The Vintage Series
The Cigar Box Guitar has a long and colourful history with roots going all the way back to the 1840’s. These often crude and primitive instruments were created through necessity as the poor people who built them couldn’t afford “real” instruments.
The “Vintage Series” is my personal tribute to those early makers of Cigar Box Guitars. These limited edition guitars, although outfitted with electric components and modern tuners, are specially created to look old and worn as if from many years of playing music on a front porch, around a campfire, or while riding the rails across the country.
NOTE: This series of guitar sells quickly!!! This page will be updated often. Guitars that have sold will be removed and new guitars added as they become available.
Freckles
“Freckles” is SO COOL!
I love copper accents but I love vintage copper accents even more! “Freckles” has them! The aged and hammered copper along with the custom vintage paint job make “Freckles” worthy of the Vintage Series. Copper knobs and a painted copper humbucker pickup provide great sound. Copper box corners and straps, tuners, the jack plate, and a hinge tailpiece finish it off. There’s even a fancy copper accent piece on the headstock and a really unique tailpiece cover.
“Freckles” has a perfectly imperfect Sitka Spruce and BC Pine body that has been hand painted and distressed to appear old and well played. The neck is hand carved from beautiful Lacewood including the headstock wings. This highly figured guitar neck is absolutely stunning and reminded me of freckles (in my weird little way). The fretboard is Maple and has copper rivets installed as fret markers. So cool!
Fully fretted, fully electric and boasting a 25-1/2″ scale length, “Freckles” is tuned to an Open G tuning and sounds awesome. Definitely a huge favourite of mine!! Can you tell?
$650
Aaralyn
The name “Aaralyn” can mean beautiful song or melody and is the perfect name for this guitar.
“Aaralyn” is a hand crafted cigar box style guitar constructed of B.C. Spruce sides and Spalted Red Alder top and back. She is finished in a clear polyurethane to showcase her beautiful woodgrain. The neck is made from rich, dark Black Walnut with Curly Maple headstock wings. The fretboard is also Curly Maple and contrasts nicely with the dark colour of the Walnut.
Chrome and black accents give “Aaralyn” just the right amount of shine. The tone and volume controls are outfitted with traditional “chicken head” style knobs. The bridge is hand shaped from Walnut which mimics the shape of the string retainer tailpiece made from an old drawer pull. Some chrome corner protectors and a carrying handle finish it all off.
“Aaralyn” is a fully fretted and fully electric 3 string guitar. She is tuned to open G and features a 25-1/2″ scale length (same as a Fender Strat). Her action is low and her intonation is fantastic. She is easy to play and has a comfortable, fast neck. The humbucker pickup has a nice warm tone and would make this guitar a great addition to any guitar collection!
$600
Broonzy
In case you didn’t know, “Broonzy” is named after Big Bill Broonzy who was an influential Blues singer, songwriters and guitarist from the 1920’s to the 1950’s. This guitar is in honour of this music legend.
“Broonzy” was created in my “vintage style” of cigar box guitar. My recognizable multi-coat paint effect delivers the aged patina while the distressed edges provide the illusion of a well used instrument. The neck is made from beautiful Green Heart hardwood and features Black Walnut on the headstock wings, the fretboard, and the bridge.
Antiqued brass accents are used throughout the design and add that aged look to the the guitar. The old door escutcheon plate used for the control panel and the ornate decoration on the headstock adds a really unique touch.
“Broonzy” is a fully fretted and fully electric 3 sting guitar. The tuning is Open G (G-D-G) and he is a dream to play! The scale length is 25-1/2″ with low action and great intonation.
This guitar is what “vintage” is all about!
$650
Little Dan
“Little Dan” is an actual vintage cigar box. These vintage cigar boxes are becoming much more difficult to find so I’m always on the look out for interesting ones when they do pop up.
“Little Dan” does show his age. He has tattered edges and a few torn paper labels. His colours have faded slightly but the original artwork still shines through. “Little Dan” makes the perfect vintage series cigar box guitar.
The neck and fretboard are made from locally sourced Big Leaf Maple and feature Walnut headstock wings. The wood has been carefully painted to appear worn and dirty before receiving multiple coats of a clear polyurethane for protection. All the electrics and accents are black and have been artificially aged using clever distressing and painting techniques. It looks perfect on this particular vintage style guitar.
“Little Dan” is fully electric and fully fretted and set up on a 25-1/2″ scale length. The action is low and the intonation is excellent. This guitar plays beautifully and the single coil pickup has a nice bright tone. On board volume and tone controls are close by for the convenience of the player.
This “barn find” is the perfect vintage cigar box guitar!!
$600
Gambler
“Gambler”
What should I build with a couple of old, yellowed, vintage dice? How about a vintage series guitar named “Gambler”.
“Gambler” is all about looking vintage. To make sure you know the guitar was made by 61 Nickel Guitars, the dice being used as volume and tone control knobs are figured as a six and a one (of course)!! The hand painted and carefully distressed guitar body was made from Sitka Spruce and BC Pine. The randomly “repaired” sound holes are done with strips of rusted metal and the control plate is fashioned from an old rusty doorknob escutcheon. The string retainer is a rusted piece of angle iron and the pickup has been scratched and painted to look well worn.
“Gambler” is fully fretted and fully electric. He is set up on a 25-1/2″ scale length and boasts incredible action and intonation. Tuned to an Open G tuning, this guitar has a lot of tone. The neck is made from Red Heart hardwood and has a fretboard made from nicely figured Big Leaf Maple.
Try your luck with the “Gambler”!
