Official Luthiers Forum!

One of the other threads got me to thinking on how to come up with a system to match one's hand size to a particualr neck size and also a neck profile. Most of the people I talk to have no idea what kind of neck profile they want or like, although some do know they like a "beefy" neck and others like a slim neck.

I just wonder if anyone has done any study and documentation on how to measure one's hand and come up with a neck profile that would best fit their hand?

Personally, I have smaller hands and I prefer the neck shape of the 1978 Martin D35-p (low profile neck now standard on Martin Guitars). I actually like a much smaller neck and closer string spaciong at the saddle and 12th fret as well. I am also a flat picker and rarely do any fingerpicking.

Does anyone know if this has been studied and if it is worth doing a scientific study and documentation on the player's hand and playing style in order to give them the best neck profile?  Perhaps we could all benefit by having this knowledge??

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Reguards,

Ken H

I actually started a web page requesting this info on my web site... will be interesting to see if anyone replys with the info...

Link here

 

wish I knew a way to have drop down text boxes and then send the info without having to send an e-mail...

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Reguards,

Ken H

From personal experience, I've found no correlation between hand size and the size neck people prefer. I know a guy with tiny hands who only plays chunky necks (started as a bass player) and I know some pretty tall guys that still prefer twinky Strat necks. I have medium to large hands and prefer something around a standard Gibson electric style carve on both my acoustics and electrics.

I know how well I'll like a neck based on how my thumb feels when I play them...

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Bob Garrish
Former Canonized Purveyor of Fine CNC Luthier Services

my experience is akin to bob's in that there seems to be no correlation between hand size and neck shape preference.

i am a case in point in that i have large hands(buying gloves is a trial), yet am very uncomfortable with thick necks of whatever profile. i first learned to play on a classical with a fairly thin, albeit wide neck, and just feel very uncomfortable playing thicker necks, e.g. older martins or fenders.

a players preference, especially if they have been at it a while, is often based solely on what they are used to, and any efforts to change that takes them out of out of their comfort zone is not welcome, and may be resisted strongly.

I find the profile to be just a play preference However
fretboard radius variations can help players with arthritic impairments.

Hey Ken,

Great idea, tho I don't know the answer; it's a danged complex problem as the other guys have posted.  Styles of playing differ so much, like I fingerpick blues with bare fingers, play a lot of thumb-over bass that makes classical players scoff.   

So while I feel the need for 2 3/8" string spacing, and a wide, 1 3/4" neck up at the nut, I like a thin neck in the other direction, not a deep C shape.  Boy, I hope this makes sense.  Setting the E bass string over close to the edge of the fingerboard seems to help with the thumbover stuff.  The radius of the fingerboard is another comfort factor.  Compound radius is good.

The next guy, perhaps with hands as big as mine, might have come from a Strat and finds a 1 11/16" wide.  Lots of better players than me, which is almost everybody, seems to like smaller neck profiles.  They drop names like Strat or Taylor, we have to listen.

I think that may be the only tools we have in this; to watch someone play and listen HARD to their reactions and interpretations of what we place in their hands.

Yer mileage WILL vary!

Dave

PS: In a previous life, I designed and built custom road racing bicycle frames for pros and well heeled amateurs.  The fit of a frame was something studied by universities in Italy and France, lots of formulae, opinions and products, both hardware and software systems existed and even more exist today.  The problem was simpler tho, as everybody just wanted to look like Eddy Merkx, who was like Lance Armstrong back in the 60's.  By look like, I mean be able to assume the same posture on the bike, and be relatively comfortable.  It was a simple process compared to instruments I believe.

Thats why I want to build instruments I guess.

It is a strange thing. I have very small hands, only about 7.5" long wrist to tip of middle finger, and yet I prefer a 1-13/16 to 1/7/8" wide nut width. I can play a 1-3/4" nut width guitar, but I feel a bit cramped. Perhaps I like it wider because of some classical training, I'm not sure. What I don't like is a thick neck, or a D shaped profile. Might as well use a 2x4 instead. Give me a neck shaped somewhere between a modified V and a LesPaul neck and I'm usually happy.
Part of it is also string spacing at the saddle too, but I forget what I like...maybe 2-5/16 or so?

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

Thanks for the responses!

I can see where there may not be any rhyme or reason to neck profiles and nut sizes, but there should be...

I want to make myself a guitar with an ultra slim  and  thin profile and small nut size just top prove that it will improve my playing. Ive been too busy making guitars for others though...

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Reguards,

Ken H

[QUOTE=Hodges_Guitars] I want to make myself a guitar with an ultra slim  and  thin profile and small nut size just top prove that it will improve my playing. [/QUOTE]

That's just it...it might not. Too thin, or too thick, either way, it can make your muscles tense and not relax, and you won't enjoy the experience. What might feal great for ten minutes of playing may kill your hand after an hour. That's not a good thing.

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

Interesting....I've been thinking a similar thing for quite awhile, and
just today toyed with the idea of putting together some kind of poll
with hand measurements and favorite nut widths.

    I worked on tooling for the weapons control grip for the Apache gunship and the other guy working on design of the grip related there discovery on making the grip adjustable reasoning that taller weapons officers would need the grip in one postion and inversly for smaller guys. Especially since the cockpit was extremely cramped. It was a real pain to get it to work in spec, had to teflon eveything, tolerances were unduly close for the application.

    When we were all done, ERG... every weapons officer put it in exactly the same place. Every one!

    I played a Santa Cruz steel string that had a very wide neck, which I was warned I wouldn't like, I didn't mind the width too much but absolutely hated the classical style flat fretboard. Everybody else didn't like it, but for different reasons.

    There's no allowance for preference. Now pizza? That's a different thing all together!

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Billy Dean Thomas
Covina, CA

"Multi famam, conscientiam, pauci verentur."
(Many fear their reputation, few their conscience)