Nut width: 1-11/16" vs 1-3/4"

[jfitz81]

A ZOMBIE thread for Halloween! Gahhh!!!

[cuthbert]

Originally Posted by jfitz81

A ZOMBIE thread for Halloween! Gahhh!!!

Never, never say die.

[Steve DeRosa]

It's a very rare 1-3/4" neck that I can play comfortably for any length of time, and in spite of the fact that I have long fingers and a large span I never could (passed on some nice classical guitars over the years for just that reason, and having met Muriel Anderson at MandoBros I'm still trying to figure out how she does it) - those early-60's 1-5/8" flat-C surf/jazz necks have always been my ideal shape/size regardless of instrument (FYI Wes Montgomery liked 'em too - I had the honor of playing his personal L-5CES several years ago - and I think we can agree his tone/technique credentials need no further introduction, thank you), but since those last appeared on pre-'90s Guilds I've had to settle for the slimmest 1-11/16" necks I can find (can you say pre-NT Taylor?). I'd love to find an early Gurian rosewood jumbo in good shape at a reasonable price - played one of the hog models when I was in college, fell in love with it but didn't have the bucks; absent that, I'd have to find a not-too-hidebound luthier willing to buck current trends and build one to similar specs...

[C-ville Brent]

Most of my acoustics are 1 11/16" and all feel a bit different because of radius and neck shape. I have recently bought two guitars with wider nut spacing, a Seagull S6 and Jasmine JO-36 (1 3/4"). They are both shorter scale and I like them. The extra width, small as it is, is noticeable. There doesn't seem to be a lot of adjustment needed to switch between sizes.

[Ukulele_Eddie]

I'm a newbie, but I can certainly note surprisingly small differences in fretboard width and string spacing. At this point, I prefer *at least* 1.75 and 2 5/16. I just got a 1.75 width guitar and am fat-fingering chords I can do with ease on my guitar with wider fretboard. We'll see if I can adjust over the next few weeks...

[6L6]

Sold off all of my guitars that had 1 3/4” nuts. It’s 1 11/16” from here to the finish line for me.

The difference is VERY noticeable to me!

[billyg]

Originally Posted by ruger9

Again, people... NECK PROFILE (and radius for that matter.)

You can't really talk about so-called "direct" comparisons of 1 11/16" vs 1 3/4" nuts without including the neck profiles. It's a HUGE (probably the biggest) part of the equation.

So "guitar A had a 1 11/16" and guitar B had a 1 3/4" and I preferred guitar B"... doesn't really mean anything.

I really am appreciating this thread. I also appreciate this emphasis on neck profile. Since I don't play that well, I keep looking for that little edge in a guitar to help me play better. I started doing a lot of thumb over bass, and my small hands, coupled with blunt fingertips (seems almost wrong to call them "tips") means I either dampen individual strings in the middle of the fretboard, or the fat side of my hand dampens the high E string. As I work to try and make this better, I have begun to focus on neck profile. (If I could improve my form, that would help also)

I picked up a headless electric guitar at the recent Boutique Guitar Showcase, noticed how fat the neck seemed to be at the first fret and thought, "I can't play that." I took it down anyway, and I could hit that F chord or F7 wrap around with no issues. "How can I manage that?" The manager of the showcase came over and told me that the neck profile at the first fret was asymmetrical. The maker had made it a "half V" I guess, for lack of a better term. He had taken the fat off the neck on the treble side. I was very surprised at the impact on my fretting hand.