Cigar box guitar makers are an evolving community of DIYers who create homemade stringed musical instruments with recycled or otherwise upcycled materials. Their activities are driven by recycling, repurposing, and upcycling ideals; and often lead to strong emotional attachments with one's instruments.
An original, primitive cigar box guitar requires minimal decorations; reduced to its most essential form, it consists of nothing more than a stick and box with strings. However, many builders enjoy adding decorative features during their builds.
How to Build a Cigar Box Guitar
The cigar box guitar is an accessible, one-of-a-kind instrument that has become an essential element in many styles of music. Ideal for learning slide playing or simply strumming out some tunes, this kit provides all of the hardware required for creating a three string cigar box guitar with neck that's ready to play!
To prepare the body for its neck, start by measuring down from the lid edge and marking 3/4" either side using tape measure or yard stick (you could also use an algid ruler as an accurate way of making these marks). Next cut a rectangle-shaped slice off of the lower end of wood for sawing off later.
This side will be used for gluing the neck. Mark the headstock area with pencil or marker and saw off a piece from this to form the top of the neck shape (see photo). Cut a square in the headstock where tuners will go, using a countersink bit to drill holes for them, before finally sanding the neck until its surface is even with that of the body.
Part 1: The Neck
Cigar Box Guitars (CBGs) are DIY instrument projects rooted in recycling, reuse and repurposing. Constructed using recycled materials like old wooden floorboards, doors or window frames; as well as metal items like old car hub caps; they represent an eco-friendly means of making music!
As the first step of CBG construction, selecting an appropriate receptacle that can act as the resonating chamber or soundbox is of primary importance. A cigar box or similar container often makes this task easy but alternative materials like cans can also work just as effectively. Once chosen, its neck should then be cut from timber using handsaw or drill.
Snowden suggests using Punch cedar from Mexico or Cohiba mahogany from Latin America for his necks. No matter which wood species is chosen, however, its weight and strength should always be taken into consideration; otherwise the final instrument might prove unplayable. Testing of neck fit also allows to check that it will fit flush against the top of its box.
Part 2: The Body
Cigar box guitars are an approach to DIY music making that originated during the Great Depression when musical instruments were out of reach for many people. Recently, these instruments have experienced a revival due to renewed enthusiasm for American folk music among a new generation of musicians.
Interviews with makers reveal an intense sense of personal growth within cigar box guitar making. Repurposing materials found by chance at local carpenters' wood waste bins forms the core of this craft and acts as an invaluable opportunity for personal development in its practitioners.
Components necessary for making an instrument work typically include a bridge (which holds the strings above the neck) and nut. Two lengths of threaded rod about width of neck make an effective bridge-nut combination, although some makers use standard bolts. Finally, some method must exist for electrifying string vibrations so the guitar can be played; typically this involves either piezo element or magnetic pickup technology.
Part 3: The Bridge
Cigar box guitars (CBG) first emerged around the middle of the 19th Century in America, representing an aspect of culture where money was tight yet creativity flourished in abundance.
CBG makers create instruments as a way of rejecting mass consumerism and living more sustainably. This paper explores how making and its associated community of practice help foster such goals among their participants.
Snowden prefers using cedar wood for his bridge, and has even used Cuban cigar leaves like Punch as his preferred type. Although different wood types don't make much difference in the sound produced, Snowden recognizes that Punch may suit his "growly, gnarly" music better due to its more rugged exterior.
Some builders electrify their CBGs using piezo element pickups glued directly onto the interior of the box; others choose electromagnetic magnetic pickups from existing instruments as a more cost-effective solution. Either type can add both visual appeal and distinctive tones to their instrument depending on what sound it will create.
Part 4: The Tuners
Cigar box guitars (and their acoustic counterparts, diddly bows, banjos and fiddles) are primitive stringed instruments crafted from found materials such as cardboard boxes. Construction usually begins by selecting an appropriate receptacle to act as the resonating chamber - this might include old wooden boxes but could also include cans or pieces of reclaimed wood such as floorboards, doorframes or offcuts from floor planks etc.
Final components required for building an electric guitar include a tailpiece to secure strings to their positions on the body and neck, nut and bridge to support them above it, and tuning device (known as a tuning peg or tuning arm) to tension and tune them appropriately. All of these items may be purchased or made from found objects - often both options will be employed together.
Although most makers claim their motivation comes from an urge to create music, sustainable issues often play an integral part of their craft practice. Many makers cite an active resistance to throwaway culture as well as their desire to reclaim, recycle, reuse and upcycle products for use as instruments; some even go as far as using recycled wood in their instruments!
Part 5: The Pickups
In order to make your cigar box guitar sound great, you will require some sort of pickup. This can either be purchased or built yourself; we recommend our easy to mount piezo pickups that can be simply screwed directly onto the top of the CBG without needing to route or cut anything first.
Why are these pickups so popular among our makers? Simply put, they offer a more realistic and sonically exciting alternative to the standard stringed acoustic guitar. Furthermore, you can plug them directly into an amplifier and rock out like Eddie Van Halen or Slash - sure to get your heart racing!
Netnographic analysis also demonstrated how the cigar box guitar serves as an effective catalyst in combatting throwaway culture by giving makers access to active virtual and physical communities of practice that offer learning experiences, information and advice they require for fulfilling their ambitions.
Part 6: The Hardware
The nut (the screw at the headstock of an instrument that holds its strings) and bridge (a piece at the base of its neck that holds strings) are typically constructed of bone or wood; some makers also utilize epoxy. They are typically adhered in place using wood glue; though epoxy may also be used. Finally, tailpieces (pieces at either end that connect to strings) typically made of metal; however some makers use other materials including plastic, leather or even Masonite!
All of the makers interviewed expressed strong desires to resist mainstream consumerism, and expressed an interest in various sociocultural issues. Most made extensive use of the internet (including dedicated websites ) as part of their making practice and felt part of virtual communities as well as physical communities that supported making and playing. They took an ecological approach to their creations, often recycling or repurposing items that might otherwise have been discarded as waste products.
Part 7: The Finish
Crafting handmade heirloom instruments out of recycled vintage items is a rewarding and worthwhile hobby within homemade music, and one such instrument that has proven popular among DIY musicians is the cigar box guitar.
Simply and affordably create music using only an empty cigar box, stick of wood, and strings! Don't underestimate these humble instruments' potential - they pack an intense sound! With its distinctive tactile and visual charms they capture an era in American history where resources were limited yet ingenuity flourished abundantly.
Snowden takes great joy in carrying on the tradition of cigar box upcycling. He is reclaiming used boxes themselves while using castoff pieces of wood from salvage yards for crafting his necks. His work stands as a statement against throwaway culture; further reinforced by membership of active virtual and physical support networks that provide learning experiences, advice, emotional support and encouragement in his commitment to sustainable consumption, upcycling, recycling and repurposing.