(np) zero history (new Gibson coming in Sept)

[Michael Bailey]

Joe Allonby wrote:
> Ooh. Box or trapezoidal body?
>

box: he said he made it from a chocolate box,
this link
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170455938804&ssPageName=ADME:X:RTQ:US:1123

goes to a teaser picture which goes away after about a second saying
the auction is closed...


here is what he said about it (responding to my request that he add a
whammy bar):

Actually, it is a reinforced full hollow body and I don't think there
would be room for a Les Trem or Bowen Handle because I set the volumes
a little closer to reach.  I set the stop tail back a little farther
than normal for nicer harmonics.  It will feed back, especially on the
neck pickup if you are too close to the front of the amp.  Bo Diddley
used an amp with built in tremelo (or also called vibrato) for most of
his signature sound.  You can get them as a stomp box, too, if your
amp doesn't have it.  He also used short echo or slapback to
accentuate the trem, and plenty of reverb on leads.   He had Gretsch
custom make his first box guitars, for $9,000 each!!  I spent a deal
of time looking for the right box and neck/headstock to look the most
like in his picture in Guitar Player.
He hoimemade his first guitar, but not as a box.  He had seen many
other black blues players who did make their own box guitars and liked
their vibe.  They came out of the fact most were very poor and they
usually used cigar boxes and baseball bats cut down the middle and
piano wire.  A lot of kids used cardboard boxes and paper towel rolls
or 1x2s with rubber bands, first.  This one is a Wallace and Sons
Chocolates box with a Maestro neck by Gibson, chrome Grover tuners,
gold Epiphone (SG) pickups and hardware, with 2v 2T Les Paul type
wiring.  I used custom cut alder for reinforcement at the corners and
middle, neck pocket and bridge and tailpiece.  A cream 3 way switch
surround, jack holder and body binding, with natural stain and 2
clearcoats.  The neck is screwed and glued, with the screws filled
over and stained.  Gold Gibson strap holders.  The strap is a modified
barbed wire leather with black nylon strap extension to fit more
sizes, especially bigger.  The silk screened street scene on the top
of the box is like a city in the early 1900s, and a red quality stamp
on the front bottom.  The box itself is birch ply, the two halves
glued together with the gold hinges and lock intact.   The black
plastic control cavity cover is there only for the small chance you'd
ever have to replace a pot, or wanted to change capacitor values.  I
reused the Maestro nut but had to super glue string pieces to the
slots to build them up as one technique to get more life out of it.
Eventually, it should be replaced with a Graphtech or Gibson LP size
nut.


mike bailey

"walked 47 miles of barbwire, wear a cobra snake for a necktie,
got a little house by the roadside made out of rattlesnake hide"