How to Build a Fretless, Acoustic Cigar Box Guitar

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1 How to Build a Fretless, Acoustic Cigar Box Guitar Introduction Welcome to the fun and world of building Cigar Box Guitars. It is unlikely that you will build only one - it is addictive. Regardless of your woodworking skills or musical ability you will have great fun building and playing your own instrument. These instructions are to build a neck-through, fretless, acoustic CBG from an Astons Music CBG kit but they can be fretted, electric, in fact the design options are infinite. You will need to source, or purchase from our website, a piece of hardwood for the neck. Our preferred size is 35mm wide x 25mm deep x 1000mm long. In the instructions we use a mix of metric and imperial measurements to aid understanding. Only the most basic tools are required to complete this kit, and the end result is a fully playable CBG. The Kit The kit includes 1 Cigar Box (styles vary) 3-String Set Strings 3 Tuners with Bushings and Screws 1 Threaded-Rod for the nut 1 wooden bridge 3-3mm eyelets 4 Screened Brass Sound-Hole Inserts 4 Brass Box Corners with screws An Example of a CBG made with this kit.

2 Lets Get Started. 1. Mark out and cut the headstock part of the neck as in the photo below using a hand or a power saw. The cut out is 125mm x 10mm. Sand to a smooth finish. 2. Mark a line 10mm down from the edge of the cutout this is the nut position. We come back to fitting the nut later. 3. The length of the neck depends on the size and shape of the box, so follow these steps to get the neck length and bridge position correct. For this instrument we will use a scale of 25 inches. From the line marked for the nut position step 2 - measure and mark a line at 25 inches. This is the bridge position. Lay the box next to the neck. The bridge position needs to be 50mm to 75mm from the end of the box, depending on its shape and size.

3 The neck needs to protrude 40mm from the end of the box. Mark this position and cut the timber SAVE THIS OFFCUT. 4. Mark the box for the neck cutout. The style of CBG you are building is called a neck-through style, where the neck extends all of the way through the box. To allow this, two openings need to be cut into the box sides, into which the neck will snugly fit. Find the centre of the box and mark it,

4 Mark the centre of the offcut in step 3. Line up the two centres and draw around the offcut to give the size of the cutout.

5 Cut out the openings. We find that the easiest way is to drill a series of small holes on the inside of the horizontal cut line, then cut down the verticals with a saw. Repeat this at the other end of the box. Test that the neck fits snugly and flush with the top of the box. If necessary use a file to make the openings to the correct size.

6 5. Place the neck into the openings in the box with the 40mm protruding from the end. Now mark and the box lid recess. Use a straight-edge to mark the neck on the inside edges of the box, square that line down the side. Measure the thickness of the box lid then use a straight edge to mark the depth of the lid recess. Using a hand or power saw cut out the lid recess. File or sand smooth.

7 6. Insert the neck into the box and try to close the lid. You want a nice snug fit between the lid edge and the sides of the recess cut-out. Use a straight wood file to square up and enlarge the opening as necessary, until the lid fits very snugly into it, as shown in the photo below. Note that with this style of CBG, the neck is held in place purely by friction, you don t need to glue or fasten it into place. 7. Mark and cut out the step for the string retention 20mm x 10mm ON THE UNDERSIDE

8 8. Mark and drill the string holes. Measure 20mm from the end of the neck protruding put of the box. Square the line. Mark the centre, then mark 9mm each side. Drill 3-3mm holes in these positions for the eyelets, the eyelets are fitted later. 9. Now drill the sound holes in the box lid, and mount the grommets. Use a drill bit to drill the holes, you may need to jiggle the bit around while drilling to enlarge the holes a little more, to get the grommets to fit correctly. You can also use a round wood file to enlarge the holes slightly. You don t have to drill the sound holes in the locations we show, and you don t have to have 4 sound holes.

9 10. Fit the Nut. At the marked nut line use a round file to file a rounded groove into the neck, as shown in the photos below. This groove will help keep the nut in place once the guitar is strung up.

10 11. Install the tuners. Note that the brass gear on the backs of the tuners should always be on the BODY side when mounted, not towards the top of the neck. This kit includes two tuners that go on one side of the headstock, and one tuner that goes on the other whether there are two on the left or two on the right will vary from kit to kit but as long as you make sure the gears are on the body side when they are mounted, you ll know you have them right. BE SURE TO FIGURE OUT WHETHER YOU HAVE TWO LEFT OR TWO RIGHT TUNERS BEFORE DRILLING YOUR HOLES. 12. Mark the positions of the holes for the tuners as in the photo below. 13. Use an 8mm drill bit to drill the holes. 14. Insert the bushings on the face side. 15. Insert the tuners from the rear gear towards the body. Make sure that the tuner edges are parallel to the headstock edges, and then mark the centre of each hole location with a sharp pencil or fine-point marker. Pre-drill the screw holes using a 1.5mm bit.

11 Mount the tuners using the included screws. 16. Fit the brass box corners included in the kit. These corners not only look good, but they also help keep the cigar box lid closed. Pre-drill the screw holes using a 1.5mm bit.

12 17. Fit the strings to your guitar. The thickest string goes on the left, if you are looking at the instrument from the front. Insert the eyelets into the pre drilled holes. Thread through the hole from the back, over the bridge then through the tuner hole. Wind on to the tuner.

13 18. Your cigar box guitar is now complete. Tune it up to your desired tuning - the supplied strings are intended to be tuned to an open D tuning, with the largest string being D, the middle string being A and the highest string being D. It is highly recommended that you utilize a digital chromatic tuner when tuning your CBG. You can find inexpensive digital chromatic tuners at Since this is a fretless guitar, it is meant to be played with a slide. Many things can be used as slides, from wine bottle necks to glass medicine vials to lengths of metal pipe A range of slides are available from We hope that this kit has worked well for you, and that your first attempt at building a CBG has been a successful one. For Cigar Box Guitar parts and accessories visit