How To Build A Guitar: The String, Stick, Box Method

I've always wanted to make my own instrument. In this video, Bill shows you how to do just that. The great thing about his approach is that you can build one for around $30 in wood and parts and probably with the tools you already own. I just needed to get a rasp, some files, and a fret saw.After watching the video, I built a four-string cigar box guitar with a built in pickup that is fun to play. I recently finished my second small guitar this time from scratch; it came out better than the first. I'm busy planning my third instrument.This video made the intimidating process of building an instrument accessible to and doable for the average person. Books and pictures have their place, but the video demonstrations of how to do it gave me the confidence to go for it. I'm glad I did; it opened up a whole new world to me and I'm not looking back.It's hard to describe the thrill and satisfaction that comes from playing an instrument you built yourself.Thanks BillP.S. Check out the Cigar Box Guitar Group on Yahoo for pics, ideas, and info from cigar box guitar builders all over the world who are sharing thier passion.

This is very good DVD on how to build your own Cigar Box Guitar. I have built two so far and am currently finishing up my third. If Bill does a remake on this DVD I would like to see a section on how to build without the use of power tools and more details on measurements. Other than those two items this is the best instructional out there. You won't go wrong ordering this product!

There is a lot of good information on this dvd. especially the scaling. I would like to have seen less work with power tools since a router isn't something i readily have access to. good information tho over all.

this is for anyone wanting to build a cigar box guitar, lets you know step by stepfor to do & what is need to build your first cigar box guitar. Bill make it easyto follow & make you feel that you can do this, have fun doing it, & be happyplaying a guitar that you builted

Great resource for learning to build your own cigar box guitar!! Highly recommended!

this instructional video is good but incomplete. the whole video ends just before final assembly of the guitar. that was very dissapointing :(I want a buck back.

I found this video refreshingly straightforward and helpful. Discovering it was one of the coolest things to happen to me in recent years. I had relocated to another city and was living there with very few possessions. After having been a guitarist since my early teens I found myself living in a new city with no guitar to play. I hadn't played in almost a year and was desperate for something to use!Rather than buy some cheap department store guitar made by underpaid labor in some far away country, I started nosing around the web. I saw several websites dedicated to these strange things called "cigar box guitars" They were becoming a popular roots-music and DIY trend. I found this video and decided maybe I should give it a try and maybe make myself one of these things.Now, I am not a complete novice when it comes to this stuff. I had already built a solid-body electric guitar in a course some 20 years ago, but without all the machinery and tooling of a professional shop on hand, and no master luthier for guidance, it seemed like something very basic was in order.With Bill's video, I was able to make myself a playable instrument in less than a week, start to finish, with an absolute minimum of tooling and materials. (most of the materials were available locally, through the lumber store, or online for things like fret wire, machine-heads, etc) Hell, I actually built it in the basement apartment that I lived in at the time!The construction method Bill Jehle has devised is really pretty neat, works very well, and is surprisingly easy to pull off. He describes how to construct a basic, 4-string cigar box guitar. (no truss-rod or neck joint or anything that could easily screw up the project) It's a gratifying experience. One that would not be intimidating or discouraging to beginners, and one that I found eventually led me back to building 3 more conventional guitars afterwards. Heck, I haven't stopped, as I'm now in the process of building two more. This has become a new addiction for me, all thanks to Bill.The instruction in this video is fun, unpretentious, practical and minimalist, while not being in any way incomplete. While people who are completely new to woodworking would do well to heed the words of caution that are included in this video, watching through it several times can help with deciding how to (or whether to) begin. It's worth the time spent. You get a fun, useable instrument when you're done, and you can build on what you've learned and progress to more complicated instruments later.

As the curator of the National Cigar Box Guitar Museum, I have collected just about every instructional publication, book, article and other ephemera relating to cigar box guitars. Bill Jehle's video is the most informative, encouraging and helpful tool for creating these magical instruments that I've ever seen.First of all, the average buyer (with little or no woodworking skills) going to end up with a playable, fretted cigar box guitar...no doubt about it. But Jehle doesn't just stop there. His end goal is to encourage homegrown luthiers to use the basic skills of cigar box guitar building and let them flourish into eventually building 'normal' guitars and other instruments.Jehle has the magical spark that Mr. Rogers had...he makes you believe in yourself and your humble skills. I know that sounds hokey, but if you're on the fence about building your own instruments, Jehle will give you all the courage you need to tackle the project and come out triumphant.And for those who don't know, cigar box guitars are becoming the next rumbling in the music underground. Musicians of all calibers and styles are abandoning their store bought gear and adopting these primitive tools for a sound that's grittier, meaner...and deeper.Join the cigar box guitar revolution. This DVD is the ticket in.I've built over 200 cigar box guitars and this video taught me a lot I didn't know.Sincerely,Shane Speal(Shane Speal is the self proclaimed "King of the Cigar Box Guitar." Check out his newest cd "Stealing the Fire" on Amazon at  Stealing the Fire  )