Another cig box neck is roughed out

From a maple beam from that old piano we took apart. This one is going out to a friend of mine who has helped me walk the valley. THANKS!

Black walnut headstock overlay with a strip of boxwood down the middle. V-neck with some nice flame on one side.

National Guitars call it a "Tri-cone". I call this one the "Tri-can" - it will have three resonators made from one Cafe Bustelo can and two smaller El Pato hot sauce cans.

This thing is going to be great. And, it is making itself...

Can you sympathize with me?

So, I'm sitting here at 3:40 a.m., and have been drawing this draft plan for hours. I'll be paying for this in a couple hours when I have to get up and work on the farm... oh well.

It's too late to fire up the saw, so drawing is the next best thing.

I have been thinking about the nyckelharpa, an incredible Swedish instrument. That's where I started from. I think this violin will really work well and sound great. The neck, head, bridge and tailpiece will all be traditional.

prototype WORKS!

the prototype is glued up and strung for a test run. Still not done done, but that will come now that I know the thing works. And it works GREAT. Low action, really cool sound and it looks just like I wanted it to. It plays perfectly all the way up te fretboard, and truly exceeded all of my expectations. Also pictured is the Tarleton guitar neck in its current state and a beautiful Ed Thomas painted box. The image of the guitar is on the back & Ed painted a sunburst on the front. Rock and roll will never die!

Two string turtle shell and deer hide instrument

This one's not for sale, folks. It actually works! Picked or bowed, it makes a plucky little sound. Similar to the 'rebab' or spike fiddle of Northern Africa/ Mid East.

Old Piano Wood

I'm getting an old 1920s baby grand piano for free. No, folks, I don't play piano, but I do operate a screwdriver and a hacksaw. It's going to be dismantled and mined for some nice old guitar wood! Spruce, Ebony, Mahogany! Ivory on the keys - I hate that it came from a wonderful elephant, but I'll try to generate some good karma by building a new beautiful thing from it.

It's actually a nice piano, a Feurich, maybe worthy of restoration. A baby grand would be a pretty cool thing to have in the house. But not as cool as a bunch of guitars.

Glue on the gitter

So, I thought I'd have this prototype cigar box guitar ready for our Friday Night popcorn party, but alas, the day ran short on me...

BUT, it's looking good, and Clyde dog liked it too. Frets are on and level, and I'm using old school violin tuning pegs on it, just because that's what I had lying around on the workbench. May switch them out later.