Scale length, fret size, radius, etc.

[Jonny]

I was thinking about this while be re-energized by a can of Relentless.

I want the best playability and comfortability from my guitars and I decided maybe I should be more specific so the guitar I play is the best guitar that I could ever play (unless I go custom)

I generally lack in information in this area as well.

I have small mittens, claws, paws, hands so what scale length, fret size, radius would I (stereotypically) be suitable for?

I've played Ibanez guitars, with their 12" (?) radius, jumbo fret, 25.5", wizard necks but I sort of feeling it might not be for me. Of course, I can play on it and sometimes it's due to action that bothers me but if I could get a better feel of the neck then of course I'd go for a different guitar. I've also tried Gibsons, but I haven't seen one for ages so I don't remember. They were just heavy as $%&# to be honest. Fenders I kept slipping off the edges of the fretboard but I guess that was just a bad day.

So if you have small mittens would you go for a shorter scale length? Due to length of fingers, etc. not exactly going for baritone length here. And is a greater radius mean it's more rounded? And what's the benefit of having all those different fret sizes, chording, etc.? I always thought the tallest would make it the easiest to be able to play what I play.

I play metal, rock, blues, classical music, etc. and like all the virtuoso stuff too.

So what would best suit me, just as a 'maybe' I know I'd have to just try everything myself. Plus if anyone has any more information, it would be cool to know.

[Twinfan]

It's mostly personal preference, but as a broad generalisation:

Taller frets and/or flatter radius - easier string bending, less 'choking' when bending
Classical player (with thumb always behind the neck) - chunkier neck profiles are more comfortable
Smaller hands - smaller nut widths are less challenging to play with

So for me:

Long fingers, lots of bending and vibrato, wrap thumb over = flat radius, big frets, wide-ish nut, not too chunky a neck

Simple eh?  :lol:

[FernandoDuarte]

I've small (and fatty) fingers but a big palm... Played very little with 24,75" but think it's easier to play, also a shorter nut, as Dave said abovee :)
But I like fat neck, jumbo frets and high action, go figure :lol:

The slipping of fretboard occured with me to, now I don't round the end of the frets...
Think you should try a SG, perhaps you'll like (as you have problem with the weight of LP)
Perhaps a Warmoth body with 24.75" convertion neck, if you're stuck on strat shape...

[Scotty477]

My hands are average or medium in size.

Through trial and error, I've come to realise that I prefer certain necks. Scale length or fret size isn't an issue for me. The radius and overall shape of the neck is what causes me to like or dislike playing a guitar.

I prefer the Gibson 60's slim tapered neck to the traditional 50's 'chunky' style. I find the 50's neck uncomfortable and don't enjoy it to play.

My Yamaha SG2000 has a neck that is slightly thicker than a 60's Gibson neck but slimmer than a 50's one. This neck is the easiest for me to play of the 3 electrics that I have.

On Fender Strats I like the modern C shape, with the 9.50 radius. The slipping off the fretboard on Strats is common on the smaller radius fretboard Strats. I used to have a MIJ Fender Strat that had this problem. The radius was 7.25 I think. The smaller radius also causes a pronounced convex arch in the fretboard, making low action much more difficult to achieve without bottoming out when playing leads higher up.

[Twinfan]

I forgot to mention scale length.  Shorter = slinkier feel, sloppier strings!  :lol:

[Will]

I usually find the shoulder of the neck makes quite a difference to how thick you think the neck is

[Twinfan]

^ +1

[dave_mc]

It's mostly personal preference, but as a broad generalisation:

Taller frets and/or flatter radius - easier string bending, less 'choking' when bending
Classical player (with thumb always behind the neck) - chunkier neck profiles are more comfortable
Smaller hands - smaller nut widths are less challenging to play with

So for me:

Long fingers, lots of bending and vibrato, wrap thumb over = flat radius, big frets, wide-ish nut, not too chunky a neck

Simple eh?  :lol:

yeah, pretty much, agreed. :)

just to add, ibanez wizard radii are 16" for the non-prestige wizard II neck, and i think just over 17" for the wizard. Really pretty flat, basically.

[FernandoDuarte]

I usually find the shoulder of the neck makes quite a difference to how thick you think the neck is

Shoulder of the neck?

[Twinfan]

Yep, the 'sides' of the neck.

[Jonny]

What's the advantage between tall frets like 6100 and wide short ones?

[hunter]

For me it's a downer if frets are too tall, as I tend to press too much and then go out of tune (especially while I do my guitar faces). I like a bit of a rounded V back, I also like a bit of depth, so no skinny necks. Surface makes a bit difference, too - I love the nitro finish on my Edwards or the oiled/waxed neck of my MusicMan Axis. Hate the sticky finish on my Gibson SG!

What I hate is when (like on Gibsons) the fret ends are plastic from the binding rather than fret over binding. What a misconstruction to have that bit of plastic at the end of the fret!!!

Anyways.

One thing I will always remember is when I played a strat with compound radius - 9" on the first fret and 12" on the highest fret. That is really great. Suhr does that on some of his guitars and Haar custom does it on all. Means you can play chords with ease in the lower regions and do proper and unchoked bending on the dusty end. 

[JustBecos]

One thing I will always remember is when I played a strat with compound radius - 9" on the first fret and 12" on the highest fret. That is really great. Suhr does that on some of his guitars and Haar custom does it on all. Means you can play chords with ease in the lower regions and do proper and unchoked bending on the dusty end. 

The warmoth neck are compound radius as standard and are very nice, need a liitle tlc from your local friendly guitar tech to make perfect but no more than most non custom built guitars

[Bob Johnson]

I have short, fat-ish fingers and square palms but quite perversely find that a wider nut helps me out when playing in the lower five frets. If you are a prolific string bender then you really need a flat-ish radius, 16" or so, and if you play mainly with your thumb centered in the back of the neck a slim profile will help negate any disadvantage you may experience from your inherent lack of reach. Scale length is a totally different issue; shorter scale guitars can feel "crowded" when you are in the upper registers but give little perceivable advantage further down the neck. Big frets allow you to play clean notes with minimal pressure on the strings but if you are a player who instinctively wants to depress the string all the way down to the fingerboard it will pull the string out of tune, as it has already been said. I am an old git but I found that persevering with high profile frets and changing my technique to suit helped me to play faster and reduced the wear and tear on my fingers.

[WezV]

i think you really need to play a load of guitars to find out your personal preference for nut widths and neck shapes.. as bob says its not always closely related to finger length


i dont think neck angle had been mentioned and thats something that can affect how a scale length feels.  the nut end of a les paul generally feels a lot closer because of the neck angle AND the shorter scale length - some shorter people benefit from this