If you think you’ve seen it all at the Sound Searchers , think again. At our most recent musical-instrument meet-up at the York Town Craft Guild , regular member and resident mad-scientist luthier Jean-Louis Jugeau  walked in carrying something that made everyone freeze mid-conversation: a full recreation of Mr. Spock’s Vulcan Lyre  — the iconic multi-stringed instrument from Star Trek . But Jean-Louis didn’t stop at an already jaw-dropping build. He went… further. Hidden inside the sleek,...

A rake handle and wine box create a playable slide bass. These plans, originally in Modern Mechanics and Inventions, 1931

Build a great playing cigar box fiddle with plans straight from 1940.