rockinblockhead
Newbie
- Messages
- 2
Hey everyone. This is my first post (I just joined), and I have a question for LP/Regal owners out there regarding the depth of the cutaway and general upper fret accessibility on the Regal bodies.
Very long story somewhat shortened, I'm a long-time Ibanez RG player who's had a love affair with Les Pauls for as long as I've been playing guitar (23 years). I have rather small hands, and my issues with LPs mostly centers around the big neck joints and "shallow" cutaways, especially when compared to Ibanez guitars with the Wizard neck joints (which I'm very accustomed to and have no physical issues with). I've either owned or tried, or just researched specs on many LP copies from Ibanez, Schecter, ESP/LTD, Kramer, etc., and I don't feel I'd ever be happy with one. So, I've been playing around on the Warmoth site building a Regal to my preferred specs (or as close as I can get to them, which seems really close), but I'm also worried about going forth with a build because of the cost and the possibility I still might not like it and won't be able to return it.
From my experience, when it comes to upper fret accessibility, what matters most is the general depth of the cutaway. A contoured heel is nice and may very well increase comfort, but I'm not sure putting an extra "carve" on the back side of the body around the cutaway helps too much. It seems that to really "feel" it, it would require a drastic change in hand position (turning my wrist inwards) to notice it, which would make it harder to reach the upper frets. For example, on my 24 fret RGs, there is no carve on the cutaways (the edges of the body are completely squared-off), but the deepest part of the cutaway is parallel to the 24th fret giving me plenty of reach all the way up, even with my dainty, little fingers. So... how do you Regal owners feel about your guitars and their cutaways/heels? Can you easily reach all the way up? Also, being an Ibanez guy, I was considering doing a 24 fret neck extension. Anyone have a 24 fret Regal? How do you like it?
Thanks! :headbang:
Very long story somewhat shortened, I'm a long-time Ibanez RG player who's had a love affair with Les Pauls for as long as I've been playing guitar (23 years). I have rather small hands, and my issues with LPs mostly centers around the big neck joints and "shallow" cutaways, especially when compared to Ibanez guitars with the Wizard neck joints (which I'm very accustomed to and have no physical issues with). I've either owned or tried, or just researched specs on many LP copies from Ibanez, Schecter, ESP/LTD, Kramer, etc., and I don't feel I'd ever be happy with one. So, I've been playing around on the Warmoth site building a Regal to my preferred specs (or as close as I can get to them, which seems really close), but I'm also worried about going forth with a build because of the cost and the possibility I still might not like it and won't be able to return it.
From my experience, when it comes to upper fret accessibility, what matters most is the general depth of the cutaway. A contoured heel is nice and may very well increase comfort, but I'm not sure putting an extra "carve" on the back side of the body around the cutaway helps too much. It seems that to really "feel" it, it would require a drastic change in hand position (turning my wrist inwards) to notice it, which would make it harder to reach the upper frets. For example, on my 24 fret RGs, there is no carve on the cutaways (the edges of the body are completely squared-off), but the deepest part of the cutaway is parallel to the 24th fret giving me plenty of reach all the way up, even with my dainty, little fingers. So... how do you Regal owners feel about your guitars and their cutaways/heels? Can you easily reach all the way up? Also, being an Ibanez guy, I was considering doing a 24 fret neck extension. Anyone have a 24 fret Regal? How do you like it?
Thanks! :headbang: