c.1960s/2010 Cigar Box Ukulele
Yessir -- what do you do with an old Harmony uke neck, plastic fretboard, and a slightly older Robert Burns cigar box? You make a uke. This one actually sounds pretty decent -- and it's just as loud as the original Harmony uke would have been. "Hot dawwwwg." It plays great, too.
Bone bridge.
New Grover pegs.
Convenient strap button here & at the bottom.
Nice looking box, too! Even has rounded corners. FANCY. I've put a coat of typical spray poly on it to keep it a bit more "weather impervious."
Strings get tied up in a knot and then passed through these holes from the inside. Simple makes the world go round.
Ha! And the box stays closed simply from friction. Original label inside, too... and you can see me two big old dowels for body rigidity. This is a perfect setup if you don't want to ruin a nice old box with a lot of extra internals but yet still make it really strong (I anticipate this fellow getting tossed in the back of cars quite a bit and heading to the beach).
Did I mention it's a Robert Burns box? Whet your songwriting appetite with THAT, my friends.
Comments
Would you mind giving a little more detail of exactly how you attached the neck to the box? I'd love to make one of these, but I can't quite visualize how to do that connection.
Thanks
Ben
I reinforced the box and then predrilled two holes in the neck for screws... and matching holes through the box... and used screws with washers for a dry attachment (no glue). This is how a lot of old banjo ukes were built and, 90 years later, they're working just fine... usually only need 1/8" of a turn of the screw to tighten them back up.
All the best,
Jake