Is it me or Fender style guitars harder to play?

[EEF13]

When I play my Les Paul it feels so comfortable and easy to play. When I pick up my Tele and Warmoth strat it feels a lot harder to play but when you get there it sounds amazing. Am I the only one that thinks Fender style guitars are harder to play?

BTW I am building a strat but I need a neck from Warmoth or Musikraft. I want it to feel like a Gibson '59 rounded neck. If anybody could help me with what width is closer to the Gisbon neck I would really appreciate it.

[cakire82]

It is not harder it just needs getting used they their specs are different. They are build with different scales which makes the string tension more in fenders (25.5") than gibsons (24.75") Also finger board radius is another factor. Fender is I believe 9.5" radius and gibson usually uses 12". Warmoth parts may vary of course.
The weight and the body shapes might be other factors. I am sure you will a lot more different if you were to try other styles such as Jackson or Ibanez. Every guitar has a unique feel to it.

[scottish]

as far as the neck goes, if you call USA custom guitars (id recommend them over warmoth) and tell them you want a 59 roundback profile then they will do it for you. I think musikraft are pretty flexible too. With warmoth you will probably need to pick from one of their profiles, i think they have a 59 profile though.

[LobsterSausage]

Yes. On both counts.

[Grandturk]

I prefer Strats to Les Pauls, so in my opinion, no, they are not harder to play - in fact, I am more comfortable with and play better on Strats.

[GoDrex]

For me the 25.5 scale length is far more comfortable, but yeah in some ways a Strat will make you work a little harder.

Warmoth makes a 59 round back neck profile.

[Butch Snyder]

To me, it all boils down to the Gibson 24.75" scale vs. the Fender 25.5" scale.

[innerdreamrecords.co]

I never got on well with fenders, I love the Tele but it doesn't love me back.

[astrozombie]

I think it's you. I've had no problem with my assorted fender guitars and basses.

[apj]

It's hard to make broad generalizations from these types of circumstances, but I know my strat I had played like crap compared to every other guitar I've had. Not sure if it was the actual instrument or just the feel of it. Weird too cause I get along with most guitars pretty easily, bolt on, set neck, 25 1/2, 24 3/4 all don't seem to bother me that much

[That90'sGuy]

I'm just the opposite, Fenders are easier to play than Gibsons. I don't like short scales; the longer scales make chord work and transitions easier for me.

[bluesbend]

Just a matter of getting used to the difference in scale length. I'm more of a Fender guy, so when I play the 24.75 necks I always over reach from the 7th fret on up before I get acustomed to difference.

[Funkfingers]

Just a matter of getting used to the difference in scale length. I'm more of a Fender guy, so when I play the 24.75 necks I always over reach from the 7th fret on up before I get acustomed to difference.

+1 on this.

My shortest scale is 24" and my longest is 36". In my experience, the more that you swap between differing scale lengths, the less it will bother you. Also, as a fretless bassist, I have learned to cheat by slurring (AKA glissing) up or down to notes.

[Uk Ant]

It all comes down to your hands and how you play. For me the longer scale length, neck and board profile suit me much better than Gibson style (much as I love my Tokai LP)
But my old rhythm guitarist, who had pretty much the same size hands as me, found Gibson's much more to his liking.

[Jeff5]

I've never really noticed much of a difference to be honest. The build quality of the guitar seems to be a bigger factor for me than scale length.

[jmh151]

Fenders, due to their scale length and smaller fretboard radius, are harder to play. But the more you play, you build up finger muscles, so after a while you don't notice the difference.

IMO, the longer scale length of a Fender gives a clearer tone, more sustain and attack. Gibson scale can get a bit mushy.

[elelpe]

I don't have any problem with scale length (24.75, 25, 25.5). I'm more concerned about neck profile and fretboard radius.

[DoronEsh]

Apart from neck scale, there's another factor to consider, and that is the body-to-string distance.
I have one Gibson 25.5" guitar and some 24.75" Gibson and Gibson clone guitars and never had a problem. They all have TOM's which keep the strings farther away from guitar body.
Whenever I try playing a Fender, I always find myself working harder to get the sound I want. As if when string get closer to the guitar body, they have less "space" and I can not attack them with as much power and feel as I'm used to with my pick, as I keep bumping it into the pups. Another issue are the angles that are created between your hand, arm, shoulder and body as you play the guitar. When strings are closer to the guitar body, you have to change these angles in order to play right. You have to "lean forward". If you're not used to the Fender body position, you either have a sour shoulder in no time or have a poor sound.

Then again, I just might be a Gibboholic ... and that's one disease you don't want to get rid of ... LOL

DoDo