Cigar box guitars are very interesting instruments, because of how accessible they are. They are traditionally made from found materials, generally a cigar box, a broomstick, a few bolts, and three strings. Anyone can make their own with few materials and tools. I wanted to alter the structure of the cigar box guitar by utilizing digital fabrication techniques and a different mode of construction. Each part was first modeled in Solidworks and then printed. The maple neck/body were made on a CNC router. The through-neck piece is a solid component making up the head, neck, and open-chamber body of the guitar. Instead of designing just another box, I used a method of mortise and tenon joints to hold all the pieces together. These pieces were made from baltic birch plywood and cut out on the laser cutter. The saddle and nut of the guitar were printed on a MakerBot. The fret board and bridge were made using woodworking tools and guitar making techniques.
