Posts Tagged ‘tramp art culture’

If you have searched through all the online sites for ukuleles for sale and waded through the wide range of prices and all the different types that are available, maybe its time you considered building your own. Whether youre looking for a beginner ukulele or are ready for a professional instrument, building a ukulele for your own use or as a perfect and unique Christmas gift, follow these tips and youll gain insight into how to be sure you have the right stuff.

There are four basic ukuleles”baritone, tenor, concert and soprano. No matter which you choose, your primary consideration in building one, whether youre building from a kit or from scratch, is the box. Its the most critical element in a good cigar box instrument. Think about each of these four elements when choosing and preparing the box. 1. Choose the right box 2. Reinforce the box 3. Dont skimp on hardware and attachment methods 4. Follow the rules

Cigar box ukuleles are an outgrowth of tramp art culture where the idea was to build using leftovers that were meant for a completely different initial use and were like headed for, or already in the trash heap. So bear in mind that your sound box, that most basic element of any ukulele building kit, depends in this case on using discarded, although oftentimes extravagant, very well constructed and enchantingly beautiful, packaging material. You will find many sizes, shapes, length to width ratios, thicknesses and materials when looking at cigar boxes. It is best not to use all-cardboard boxes in the construction of your ukulele. Pick from whatever boxes are available, but bear in mind the following guidelines for optimum size depending on the instrument you are building.

Soprano Ukulele use a box between 7 and 9 long Concert Ukulele use a box between 8 and 10 long Tenor Ukulele use a box between 8 and 10 long Baritone Ukulele use a box between 9 and 11 long

When choosing the length you wont have much control over the width, but remember that anything less than 6 in width will have a tendency to reduce the acoustic effect, and as a rule wider is better. Deep can be better too, up to a limit, with a minimum depth of just over 2. Dont overlook the need for reinforcing your box. Use x blocks glued inside the corners of your box with top-quality Titebond II wood glue or equal. A thin, even coat of glue on two sides of each block is all you need. Place these blocks so they float above the bottom of the box. This bottom of the box is usually solid or laminated wood, and will become the sound board for your instrument, and not allowing the blocks to touch the bottom prevents any interference with soundboard vibration. Use a 3/16 x 3/8 support block glued on its edge inside the soundboard directly below or very near the location of the bridge. This will reduce the slight indentation of the soundboard caused by string tension.

Note that any paper thats inside the box should be removed at blocking locations so you get a firm wood to wood glue line at all blocking. Use a damp cloth and a straight edge, scraper or single edge razor blade to remove the paper. With regard to hardware and attachment methods, the main thing to remember is not to skimp on these components. Use only the highest quality screws and other fasteners. These components are only a fraction of the cost of the completed instrument, and you can therefore justify paying additional cost for exceptional quality in this area. Mark all fastener locations very carefully using a template and marking each with an awl, nail set or any tool that you can use to press an indentation in the wood at the fastener location. Pre-drill appropriate pilot holes to receive fasteners and use only hand tools (no power drills) to drive screws or tighten nuts.

One last thing to remember is to follow the rules. This is the most important point of all. There are two basic rules you must remember when building a cigar box ukulele, or a cigar box banjo for that matter. Rule #1 is Do it your way, and rule #2 is Dont forget rule #1. Once youve dealt with the basic box preparation steps above, you use your creative imagination to its fullest with added design and fabrication techniques using these same two rules. Good luck to you and good building.