$650
Cremo
“Cremo” is a really unique vintage cigar box. The history of Cremo Cigars goes all the way back to 1896 in NYC. This vintage box is not quite that old and is likely more modern, probably mid 1900’s. Even so, for a cigar box to survive that long in this great condition is quite a feat and has now found a new purpose as a vintage cigar box guitar.
“Cremo” is a beautifully crafted 3 sting guitar tuned to the ever popular Open G tuning. The neck and fretboard are made from locally sourced Big Leaf Maple and have been painted with a special technique to make the instrument look old, worn, and even a bit grimy. A highly figured slice of Ribbon Mahogany is featured on the headstock which matches nicely with the cigar box body. All the chrome accents have been distressed and then bathed in a solution of Liver of Sulphur to enhance the aging process. It offers a great effect that really suits the vintage design.
Fully fretted and fully electric, “Cremo” is set up on a 25-1/2″ scale length and has excellent tone from the humbucker pickup. The intonation and action are amazing and make this guitar so very easy to play.
A real “vintage’ cigar box guitar!!
$600
Skulltimate
“Skulltimate”
A little bit different and a little bit odd…
“Skulltimate” is a skull themed 3 string guitar featuring a solid body made from highly figured locally sourced Big Leaf Maple. The grain is a combination of Bird’s Eye Maple and Flame Maple grain patterns which is the best of both worlds!! The hand carved neck is made from Bloodwood and has more of the Big Leaf Maple for a fretboard.
“Skulltimate” is actually quite simple in design which keeps the focus on the wood grain and features all chrome accents. The hardtail bridge provide low action and excellent intonation easy and the humbucker pickup gives the guitar incredible tone. The solid body is shaped like a skull and the tuning pegs and volume/tone controls all mimic the skull theme. There is even a small skull featured on the headstock right above that infamous 1961 Canadian nickel!!
Set up on a 25-1/2″ scale length and tuned to an Open G, this fully fretted and fully electric guitar is an amazing and truly collectible handmade instrument!!
It is the “Skulltimate” 3 string guitar!!
$700
Maison Blanc
“Maison Blanc” is simply “White House”.
This style of vintage guitar is one of my favourite kinds of guitars to create. The special “crackled” paint finish is so typical of an object that has been neglected or forgotten in an attic or a barn. It gives the appearance of being old and well played, which is exactly the way I want it to look. The ‘imperfectly perfect” hand cut f-holes add some old time charm and the flat black accents really contrast nicely with the crackled white finish. Once you plug it into your favourite amplifier, watch out!! She sounds incredible!!
The neck is hand carved from rich Bloodwood which picks up the Burgundy undercoat of the guitar body while a nice piece of Maple serves as the fretboard.
“Maison Blanc” is a fully fretted and fully electric 3 string guitar. She is tuned to an Open G chord and has a comfortable 25-1/2″ scale length. A warm tone comes from the humbuckere pickup and the volume and tone controls are within easy reach. The zero fret nut system provides easy playability with great intonation and action.
True to the word “vintage”.
$650
queen de Luxe
“Queen de Luxe” is older than she looks!
“Queen de Luxe” is a vintage cigar box dating back multiple decades. These old boxes usually don’t survive in this kind of condition. The box is old but in pretty great shape and makes for a fantastic cigar box guitar!
“Queen de Luxe” features a neck made from local Big Leaf Maple with a Black Walnut fretboard and headstock wings. The neck has been artificially aged using a special paint technique which gives the guitar that well used and dirty appearance. The same artificial aging techniques were employed on all the black accents and electrics creating an illusion of rust and grime. Of course, all the components are new and work perfectly.
“Queen de Luxe” is a fully fretted and fully electric 3 string guitar. Set up on a 25-1/2″ scale length and tuned to an Open G tuning, she sounds amazing with the bright sounding single coil pickup. She has nice low action and excellent intonation. What a true vintage cigar box guitar!!
$600
Dijon
“Dijon” can be more than just a great mustard! It can also be a really cool guitar!!
This vintage series guitar features a two tone paint job with a crackled finish. The areas where the mustard coloured top coat has been worn away reveal the burgundy base coat. No detail is overlooked and the end result is wonderful. An old hinge serves as a tailpiece and a vintage cabinet pull serves as a carrying handle. The ornate medallion on the centre of the guitar body was salvaged from an old Singer sewing machine. The neck is made from beautiful Greenheart and the fretboard is made from locally sourced Big Leaf Maple.
“Dijon” has a humbucker pickup for that nice warm tone and the volume and tone controls are mounted nearby for easy access. She is set up on a 25-1/2″ scale length and features a zero fret nut system that ensures low action nd great intonation. Tuned to an Open G chord, this guitar is ready to rock ‘n roll!!
$650
Bessie
“Bessie” is named after the most popular female Blues singer from the 1920’s/30’s, Bessie Smith (1894-1937). Bessie was known for her powerful vocals and was nicknamed the “Empress of the Blues”.
This vintage style cigar box guitar is made from Sitka Spruce and BC Pine. The wooden guitar body has been hand distressed to make it appear old and worn. The body is then finished with a a multi coat paint effect to give the illusion of age and built up grime. Multiple coats of clear polyurethane protect the guitar finish and give it a slight shine. The accents and electrics are all mostly antique brass and some have been handprinted to match.
The hand carved neck is made from Big Leaf Maple and has a matching Big Leaf Maple fretboard. The headstock wings are English Walnut and the floating bridge is a combination of highly figured Maple and Black Walnut.
Fully electric and fully fretted, “Bessie” has her own powerful voice using a full size humbucker pickup with volume and tone controls within easy reach. The 25-1/2″ scale length, low action, and incredible intonation make “Bessie” a dream to play. She is all set up to an Open G tuning and ready to play.
“Bessie” was (and still is) one of the greats!!
$650
