How to Make a Double Bass Guitar From a Box
Bluegrass and skiffle bands are generally filled with instruments producing lots of high frequencies, guitars, banjos, fiddles and washboards. To provide balance, many of these groups include an improvised bass instrument. Called a washtub, tea chest or box bass, it usually consists of a wooden pole stuck into a large, resonant container. A string running from the top of the pole to the body of the box is tensioned up to pitch. As it's an improvised instrument, you can build your own for pennies from repurposed materials.
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Things You'll Need
- Large wooden box or 5-gallon plastic bucket
- Drill with 1/4-inch bit
- Jigsaw
- 3 threaded bolts, 3 inches long
- Wingnuts
- Hardwood plank, 3-by-3 inches and 6 feet long
- Hardwood board, 1-by-3 1/2 inches and 4 feet long
- Hinge, 2 1/2 inches wide
- Self-tapping screws
- Screwdriver
- Threaded bolt, 12 inches long
- Double bass tuning peg
- Bass nut
- Wood glue
- Double bass string
- Washer, 1/4-inch in size
Instructions
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1
Drill a hole in the top of the box or bucket, near the edge or corner. Widen it to 3 inches square using the jigsaw. Feed the 6-foot plank into the hole so it is flat against the side of the container.
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2
Drill three equally-spaced holes through the side of the container and the plank. Use three short bolts to attach the plank to the wall of the container. Wingnuts allow the bass to be easily disassembled for transport or storage.
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3
Screw the hinge to the top of the plank, facing forward. Screw the shorter plank to the opposite flap of the hinge, so it hangs against the main plank. An inch above the bottom of the short plank, drill a hole through the back of the long plank. Insert the 12-inch bolt into the hole and place the wingnut between the two planks. The bolt will prop the shorter plank away from the longer one at its base, creating the shape of a "4" when viewed from the side. The wingnut can be used to adjust the distance of the string from the fingerboard.
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4
Drill a hole down through the top of the main plank. Drill a second hole through the side at a right angle to the adjustment bolt. The two holes should bisect one another inside the plank. Push the tuning peg through the side hole so it is visible through the top one. You will feed the string down through the top hole, then wrap it around the peg to tension it.
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5
Glue the bass nut to the top of the fingerboard. It should be higher than the board by about 1/8-inch. Make a small notch in the center of the nut to hold the string in place.
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6
Drill a hole in the center of the top of the box. Thread the washer onto the bass string, then thread the string through the hole in the box. Loop the string through the washer. Twist the excess through the other side, securing the washer to the end of the string. Thread the free end of the string through the hole in the box from the inside, and feed it all the way through until the washer stops the end of the string from passing out of the box. Pass the other end of the string over the nut, then wrap it around the tuning peg and tighten.
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7
Tune the bass. Adjust the wingnut on the action adjuster so the fingerboard runs parallel to the string all the way along its length.
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Tips & Warnings
You can make this instrument in any size. By adjusting the dimensions of the materials, you could make a larger, lower contrabass or a smaller, cello-style instrument.
References
- Photo Credit Digital Vision./Digital Vision/Getty Images
