Body Styles for Children / Small Adults

[Shandrazar]

I am considering building a guitar for myself that will eventually become my daughter's when she gets older.  Even fully grown, I expect her to top out at about 5' 2".  I'm looking for something that would be small and light enough for a child, but not too small for someone 5'11".  All the 24" scale guitars (Jaguar, Mustang, Jagstang) come with pickup, bridge, and control configurations I don't like, and don't appear to have options for different configurations.  I'd like to build this guitar with soapbar P-90s, a hardtail, and simple pickup selector, master volume and master tone controls.  I could go with a 24 3/4" conversion neck on one of the other bodies, but I'm not familiar with a lot of the shapes that Warmoth stocks.  I can't tell how big they are.  Which body styles are best suited for a small person?

 

[simple]

7/8 Strat Body and 24 3/4" scale neck sounds about right...

http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=222.0

 

[RadsRock]

Wow.  I don't want to hijack the thread but that korina strat is drop-dead gorgeous!!

 

[jackthehack]

Actually, any size guitar is comfortable for a "small person"; don't make assumptions for your daughter upfront... One of the best rhythm players I ever saw was a midget that was about 4'8" and played an ES-335 that looked as big as he did. If you look on YouTube, there's any number of kids like the 8 year old in the video below shredding away on a full size guitar...


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcZvSo6_93o&feature=related

 

[dbw]

A regular strat won't be too big.

 

[tfarny]

Mustang or Musiclander bodies are the smallest, from what I've seen (I don't own either one). Either body could be routed for P90s and a hardtail. The mustang would take a 24 scale, the musiclander a 24.75.
You would maybe want a standard thin or wizard neck profile with 1 5/8 nut spacing, too.
Another alternative is an SG; it's small, light, and comfortable.

 

[dudesweet157]

Jack, I'm sorry, but that video was vomitrocious.  I come from the school of "don't play it in public if you can't play it perfect", and that was a disgusting display of technique, or the lack thereof.  I realize that the kid is only 8 years old, but if a grown man, or even a teenager had gone up there and done that, they would have booed him off the stage; instead, they gave the little bastard a totally unnecessary ego boost, bowing down to him like he is some sort of guitar god.  Total filth.

But anyway, my ex-girlfriend was only 5'3" and she could play the hell out of a full sized dreadnaught acoustic.  Stratocasters are MUCH smaller than dreads are, and much easier to play.  My vote goes towards the full sized guitar.  If'n you're worried about weight, use basswood for the body, or go hollow.  A Strat strung up with 9's is just about the most comfortable and easiest guitar to play period, and if you're still worried about scale, use a conversion.  It won't be a Strat sound par say, but it won't sound bad.

 

[vtpcnk]

there's this tiny japanese kid all over youtube who blazes away on a black flying v and other full sized guitars which are as big as him.

the only instance i saw a guitar which suited his size was a mustang. it looked perfect on him imo.

 

[jackthehack]

"Jack, I'm sorry, but that video was vomitrocious."

My bad, first one I could find to illustrate the point of guitar size, NOT posted as any form of advocation of the content therein...

 

[GoDrex]

SG's are good "small persons" guitars

 

[Xplorervoodoo]

SG's are good "small persons" guitars

Angus Young can attest...

Although, his brother plays Gretsches, so I don't really think the size of the guitar matters TOO much...  Weight, maybe.

 

[kataar]

SG's are good "small persons" guitars

I think Angus Young... Aw dang Drex, ya beat me!  :sad:

 

[GoDrex]

actually tfarny beat us all... :tard:

 

[dudesweet157]

"Jack, I'm sorry, but that video was vomitrocious."

My bad, first one I could find to illustrate the point of guitar size, NOT posted as any form of advocation of the content therein...

It's all good.  I think this would have been a better video to illustrate your point, but then again, I spent like 15 minutes searching for it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LaHaRUPfKok&feature=related

 

[gnome]

the lp double cut body is pretty small, you can hve it weght relieved aswell adn frankly... it looks sweet

 

[stubhead]

Warmoth can add/omit any kind of drilling you like to a body, but the standard Mustang route allows for any kind of two pickups and Warmoth will cut you an appropriate pickguard for $28:

I had them leave off the routing for the gruesome Mustang whammy bridge and slapped a Mighty Mite hardtail on there. The only bugaboo is that the standard Warmoth Mustang control cavity is small, small, small...

I have more or less the controls you indicate (concentric tone/volumes though) but to make it fit, I dug out a sidemount jack hole and enlarged the holes in the control plate to take the pots and three-way. I didn't think to ask if Warmoth could route the side jack, it's a 1.5" thick body so you have to be careful. I use this guitar for practice and writing when my hands are tired from the big boys, it's a good size to play in bed, in the car, sneak it into church etc.... :toothy12: Though I guess you'd have to go to church....