Tools and materials
To do this build, you will need these tools: Phillips screw driver, drill, small drill bits, circular saw, tape measure, pencil. This build is easier if you also have a miter or chop saw, to make the 2x2 and 2x4 cuts perfectly square, and a chalk line for marking the OSB. You also need something to make a "pocket cut" for the light switch. You can do this with a very small handsaw, but drilling a starter hole and using a jig saw is much faster and easier.
You will need an assortment of screws, including long (2.5" to 3"), medium (1" to 1.5") and some flat bottom screws for the lamp holders, (1" to 1.5"). Wire ties are also a must to keep everything neat and orderly. The smaller 4" to 6" should work just fine.
Attaching the ballasts can be done in a number of ways. Since we are connecting these directly to the OSB, I recommend using nuts and bolts. The extra two bolts are to shim the ballast and create an air gap so the ballast isn't directly on the wood. You can use more if you like. I recommend 4x #10 bolts, 8 flat washers and two nuts for EACH ballast in the build. For a 16 lamp/4 ballast rig, this means 8 bolts, 24 flat washers, and 16 to 24 nuts (depending on how high you want to shim). 1" to 1.5" length should be fine, and you can use #12 or any size that you have lying around that works. This isn't rock science, how you do this is pretty flexible.
Wood
You will be using 2"x2"x96" ($1.50 ea), 2"x4"x96" ($2.75 at) and standard 5/16" OSB, 48"x96" ($15 ea). You can use plywood if you like, which is actually nicer, but in this build, we are doing it on the cheap since we actually don't refinish guitars. (I tried once, next time I will hire YOU.) This is all pretty cheap stuff and available at any lumber yard, Lowes, Home Depot, etc. Prices shown here are what I found the other day here at Lowes in North Carolina, your price may vary.
2x2:
2x4:
OSB: Three sheets
Electrical
Most of the parts are in your kits. You will will also need a standard light switch, a "new construction" box to house it, and a light switch cover. You will also need some wire and a number of connectors to connect the 120v power, plus some kind of power cord to plug the system into the wall. I have found that old computer cords work great for much of this, although the main power cord should be rated for 15 amps. You can always go buy a 15 amp, 3 wire extension cord and cut off the female end for this, and they are cheap.
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