Tenor Resonator (IW# 129)

 

I have wanted a resonator tenor for a while now, and tried building one a while ago which I showed here.  I ended up not liking it because it is too heavy, and I had to use a resonator cone that is made for a 6 string guitar, so it is bigger than I wanted it to be.  So I don't end up using it much.

Well, C. B. Gitty has someone in New Hampshire that spins resonator cones out of paint can lids, which are much smaller.  So I ordered up one and set about building another resonator.  The new one is not as responsive as a spun aluminum cone of course, but it still sounds pretty good.  I put a little piezo pickup on it and it sounds really good played through this amp that I got at Gorham Brothers Music here in Syracuse.  It is made out of an old reel-to reel player and has a great tone.

All of the wood for this guitar came out of pianos, of course.  The resonator cover is cut out of a silver-plated serving tray, an homage to Jayden Moore, a metalsmith whose work I really love.  The tail piece is a handle from an old fork.