Brian's Tapping Project

[wwhwwwh]

Hello all!
Below is a link to photos of the 12-string tapper project that I have worked on for the past two months.
I've been playing a 10 string Chapman Stick for several years and never really thought of building my own tapping instrument. Then, about one year ago, I found a pair of Seymour Duncan Bass Line 6 Active pickups for $20.00! I didn't know what I wanted to do with them but I couldn't pass them up. A random search on ebay a few months later made my vision a little more clear as I found a 34" long by 4" wide, pre-slotted fret board for $14.00. "That's as big as a Grand Stick,” I thought. (It's actually a little wider.) I was not ready to spend any spend any real money on a project so those parts sat for months as I doodled designs watched quietly as this forum flourish with creativity.
Then my wife got me wonderful two presents: a router for my birthday and a gift card to Stewart McDonald for Christmas! By February, I had the wood (Maple from Home Depot) and enough parts to get started:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/wwhwwwh/sets/72157600019828944/

[rjgoos]

All I can say is WOW!!!

I really appreciate your ability to think outside-of-the-box with regards to saving money on the project....how to use cheap hardware store items to make the bridge, and how to make cheap clamps.

[GaryOpenhill]

I love it. Good job with the bridge, you innovative person. The clamp strategy looks fun too.

Can i ask what the total cost will be?

[wwhwwwh]

I'm glad you like it so far. For me, half the fun of building something is going to the hardware store and spending hours staring at parts and brainstorming. Half the time I have no idea what their actual use is.

I've tried to sit down and figure out my cost for parts. There are tools like sand paper, glue, drill/router bits, ect...that I didn't have but they will be used for future "Honey Do" projects so I don't count them towards my instrument expenses.

Here’s what I came up with:

Pickups: $20.00
Fretboard: $14.00
Wood: $60.00
Fretwire: $20.00
Truss Rods: $38.00
Dot Inlays: $7.20
Oval Metal Jack Plate: $6.78
Micra Saddle Blank (for Nut): $2.50
Guitar Machine Heads: (from http://www.internationalluthiers.com/machineheadsp2.php
Part # SG2080 $27.00)
Pots, Wire, Battery Clip, Nobs, Capacitor, Stereo Jack: $10.00 (local Radio Shack going out of business sale)
Home Made Bridge: $20.00
Leppelinn Strap Locks: $19.00 (They’re cheaper at: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Zeppelinn-ZSL600-Strap-Lock?sku=360602
I like them better than the Dunlop Straplok System. They seem to have a sturdier fit and a lower profile.
Tongue Oil: $7.00
Warr Guitar Strings (+ Shipping): $45.00

Total to date: $296.48

Brian Behary

[rjgoos]

Brian wrote:

>For me, half the fun of building something is going to the hardware store and spending hours staring at parts and brainstorming.<


Yes, this is how I started also, in the fall of 2004. I started by spending a couple afternoons at the various "big box" hardware/home improvement stores (Lowe's, Home Depot, Menard's) with just a ruler and notepad, just looking at off-the-shelf materials, and wondering how it might be incorporated into a tapper. It turns at least part of the design process on its head.


Jay

[wwhwwwh]

My experimenting did not start with this project. About 8 years ago, I wanted to make a headless, Steinberger-style guitar. The neck came from a broken 24" scale acoustic guitar. The body was made from 2 pieces of Poplar from Lowe's, and the electronics were a Pre-wired Pickguard Assembly from Stewart McDonald (reconfigured on a piece of pickguard material cut to shape. It was made mainly as an experiment to see if it was possible to make an inexpensive bridge, tailpiece, and tuning machines. It worked very well (until I dropped it out of a bus... but a little Gorilla Glue fixed that problem.)

I wanted to make a headless tapper the same way but I wasn't sure that the tuners would work with the tension of bass strings. The screws also had to be placed in every other hole in the ground plate. I think that would make the tailpiece too long.

Here are some pictures of the guitar:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/wwhwwwh/432974422/in/set-72157600025077623/

Brian Behary

[GaryOpenhill]

Here are some pictures of the guitar:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/wwhwwwh/432974422/in/set-72157600025077623/

Brian Behary

Interesting stuff. I getting inspired.

This design could be cool for a twelve string short scale tapper, double melody, like the boxguitar. The bridge had to be replaced by individual screws per string, of course.

But, isn't it hard to tune compared to a tunerhead?

Whats the function of the screws that stick up over each tuner?


It worked very well until I dropped it out of a bus.

Yes, that never goes well. Kids, don't do it.

[wwhwwwh]

It is a little tough replacing strings. You need to unscrew the thumb nuts as far as possible, connect the strings to the saddles, and pull the strings tightly through the headstock (with pliers) until you screw down the headstock screws. Once that is done, the actual turning of the thumbnuts is not hard. Yes, it's tougher than a tuning machine but I've never had to use any tools to do so. The Brass screws are fine threaded and seem very tough. I think these two factors play a big role in the bridge's success.

As for the two screws by the bridge, they are to connect a MIDI pickup. I have a rather old system for midi recording called the G VOX (I can only get it to work with a computer running Windows 95!) This guitar is perfect for it since it's small enough to be out of the way while sitting at the computer while wearing it and the MIDI system is forgiving enough for any intonation problems due to an uncompensated bridge.

Brian Behary

[wwhwwwh]

After waiting over a month for the tuners and another month for strings, it's finally finnished!

[wwhwwwh]

After waiting over a month for the tuners and another month for strings, it's finally finnished!
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/190/490558098_30fe731fa7.jpg?v=0http://farm1.static.flickr.com/194/490558096_85003f2854_s.jpg

[rjgoos]

Congratulations Brian! We look forward to hearing sound samples.

The entire set of pictures can be seen at:

http://tinyurl.com/34pngl

[jocafa]

Hey wwhwwwh, I ended up using your tuner design for the tuners on an electric upright bass I'm working on:

Flickr Set (http://www.flickr.com/photos/jocafa/sets/72157600181039890/)

[wwhwwwh]

I managed to place a sound small file here:


http://www.putfile.com/wwhwwwh (http://)


Hopefully I'll be able to add more soon.

Brian

[wwhwwwh]

The link in my last post doesn't seem to work so I'll try again.
If this one does not work, just copy and paste this link:

http://www.putfile.com/wwhwwwh


Tapper samples (http://www.putfile.com/wwhwwwh)