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Topic: Dobro Conversion |
Russ Cudney
From:
Sonoma, California, USA
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Posted 31 Jan 2014 9:01 pm |
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I've had this old cheap Korean guitar for about 10 years. Got it at a garage sale for $10 with the intent of doing something weird to it. finally decided to convert it to a dobro with a spider, and cone I got from Czech brothers.
Before:
Finding the cone-well center:
Remove bridge:
Cutting the soundwell:
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1958 D8 Stringmaster, 1958 T8 Stringmaster, 1955 Q8 Stringmaster (in basket), 1949 Gibson BR9, 1953 Silvertone, 1957 Harmony H4 (yeah the cool black pearloid one), 1947 National Princess, 1969 Shobud S10 3X1 |
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Russ Cudney
From:
Sonoma, California, USA
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Posted 31 Jan 2014 9:06 pm
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Ready for a sound ring:
Checking for cone-ring depth:
Cutting the sound-ring:
_________________
1958 D8 Stringmaster, 1958 T8 Stringmaster, 1955 Q8 Stringmaster (in basket), 1949 Gibson BR9, 1953 Silvertone, 1957 Harmony H4 (yeah the cool black pearloid one), 1947 National Princess, 1969 Shobud S10 3X1 |
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Russ Cudney
From:
Sonoma, California, USA
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Posted 31 Jan 2014 9:13 pm
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Ring glued:
Bracing the ring:
Sizing the cone:
Cone sizing with bridge:
_________________
1958 D8 Stringmaster, 1958 T8 Stringmaster, 1955 Q8 Stringmaster (in basket), 1949 Gibson BR9, 1953 Silvertone, 1957 Harmony H4 (yeah the cool black pearloid one), 1947 National Princess, 1969 Shobud S10 3X1 |
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Russ Cudney
From:
Sonoma, California, USA
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Posted 31 Jan 2014 9:19 pm
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Glue filler piece cut from hole cut:
Cutting the screen holes:
Cutting battery hole for the Fishman preamp:
Battery socket installed:
_________________
1958 D8 Stringmaster, 1958 T8 Stringmaster, 1955 Q8 Stringmaster (in basket), 1949 Gibson BR9, 1953 Silvertone, 1957 Harmony H4 (yeah the cool black pearloid one), 1947 National Princess, 1969 Shobud S10 3X1 |
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Russ Cudney
From:
Sonoma, California, USA
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Posted 31 Jan 2014 9:23 pm
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Hooking up the Fishman:
Repair binding and frets:
Assembly:
_________________
1958 D8 Stringmaster, 1958 T8 Stringmaster, 1955 Q8 Stringmaster (in basket), 1949 Gibson BR9, 1953 Silvertone, 1957 Harmony H4 (yeah the cool black pearloid one), 1947 National Princess, 1969 Shobud S10 3X1 |
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Russ Cudney
From:
Sonoma, California, USA
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Posted 31 Jan 2014 9:24 pm
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Finished!
.....and sounds great!
_________________
1958 D8 Stringmaster, 1958 T8 Stringmaster, 1955 Q8 Stringmaster (in basket), 1949 Gibson BR9, 1953 Silvertone, 1957 Harmony H4 (yeah the cool black pearloid one), 1947 National Princess, 1969 Shobud S10 3X1 |
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Bill Mollenhauer
From:
New Jersey, USA
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Posted 1 Feb 2014 6:15 am
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Nicely done Russ. Its looks a lot more professionally done than mine will. I started on an old 12 string with a collapsing top but had to quit cause it got too cold in my garage to work.
Did you have any problems with the neck bending after you got it strung up. I couldnt tell but it looks like you put a stick in from the neck to the botom of the guitar. I am thinking that since mine is a 12 string I would not need to and it is probably beyond my skills to do a nice effective job anyway. |
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Rob Munn
From:
British Columbia, Canada
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Posted 1 Feb 2014 8:20 am
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| Wow! Nice woodwork! |
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Russ Cudney
From:
Sonoma, California, USA
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Posted 1 Feb 2014 8:57 am
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Bill,
You are correct. I added a stiffener from the neck block to the tail block. I also added a thin brace for patching the original sound hole. The top is laminate not spruce so I left it as is.
I'll post a video when I get more used to it. The 14 fret neck joint throws me off a little but I like the boomy baritone/dobro combo sound.
_________________
1958 D8 Stringmaster, 1958 T8 Stringmaster, 1955 Q8 Stringmaster (in basket), 1949 Gibson BR9, 1953 Silvertone, 1957 Harmony H4 (yeah the cool black pearloid one), 1947 National Princess, 1969 Shobud S10 3X1 |
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Richard Keller
From:
Deer Creek, Illinois, USA
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Posted 1 Feb 2014 9:43 am
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| Nice Russ! I have been thinking about making a resonator. Great job documenting the process. Looking forward to seeing your video. |
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Daniel McKee
From:
Corinth Mississippi
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Posted 1 Feb 2014 10:13 am
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| Looks great! Very nice work |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Michael Kienhofer
From:
Goulais River,Ontario,Canada
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Posted 2 Feb 2014 5:57 am
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| Looks a lot like Shot Jackson's "Sho-Bro" Great job!! |
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chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 2 Feb 2014 11:52 am
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| really cool. would you mind offering about what the dollar outlay was for the hubcap and ashtrays, etc.? |
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Russ Cudney
From:
Sonoma, California, USA
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Posted 2 Feb 2014 12:00 pm
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@ Chris,
I think I bought them in the late 90's for about $80. Don't think Czech brothers are in business anymore. I don't work on these very much, but I think the Beard cone is the best bang for the buck right now.
_________________
1958 D8 Stringmaster, 1958 T8 Stringmaster, 1955 Q8 Stringmaster (in basket), 1949 Gibson BR9, 1953 Silvertone, 1957 Harmony H4 (yeah the cool black pearloid one), 1947 National Princess, 1969 Shobud S10 3X1 |
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chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 2 Feb 2014 12:40 pm
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| thnx...that's pretty affordable. |
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John Sluszny
From:
Brussels, Belgium
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Posted 2 Feb 2014 4:52 pm
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| Wow,good job,I'd like to hear it ! |
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Russ Cudney
From:
Sonoma, California, USA
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Posted 7 Feb 2014 6:04 am
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Looks good Alan. Why did you add the extra sound holes when you left the originals? For looks or sound?
_________________
1958 D8 Stringmaster, 1958 T8 Stringmaster, 1955 Q8 Stringmaster (in basket), 1949 Gibson BR9, 1953 Silvertone, 1957 Harmony H4 (yeah the cool black pearloid one), 1947 National Princess, 1969 Shobud S10 3X1 |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 7 Feb 2014 11:26 am
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For looks, Russ. They don't make any difference to the sound as far as I know. When you buy the resonator hardware they come as part of the set.
By the way, I did the entire conversion without disturbing the electronics of the piazzo bridge, other than moving it to the new bridge in the resonator. You should check out the conversion process which I included in the original posting. |
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