Ten years ago, I lost my job due to downsizing.  I had a great career in marketing for a company that I loved.  But then they sold out to a large corporation and *poof,* my job was gone.

The first…

These are the oldest known cigar box banjo plans in existence and were written by the founder of the Boy Scouts, Daniel Carter Beard.  They were originally published as part of the story, Christmas Eve with Uncle Enos in newspapers…

If you've seen my concerts in the last year or two, you'll most likely remember the crazy Exit Sign guitar I pull out for "Big Leg Woman (Swing the Hammer)," "Strung Out, Drunk and Busted," "Purple Rain" and "Into the…

Announcement:  Your instruments can be props as much as playable instruments!  This pair is the perfect example.

I've seen many instruments created to give a "steampunk" look, a style that mixes Victorian Era aesthetics with futuristic robotics and technology.  The…

In my book, Making Poor Man's Guitars, I show how to make a microphone from a beer can, Mason jar lid and piezo elements.  This project is even easier than the beer can mic!  

The mic is perfect for blues…

"I beheld the wretch—the miserable monster whom I had created. He held up the curtain of the bed; and his eyes, if eyes they may be called, were fixed on me.” — Mary Shelley, Frankenstein 

Ah, junk guitars…I just can’t…

If you're a musician looking for a sound, there are no rules on how you get there. Eddie Van Halen and Les Paul are icons when it comes to hacked and modded instruments.  For example, Eddie Van Halen donated a…

Today, I'm answering a question from a reader: 

Dear Shane: Is it better to learn on a cigar box guitar that has a fretted neck or one that's played with a slide? 

That’s a great question! When I built my…

Aloha!  This has got to be the most freakish-looking uke you'll ever see...  BUT IT SOUNDS INCREDIBLE!  Simply put, the Styrofoam Cooler Ukulele is nothing but a neck without a body and a huge cooler screwed to the butt end.  

…

The story of this freak instrument started with a bad purchase I made on eBay.  The seller listed this strange wooden piece as the body of an Appalachian banjo from the 1800’s.  As a collector of antique DIY instruments, I…

"Hard times make great music."  Ain't that th' truth?!    

While e'rrybody is stuck at home, we're gonna get y'all building the coolest stringed instruments ever.  There's over $1000 in prizes, too!

Unlike our contests of the past, this build-off has…

Help me track down the "Guitarcheology" of two mysterious instruments!  These guitars were built by the same New Orleans street musician, prior to Hurricane Katrina.  Each one has salvaged acoustic guitar necks mounted to long boxes (one is a cigar…

I'm proud to announce the latest acquisition to the Shane Speal Collection: The "One Hand Dan" triple neck cigar box guitar, built by Rusty Taylor of Second Hand Smoke Guitars.  It's like a cigar box guitar straight out of…

Ok, something has been bugging me lately about modern church music.  (And no, I'm not talking about the cliche'd Nashville instrumentation.)  It seems like everything is emo, music dictated solely by emotions... and mostly depression. 

Here's a unique piece of American history.  This Hollow Back Violin is part of the Smithsonian Institution. Invented by William S. Mount of Stony Brook, New York,

Hey all, it's Shane Speal.  I just wanted to let you know that StubbySlide.com will be back up and full of goodies in the very near future.  I had to temporarily close the doors as I worked to launch Poor…

Quick book reviews for DIY music fans: Afro-American Folk Arts & Crafts (1983 William Ferris) -

Excuse me while I disinfect my TV 

Can I rant for a second?  I promise to make it short... 

I've said it before and I'll say it again:  "God bless the mad scientist feature writers who wrote for science magazines!"  I'm always discovering more experimental instrument plans as I dig deep into guitarcheology.  Today's discovery is a set of plans for building an electric banjo, taken from Popular Mechanics, October 1970.