7/8 Size Compared to Strat and Paul

[Topdawer]

Ever wonder what the size differences are between the 7/8 S-Style and a full size Strat and Les Paul? Have a look here. As you can see, the outward difference between the 7/8 S-Style and the Strat is negligible. But they do feel different, with the 7/8 definitely feeling slightly more compact but also amazingly more playable. My 7/8 is actually a tad heavier than my full-size Strat. The comparison to the Les Paul is harder -- more like the old apples to oranges comparison. The Paul is similar in size outwardly and the hand positions (especially fretting hand) are in about the same spot as the 7/8, but the Paul feels much larger and the neck profile is so much beefier than either the Strat or S-Style's standard thin that making a comparison is difficult. The Paul is also easily twice as heavy -- mine is an early 90s before they did the weight relief stuff.  I think the 7/8 blends the best of both the Strat and the Paul. It has exactly the same Strat twang, chime, and crispness, but it'll dirty up like a Paul. At least for me, it is the best guitar I have ever owned and is now my go-to guitar for everything. Just wish I had it 40 years ago when I first started learning to play. I use 9.5 gauge strings on the 7/8 which yields the same string tension as 9s on the Strat and 10s on the Paul.

 

[stratamania]

Per the weight of the 7/8 versus the Strat, it probably would not apply to all Strats and all 7/8...a comparison of body weights in the showcase will show 7/8 bodies are generally lighter.

 

[Ace Flibble]

Looks grand.

If Warmoth ever start offering 7/8 necks with regular truss rods and not the janky side system, I'll definitely hop on one. As it is I'm considering a 7/8 body but with a 24" neck from another company. Interesting to hear about the body weights, though, since that's my main reason for looking at the 7/8s; after three slipped discs I can't play my LPs, SGs or Teles any more and now even my Strats are getting a bit too much. Of course, yes, the showcase bodies have their weights listed and are usually lighter, but I'd want options that the showcase bodies never come with, so I'd have to order a body blind. Knowing there's a solid chance the 7/8 body might not actually be any lighter than a standard Strat is going to be something to think about. Maybe I'll have to take one for the team and give chambered basswood a try...

 

[TBurst Std]

Get the off menu LW option, then chambered

 

[Topdawer]

The weight difference isn't huge, but it is noticeable when you pick them up and compare. Some difference might be from the 7/8ths Modern Construction neck, but that would only account for a few ounces at best. Possible too that the American Standard tremolo may have a heavier block (guessing)? The electronics are identical between the two. I've come around to being a convert to the Modern Construction necks after first trying the Vintage Modern. The Moderns are stouter, absolutely rock solid and stable, play fabulously, and that side truss adjust makes things so simple that even I can do it-- and that's saying something.

 

[rauchman]

Ever wonder what the size differences are between the 7/8 S-Style and a full size Strat and Les Paul? Have a look here. As you can see, the outward difference between the 7/8 S-Style and the Strat is negligible. But they do feel different, with the 7/8 definitely feeling slightly more compact but also amazingly more playable. My 7/8 is actually a tad heavier than my full-size Strat. The comparison to the Les Paul is harder -- more like the old apples to oranges comparison. The Paul is similar in size outwardly and the hand positions (especially fretting hand) are in about the same spot as the 7/8, but the Paul feels much larger and the neck profile is so much beefier than either the Strat or S-Style's standard thin that making a comparison is difficult. The Paul is also easily twice as heavy -- mine is an early 90s before they did the weight relief stuff.  I think the 7/8 blends the best of both the Strat and the Paul. It has exactly the same Strat twang, chime, and crispness, but it'll dirty up like a Paul. At least for me, it is the best guitar I have ever owned and is now my go-to guitar for everything. Just wish I had it 40 years ago when I first started learning to play. I use 9.5 gauge strings on the 7/8 which yields the same string tension as 9s on the Strat and 10s on the Paul.

You may have just swayed me to go with a 7/8 Strat.  What is the bridge pup you're using?

 

[Topdawer]

The bridge pickup is a Seymour Duncan Little 59. A great pickup with almost Les Paul bite, but also does a great crystal clear clean. And no hum. Drops right in and uses the standard Strat 250k pots. The middle and neck are Fender MIM Strat ceramics, which I think are the best middle-neck pickups ever made. I've tried bizzillions of pickups and keep coming back to these. I scour the earth to find and buy them for my projects. Some of the Wilkensons get close, but the MIMs are just magic. Everyone assumes the stock Fender MIM pickups are cheap crap and pull them out. The never ending search for "a better pickup" is hard to overcome until one has been playing for a long time. I've owned several Fender American Standard Strats through the years -- price must mean good, yes? -- but my MIM Strat plays and sounds the best of them by far and has since the day I bought it many years ago. It is old and beaten now, like a trusty worn baseball glove. I had not found better until I built the 7/8.

 

[Topdawer]

Prior to building the 7/8ths I bought a Warmoth Gibson-scale conversion neck. Plays fabulously, though I did spend months swapping it back-forth with the original Fender neck trying to suss out the differences. Probably swapped 100 times and went through countless sets of strings. Finally came to conclusion that the Gibson scale sounded almost exactly the same. Maybe a tad better for distortion playing while the Fender had a smidge more bottom end resonance when playing clean in the neck pickup position. The differences were subtle enough to be mostly mirages -- hence the many swaps. It also was much easier to play because of the easier reach and the flatter radius, though it did move the 12-16 frets inwards enough that I had to retrain my fingers to easily find them. Not a big deal, but it got me thinking of the 7/8 rather than just a conversion. The 7/8 seems ergonomically perfect. Everything is a tad (and only a tad) more compact and everything is exactly where my hands expect things to be. My picking hand especially ends up in the perfect spot with edge of palm on the bridge -- something I don't get on the stock Strat. In total, it just works for me and my playing has magically improved a lot. It's like getting that half size in a shoe that makes it just fit.