Lap Steel Guitar Builds How To Build A
I have prepared a similar, but not detailed, suggested set of instructions that can be used to build single and double neck guitars.NOTICE Please inquire about current BACKLOG & build times. It broke the construction process down into a little more than fifty (50) separate steps. Hawaiian Steel Guitar Association (HSGA) on how to build a lap style steel guitar.
It’s set up with a standard 23-inch scale, just like the store bought-lap steels! The whole thing feels great on your lap and looks absurdly cool.Here’s a quick video (below). Anybody can build this lap steel guitar!A guitar cable is basically a wire that carries the signal from your acoustic electric or electric guitar to your pre-amplifier, amplifier, pedal, or tuner.The lap steel plays great, too. I even used a pre-wired acoustic sound hole pickup, so there was no wiring needed. Search for: Guitar Features.This is one of the easiest homemade guitars I’ve ever built, and it took me only an hour to make.Guitar International landed on the handiwork of Jason Dumont when checking out an array of guitars, a search starting with small parlor guitars that led to Gibson L-00 and Nick Lucas boutique guitars before discovering the beautiful wing-swept designs of some of Jason’s Lap King Steel Guitars, as well as some of his more traditional axes.This lap steel was made from an extra 2×4 I had in my shed, with just a few saw cuts to the wood.
Cut out the headstock: Turn the 2×4 on its side and mark a vertical line 4” from the left end. Cut a standard pine 2×4 into a 32” length.02. Electric drill + two drill bits: 3/32” and 5/16”01. One pack of medium-gauge electric guitar strings. One pack of guitar tuners, three-to-a-side (such as this $8.29 pack of tuners) I found a box of them at a flea market.)
It also provided a little heel curve.04. Optional: I smoothed out the underside of the headstock on my belt sander. (Still unsure? Here’s a link to a quick tutorial.)03. You can also do the same thing by running the saw in multiple passes over the shaded area and then using a chisel to remove any extra wood chips. I used a dado blade on my table saw. Cut away the bottom portion in the headstock area (shaded are in the picture).
Turn the 2×4 back over and the following marks on the board, starting from the butt end and going up toward the headstock:A) 1.5” (this will be our through-body string feed)06. Use a 5/8” drill bit to drill the tuner holes.05. I went in about 5/8” in on each side and spaced the tuners roughly an inch apart.
Use a 3/32 drill bit to drill six holes for the strings to feed through the body. Drill the string feed holes. Use the same dado technique as above with the headstock.07.
Optional: Carve grooves for bridge and nut. You also can paint or woodburn them if you want.)09. (I used a Sharpie for some quick and dirty fret lines. Then use a contractor’s square to draw the fret lines. Mark your fret guides: Measure out the frets by starting at the 26” nut location and making pencil marks for each fret location. The rough measurements from left to right are: 3/4”, 1 1/8”, 1 ½”, 2”, 2 ½”, 2 ¾”08.
Depending on the pickup you choose, installing could be one of many different ways. For tips, see this video.11. Install the tuners and bushings at the headstock. (You can see these grooves in the picture at Step 13.)10. These grooves will keep the allthread bolts from moving.
String up the lap steel, but leave the strings slackened. It’ll give you a better look than just bending down the mounding tabs…12. ¼” away from the strings.Sidebar: Check out these new instructions for modding a Gold Foil Pickup into a vintage looking top mount pickup. Ideally, you want the pickup to rest approx. My pickup cavity was too deep, so I put a little bit of cardboard to raise it up.
Simply slacken the offending string, position the screw beside the string (so the screw head holds the string down) and insert it just deep enough to provide tension on the string.17. Optional: If the strings keep pulling out of the threads on the nut, use simple roundhead wood screws to act as string trees. Try an open D chord to start (D, A, D, F#, A, D, low to high).16. Space the strings evenly over the pickup, using the threads on the nut and bridge bolts as your string slots.15. These will act as your nut and bridge.14. Carefully wedge the allthread bolts into the 3” and 26” marks.
Because…why not?Old “Church Key” Bottle Opener String RetainerI improved upon the string tree screw idea from the first lap steel by using an old Schmidt’s beer bottle opener to hold the strings down at the headstock. Finishing it off was some smashed beer caps on the 3, 5, 7, 9 and 12 frets. When the tacks ran out, I continued with some industrial screws. I had some decorative furniture tacks in my shop, so I used them as my fret dots. A couple of staples from a staple gun keep everything in place.Woodburned Fret Markers and Tack Fret DotsInstead of just drawing the fret markers on with a Sharpie like I did with the first lap steel, I used a common wood-burning pen and burned the fret lines into the wood. It was a simple solution and works just fine.
The ferrules are lightly tapped in with a hammer. I drilled the original string holes with a 3/32-inch bit and then used a 5/16-inch bit to drill about 1/3 inch in from the back. It works great!I was originally going to drill small holes for the strings to run through the body at the butt end of the instrument, but I discovered a bunch of Gitty string ferrules in my cabinet. I left about ¼ inch between the bottle opener and the wood to give the strings room to run underneath.
(We’ve got one of the most vibrant music and art scenes in this little town.)If you build your own 2×4 lap steel, email me pictures at I might use them in an upcoming column. Topping it all off is an emblem from a York air conditioner, because I’m proud to live and play in York, Pennsylvania. I also added some brass corners to add some class. I collect them from bars where I play and have been known to buy them in bulk on eBay, too.
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