Jon's Workshop Show‑&‑Tell
I decided to st
Playing bass and guitar at the same time with my “Dual-Range Guitar”. (Some live video of 'Odka', the band I had with Dennie.) You can see the pickups with separate coils for the two bass strings, which are tuned to the same A and D as the middle strings on an electric bass.

My Aluminum Lap Steel
Seven strings. Tuned E6. I made it very heavy at the bridge end, and used a pedal steel pickup. The idea was to have a lap steel that sounds like a pedal steel. The strings are spaced wider at the nut than at the bridge, so I can emulate pedal moves with bar slants.

Bi-directional Fingerpick
I make fingerpicks that work in both directions by casting them in urethane plastic with rubber molds. Originally wanted that for the Dual-Range Guitar, but now I just like using one for playing steel-string acoustic (along with a thumbpick).
The PLV Drum
I've been messing around with creating a small-footprint, low-volume drum set. (Entirely acoustic - no electronics.) This version sits in a corner of our city apartment. It's no louder than an acoustic guitar. I'm pretty sure the downstairs neighbors can't hear it at all.
The Laptop Drumset
This version is not as quiet, and has no kick drum. But it's super portable. Nothing to set up - just pull it out of the duffle bag, put it on your lap, and go. The cymbals are a Zildjian low-volume and a vegetable steamer.
Simple B-Benders
Why do B-benders have to be complic

Yes, this one is made from a tablespoon. Has a tunable stop.

This one bends the B string when pushed down (with a stop tuned at a whole step) and bends the G string when pulled up.
Retro Keyboard Hack
Who wants to be seen playing a modern digital keyboard? I hacked my Korg to look like a 60s combo organ. (And to give me a deck to support a steel guitar.)


It may look like gray tolex, but it’s fabric soaked in epoxy. Forms a ‘composite’ with the very light woods (sides are balsa). Weighs 10lbs (without legs). In a gig bag, it’s as portable as a guitar. When you live in a 5th floor walk-up, you can get obsessed with portability.

Foot-operated Cross-Stick
Plastic lotion bottle, soft open-cell foam, standard 5A drumstick.
I noticed you can get a good snare rim ‘knock’ from a LDPE plastic box struck on the narrow edge or along a corner. I later realized that the length (not the volume) of the box is critcal. An open-ended chamber that's 3½ to 4 inches long resonates at the right frequency to make that "tok" sound.

A Masonite Archtop?
Used steam while clamping in a rough form... A little too rough, I think... But the technique shows promise...

Stand-up Steel Guitar Strap
I wanted to see if I could play steel guitar standing up, so I whipped up this harness for my most lightweight lap steel (a souped-up Morrell), and I can report that it works quite well. I thought I would need some kind of fastener attaching the steel, but no need - it's balanced well enough that gravity alone holds it in place.⠀At some point I'll probably shape the hip rest a bit, and paint it.

The Magic Chrod Mug
I was selling these for a while. It's a mug that viewed from any one angle shows the six chords that are used within a key. As viewed in this photo, for example, it shows the chords you can play if you want to stay in the key of A. I thought it was a brilliant thing for songwriters or for people who are learning to improvise. But it didn't catch on. I guess I just didn't explain it well enough.
There's still lots more of this stuff at my Instagram profile. (Grrr.)