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Posts: 3055
Joined: Aug. 30 2008
From: Boston, MA, U.S.A
some homemade cejillas.
so i got a chance to work on some cejillas today. still not finished.
start off with some pegs. here you can see a comparison of the old fat ones next to the new 1/8 sized pegs. here's a prototype of the body i made out of junk wood here are the woods i have now. padauk, a chunk of rosewood, apple, and walnut here's padauk, the prettiest one.
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Posts: 3055
Joined: Aug. 30 2008
From: Boston, MA, U.S.A
RE: some homemade cejillas. (in reply to at_leo_87)
here's the padauk cut up and read to be shaped apple, rosewood, and walnut. they didn't come out as pretty as i thought they would. close up of the padauk with the pegs in
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Posts: 3055
Joined: Aug. 30 2008
From: Boston, MA, U.S.A
RE: some homemade cejillas. (in reply to at_leo_87)
number 2. this one looks a bit.... penisy to me. any recommendations for the shape? i'm scared to sand it anymore in case i lose the cool vein like grains.
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It inspires me to give it a try myselves. Do you use special tools?
i used a table saw to cut them, very scary and dangerous, a power drill, belt sander, and good ol' sandpaper.
quote:
btw. How do you attach the string inside the capo part?
it goes all the way through the body. on the other side of the capo, there's a small indentation to fit a small knot, which i'm going to tie with the string. i've tested it with my prototype, it works well.
RE: some homemade cejillas. (in reply to at_leo_87)
quote:
any suggestions to make it not look so penisy?
I hate to suggest circumcizing your beautiful knob there, but I bet if you grinded the grip part down so it was more square and flat it might help. You don't really need that much gripping power on it.
RE: some homemade cejillas. (in reply to at_leo_87)
quote:
oh, i need some tips on what to finish it with. i have tung oil and acylic spray.
i also need to decide if i'm going to use a red la bella g string or a d'addario composite.
and if i should get black leather or red leather....
I finish mine with just a high polish using micromesh, after the fine sanding, and then apply a coating of fingerboard oil. The oil will slightly darken most woods, but will give a nice patina.
I try to match the string and leather strap to the wood used. Of course, some contrast is nice also.
RE: some homemade cejillas. (in reply to at_leo_87)
If you ever want to use various colored strings to match varying color themes, there's also:
Gold LaBella Elite Classical Hannabach Goldin
Orangish tint Hannabach Flamenco
White Luthier White Aquila nylgut
Purplish tint D'addario T2
And I'll second the Micro-mesh. You could do without any finish, but I'd put something on there. Walnut oil would be my choice because it polymerizes and hardens up when dry.
RE: some homemade cejillas. (in reply to at_leo_87)
You might want to countersink the hole for the string on the bottom, so that the knot won't stick out. Also it is a good idea to file a groove on each end of the cejilla for the string to sit in.
I also glue (with Elmer's glue) a strip of black rubber on the bottom.
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RE: some homemade cejillas. (in reply to at_leo_87)
quote:
those cejillas are beautiful. how do you make the grooves for the strings?
i just got some rubber gasket material. they didn't have black, they had toilet plunger red.
I use a small needle file. If you have a saw with a thin blade, that will work but smooth out the grooves with sandpaper.
When first making cejillas, I used the "toilet plunger red". ;-) However, I graduated to black neoprene in 80 durometer, which finishes the cejilla much nicer.
Posts: 3055
Joined: Aug. 30 2008
From: Boston, MA, U.S.A
RE: some homemade cejillas. (in reply to ngiorgio)
where can i get the black stuff?
yeah it's fun but i don't understand why it's taking me the whole day to make 2.... now i'm lazy and i don't want to go back down to the evil basement to finish.
RE: some homemade cejillas. (in reply to at_leo_87)
quote:
where can i get the black stuff?
yeah it's fun but i don't understand why it's taking me the whole day to make 2.... now i'm lazy and i don't want to go back down to the evil basement to finish.
I got the black neoprene online. It comes in sheets of 12x12 and larger. Haven't bought any for a while. Don't remember which company. Google "black neoprene" and you should be able to find a supplier.
You gotta get back down in the basement so we can all see the end result.
Posts: 3055
Joined: Aug. 30 2008
From: Boston, MA, U.S.A
RE: some homemade cejillas. (in reply to Mike_Kinny)
hey mike, you should definitely give it a try. with your skills with wood, and out of the box thinking, i'm certain you'll come up with something awesome.
to attach the string to the body, just drill a hole all the way through, then widen the hole on the other side so it can hold the knot that you'll tie in the string. you can see it well in ngiorgio's pictures.
i just got some leather from an art craft store. i think it's imitation.
Posts: 3055
Joined: Aug. 30 2008
From: Boston, MA, U.S.A
RE: some homemade cejillas. (in reply to at_leo_87)
what do you guys think of the shape of this one now? i made the mistake of making the peg a bit too small. it slips a bit but still miraculously works fine.
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Posts: 3055
Joined: Aug. 30 2008
From: Boston, MA, U.S.A
RE: some homemade cejillas. (in reply to at_leo_87)
a disclaimer to all who intend to make their own cejillas. it might be a better use of your money and time to just buy a cejilla instead of making one.
if you don't have the tools and material, it's going to cost you much than to just buy one. check out nick's beautiful cejillas. after having made a couple, i can honestly say that his are SUPER reasonably priced.
Posts: 1531
Joined: Nov. 7 2008
From: New York City/San Francisco
RE: some homemade cejillas. (in reply to kovachian)
Two suggestions form one who loves Cejillas. [Ricardo once admitted that although not too keen on the cosmetics of a guitar (rosette, color, headstock)- he indulges in Cejillas as if jewelry]
Colored Strings: If one wanted to be a bit fancy, custom made strings are available in true bright prime colors at Guadalupe Strings in LA. Rich Red, Blue, Yellow, Green etc. http://www.guadalupecustomstrings.com/
Leather Strap: I have a couple of Cejillas I acquired in Spain which, instead of a leather strap, sport a “clear soft rubber tube” to cover the string latching around the guitar’s neck. It is unobtrusive, elegant and yet shielding the finish. Although a safe choice, leather is rarely a pretty embellishment, adding too much material to this exquisite ornament.