Neck Differences:

Inspector #20

Inspector #20

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Playing around tonight, I decided to measure my guitar necks:

1987 Squirecaster - 1.655" @ Nut
1.400" E to e

2005 Hellraiser - 1.700" @ Nut
1.425" E to e

2016 Gibson SG - 1.705" @ Nut
1.475" E to e

The SG feels the most comfortable and the "roomiest" at the nut.

So, my specs for the custom neck are 1.750" @ Nut and a much wider spacing.

I find my open chords to be "cleaner" the wider the string spacing is...
 
I bought a Gibson Sonex 180 when I was a kid. I just wanted a Gibson. The strings seemed so close together. The neck also seemed deep. I called it my broomstick guitar. I did sell it, and went to just strats for years to get a wider spacing and a C shaped neck. It took a few years to look at anything else. I can now quickly tell what I like, so it's much easier. I am somewhat picky. It may be a weakness on my part.
 
Chubbles said:
I bought a Gibson Sonex 180 when I was a kid. I just wanted a Gibson. The strings seemed so close together. The neck also seemed deep. I called it my broomstick guitar. I did sell it, and went to just strats for years to get a wider spacing and a C shaped neck. It took a few years to look at anything else. I can now quickly tell what I like, so it's much easier. I am somewhat picky. It may be a weakness on my part.
Click to expand...

Right! I can spot the differences now, but I wanted to put numbers with them.

I just need the thickest, widest neck possible to be com comfortable.
 
Some experienced players have suggested that playing different style necks is a positive to develop skills, and I agree. But, we do have preferences, and I noticed on a wide and flat(ish) neck such as the PRS SE One that an old wrist injury plays up and causes aches in a way that the neck of my 2011 SG faded does not - I'm sure that is also connected to scale length, playing position, and other things too, but the reality is: I can play the SG for ages, and it's fun whereas the PRS hurts, so I don't play it for long.

I've also found, maybe this is an issue I have that some others do not, that playing in a shop for 10 minutes, 1 hour or longer, does not really tell me how I will feel about the neck when I own the guitar and play it regularly. Thus, if one is fussy or has need to be fussy, then making measurements and being aware of neck shapes does make sense. However, I'm sure other parametres, some of them mental, will come into play and ruin the whole theory...
 
Mr Grumpy said:
Some experienced players have suggested that playing different style necks is a positive to develop skills, and I agree. But, we do have preferences, and I noticed on a wide and flat(ish) neck such as the PRS SE One that an old wrist injury plays up and causes aches in a way that the neck of my 2011 SG faded does not - I'm sure that is also connected to scale length, playing position, and other things too, but the reality is: I can play the SG for ages, and it's fun whereas the PRS hurts, so I don't play it for long.

I've also found, maybe this is an issue I have that some others do not, that playing in a shop for 10 minutes, 1 hour or longer, does not really tell me how I will feel about the neck when I own the guitar and play it regularly. Thus, if one is fussy or has need to be fussy, then making measurements and being aware of neck shapes does make sense. However, I'm sure other parametres, some of them mental, will come into play and ruin the whole theory...
Click to expand...

My Mom has a wrist injury and remarked that the 2016 Gibson SG was the most comfortable of all my guitars to play - it also has the thickest, widest neck - a full 1" from 12 fret to nut untapered.

What I find is that on certain guitars, like the wide neck SG, I play faster and more accurately with less effort...that's what I am shopping for.
 
I just measured the width at the nut of all 4 of my guitars.
SG, which has the slim 60's taper is 1.705"
LP, which has the thick 50's profile is 1.6885"
Strat, which is a 9.5-14" compound radius & modern C profile is 1.72"
Jackson Soloist, which is 12-16" compound radius & thin "speed" profile is 1.717".
This is a bit of an eye opener & shows me that the way I "perceive" the width may not actually be so. To me, the SG "feels" thinner across the nut than the LP with its chunky neck. Out of the Strat & Jackson, the Jackson's flatter board "feels" wider when in fact neither is correct. I'm obviously afflicted with some of Mr Grumpy's "mental parameters". Cheers
 
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I have a very narrow (but thick) neck in my '74 SG. The widest I have is my 2014 SG. I have 12" radius, 9.5" radius, 12" - 16" compound radius, and all manner of neck profiles and thickness in the guitars I have.

I just play 'em.
 
Yes, I believe that our hands can adapt to any neck type. I have no problem swapping between guitars. You look at some guitarists with small hands & short, fat fingers & it doesn't seem to impede their playing at all. I remember seeing Bo Diddley when I was a teenager, in a small country town hall. I was close enough to see that his fingers were like little fat sausages. Sure didn't impede his playing. Man he could get some sounds out of that box. Cheers
 
ivan H said:
I just measured the width at the nut of all 4 of my guitars.
SG, which has the slim 60's taper is 1.705"
LP, which has the thick 50's profile is 1.6885"
Strat, which is a 9.5-14" compound radius & modern C profile is 1.72"
Jackson Soloist, which is 12-16" compound radius & thin "speed" profile is 1.717".
This is a bit of an eye opener & shows me that the way I "perceive" the width may not actually be so. To me, the SG "feels" thinner across the nut than the LP with its chunky neck. Out of the Strat & Jackson, the Jackson's flatter board "feels" wider when in fact neither is correct. I'm obviously afflicted with some of Mr Grumpy's "mental parameters". Cheers
Click to expand...

I most notice string spacing and neck thickness. I wear a size 14 glove and my fingertips are large. On narrow-spaced necks, I cannot get clean A, F, D, Dm, and C chords because my fingernail mutes the adjacent string....
 
ivan H said:
Yes, I believe that our hands can adapt to any neck type. I have no problem swapping between guitars. You look at some guitarists with small hands & short, fat fingers & it doesn't seem to impede their playing at all. I remember seeing Bo Diddley when I was a teenager, in a small country town hall. I was close enough to see that his fingers were like little fat sausages. Sure didn't impede his playing. Man he could get some sounds out of that box. Cheers
Click to expand...

Switching between guitars, to a smaller neck, will slow me down and make me play with less vigor....
 
smitty_p said:
I have a very narrow (but thick) neck in my '74 SG. The widest I have is my 2014 SG. I have 12" radius, 9.5" radius, 12" - 16" compound radius, and all manner of neck profiles and thickness in the guitars I have.

I just play 'em.
Click to expand...

My 2016 SG neck measures .935" thick at the first fret and .977" at the 12th with calipers.
 
I am with ya' on a little wider neck. I have sausage fingers so baseball bat necks don't work for me and normally skinny ones either like the Carvin I had or MIM Rosewood necks or mainly 21 fret Fender necks. The 22 Fret Fender MIA & Squier necks are comfortable for me and I don't mind Ibanez Wizard necks either.
 
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