Hubcap Guitars

[StevieB]

Enjoying? Yes and no. Before I worked in education I was a master craftsman, time served apprentice, journey man etc so I like to do whatever I do well. Sadly my trade had nothing to do with guitars or even wood and so I do find it a little frustrating. Things which are easy to do in metal I don't have the tools, while I may have the suitable woodworking tools I lack the skill or knowledge. I tend to have a lot on the go at once. A present I am making a resonator guitar, putting the finish back on an late 19th century accoustic, rebuilding a flamenco, fixing the cracks in a harp guitar and looking at resetting a neck on a early romantic guitar. But I do enjoy the challange and the reward that something which was match wood is now playable and has new life. I think I would have liked to have been a luthier had I known about it, now its too late.

[davey]

Enjoying? Yes and no. Before I worked in education I was a master craftsman, time served apprentice, journey man etc so I like to do whatever I do well. Sadly my trade had nothing to do with guitars or even wood and so I do find it a little frustrating. Things which are easy to do in metal I don't have the tools, while I may have the suitable woodworking tools I lack the skill or knowledge. I tend to have a lot on the go at once. A present I am making a resonator guitar, putting the finish back on an late 19th century accoustic, rebuilding a flamenco, fixing the cracks in a harp guitar and looking at resetting a neck on a early romantic guitar. But I do enjoy the challange and the reward that something which was match wood is now playable and has new life. I think I would have liked to have been a luthier had I known about it, now its too late.

Hey Stevie - look up the definition of 'Luthier' - its a title that fits you right now sir.

Good luck with all the repairs and projects, and I hope you enjoy the imperfect as well as the perfect.

All the best, davey.

[StevieB]

You're too kind. I still would feel more at home dropping a rudder out of a aircraft carrier then french polising a guitar back.

[davey]

You're too kind. I still would feel more at home dropping a rudder out of a aircraft carrier then french polising a guitar back.

... fair enough... but you'll need a bigger workshop if you decide to fix up an aircraft carrier!

[StevieB]

Very true

[StevieB]

Not quiet there. Bridge is a cotton reel, machines are too loose and neck needs finishing. Nut is a square thread from a work mate. Makes a good noise though.

[davey]

Not quiet there. Bridge is a cotton reel, machines are too loose and neck needs finishing. Nut is a square thread from a work mate. Makes a good noise though.

Hey Steve, love it (and nice workshop too!). What are the caps from? The nut looks the biz!

Looking forward to hearing it when its done - can you stick something on Youtube?

cheers, davey.

[StevieB]

Just stained neck and Tru Oiled it and looking for a replacement bridge. Any tips for playing? Afraid slid is a black art for me.

[davey]

Just stained neck and Tru Oiled it and looking for a replacement bridge. Any tips for playing? Afraid slid is a black art for me.

Not many tips I'm afraid - I'm not a player any more. Tune to an open tuning and mess about playing open / slide at 5th / 7th fret. You can get some very basic blues out of that. But you'll get much more from a tutorial. Bet there's loads on youtube and there are plenty of books if you don't mind spending a few quid.

Anyone else got better wisdom to add?

cheers, davey.

[StevieB]

BTW No idea what the caps are off, bought 3 off of eBay for £1.They are Austin caps so possibly an A60 or an A40. Seen some super 3/4 bolts at a local car boot which would make the bridge the right hight, but could be too heavy for the strings to keep on the bout. Think I might stick with the cotton reel and use an old piece of fret wire as a saddle.

[davey]

BTW No idea what the caps are off, bought 3 off of eBay for £1.They are Austin caps so possibly an A60 or an A40. Seen some super 3/4 bolts at a local car boot which would make the bridge the right hight, but could be too heavy for the strings to keep on the bout. Think I might stick with the cotton reel and use an old piece of fret wire as a saddle.

Wow, 3 hubcaps for £1 - sounds like a bargain to me! Nothing wring with using the cotton reel - is it wood or plastic? I'd imagine either would give a pretty unique sound.

[StevieB]

The cotton reel is wooden, I bought a load to make spool clamps from. This one is too long to be useful.

[StevieB]

Hopefully here is a picture of this summers project. It is a 19th century Italian guitar which was fretless, cracked bout, badly stained, no furniture, fret markers chipped and cracked ,nut but the neck was straight.


After



and she plays very nicely thank you.

Steve

[davey]

Hopefully here is a picture of this summers project. It is a 19th century Italian guitar which was fretless, cracked bout, badly stained, no furniture, fret markers chipped and cracked ,nut but the neck was straight.


After



and she plays very nicely thank you.

Steve

Hey Steve, what a beautiful thing. Nice work sympathetically done - must be your pride and joy!

Thanks for posting the pics.

davey.

[StevieB]

Has anyone else notices this? http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_trksi ... &_from=R40

Steve

[davey]

Has anyone else notices this? http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_trksi ... &_from=R40

Steve

Ha, like it! I think Super Chikan (who made Steve's diddley bo) made something like that - a 'shitar'! I hope the seat is new and not reclaimed!

You tempted to put one together?

Cheers,

davey.

[StevieB]

Ha, no not this time. I imagine where the neck joins the seat would be a weak point given the stresses involved. I've got a number of projects on the go, and with ebay there are lots of more potential projects coming up every day. I should really sell a few of them before 'erindoors leaves me! Hang on that might leave room for a few mor guitars .

Steve

[thassiepen]

I'm looking to make my first hubcap guitar, and before I do, I wanna make sure I have a good list. Can anyone help?

* 2 hubcaps
* broom stick
* pickup (http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/fishman-pro-neo-d01-magnetic-soundhole-pickup like this?)
* guitar string
* x nuts and bolts
* 4 brass plates
* back for tuners
* tuners


Am I missing anything else?

And thanks for all your guys' help!

[StevieB]

I found making the hubcap guitar interesting. If you follow Daveys instructions you wont go far wrong. But it does depend on what you have to hand, what your expertise is and what you want to do with the finished item. Mine started life very much like Daveys but I was not happy with certain aspects, couldn't get the hubcaps to line up right, I had an old tail piece I wanted to use, I wanted to use old nuts and bolts for the bridge and nut etc etc. So follow Davey's instructions, but be prepared to change them when necessary and don't be afraid to do your own thing. Have fun with your build and put pictures on here when you've finished.

Steve

[davey]

Hey Thassiepen,

welcome to the forum. I think Steve hit the nail on the head really and has piled in some great advice.

Have you got a 'normal' guitar to hand? Thats as good for an instruction manual as my old notes. I started by picking up a guitar, learning how it worked and measuring stuff. My notes are better than nothing, but I promise there are different, and often better, ways of putting these things together.

Your list looks pretty complete, although you'll need something to serve as a tailpiece. It also depends a bit on the parts you got - if your hubcaps are shallow you'll have to consider a spacer between them. But I think you got a good starting point. You'll possibly find that as your guitar comes together you want to change things around and use different parts that suit it better anyway. A workshop full of junk is always going to be useful here!

Pickup wise I think your choice is almost too good! I think its designed to clamp onto a sound hole. This might be great, but I don't suppose it'll give any advantage over a conventional pickup thats intended to be mounted via a couple of screws from the front, as found on most electric guitars. The pup in Steve's hubcap guitar cost about £10. Certainly not a bad pickup - nothing wrong with it and seemed nicely made - but its as cheap as they come! Steve's came from a parted guitar.

So, what sort of hubcaps are you using? And what else are you planning to make your instrument unique just for you?

Good luck with the build, and enjoy it! It would be great to get updates to see how its going.

All the best, davey.