to build something new and exciting.

What about you? Do you have something you've built using our parts or kits that we can share on our website?

If so, follow this link to send us your photos, videos, and a bit of your story. We love the things you build and how they inspire other veteran and would-be builders to make unique and fun musical instruments.