Guitar for uke players

ichadwick

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Uke players thinking of migrating to the guitar? Here's a tip: do it in stages. Start with a four-string cigar box guitar. That will get you accustomed to the spacing of the frets and also to the tension (and callous-abusing nature) of the steel strings.

After you're comfortable on the cigar-box scale, you can upgrade to a proper six-string.

The cigar-box guitar is an uber-baritone uke you can use to jam with any guitar session, too.
 
sounds like an excuse to give into UAS!
 
Another route is via short scale guitars. There are quite a few nice options out there. Martin and Taylor both make nice acoustic guitars for travel, small statured people, and uke players. Ibanez, Gibson Epiphone, and Fender Squier make cool mini electrics all of which are between 100 and 200 dollars.
 
I'm having fun with my CBG. It's a funky instrument and has a wicked sound. Took it into the local music store where they sell Gibson, Epiphone & Fender and everyone wanted to try it and get photos of themselves with it. Like it enough I'm considering getting another.
 
tenor guitar?
 
Can you consider a cigar box guitar to be a tenor guitar? 4 steel strings...
Or does a guitar need to have a banjo headstock and a floating bridge besides the 4 strings to be considered a tenor?
 
Well, I migrated from the guitar to the ukulele and if you could see my buying pattern, it looks like I'm migrating back....fist was a concert, then a tenor, (a couple of sapranos in between) and now to the baritone and to tell the truth, I've been looking at some parlor guitars. Where will it all end? I guess when I finally work my way back to my martin dreadnaught. <G> Seriously, I think it's whatever you set your mind to. I had been struggling with picking my Martin since spending so much time lately with the Uke's. But I did pick up my guitar last week and really concentrated on playing it and to my amazement, it worked out just fine. I think it's a whole lot of just mind over matter.

wooville

Uke players thinking of migrating to the guitar? Here's a tip: do it in stages. Start with a four-string cigar box guitar. That will get you accustomed to the spacing of the frets and also to the tension (and callous-abusing nature) of the steel strings.

After you're comfortable on the cigar-box scale, you can upgrade to a proper six-string.

The cigar-box guitar is an uber-baritone uke you can use to jam with any guitar session, too.
 
Well, I migrated from the guitar to the ukulele and if you could see my buying pattern, it looks like I'm migrating back....fist was a concert, then a tenor, (a couple of sapranos in between) and now to the baritone and to tell the truth, I've been looking at some parlor guitars. Where will it all end? I guess when I finally work my way back to my martin dreadnaught. <G> Seriously, I think it's whatever you set your mind to. I had been struggling with picking my Martin since spending so much time lately with the Uke's. But I did pick up my guitar last week and really concentrated on playing it and to my amazement, it worked out just fine. I think it's a whole lot of just mind over matter.

wooville

Exactly! I also came from the guitar to the ukulele. I get out my guitars every now and then and to my surprise they seem huge! Even my parlor seems big. But, it's just a matter of getting use to it again. I think it would also be cheaper to just go to the guitar and not bother with all the in between steps.
 
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I have a Blueridge BR-40T tenor guitar. It's scale length is a bit longer than that of a baritone ukulele, the strings are closer together than baritone ukulele strings (making the neck narrower), and it has steel strings and a fixed (not floating) bridge. Tenor guitars are frequently tuned like tenor banjos (from which they evolved); mine is tuned DGBE, like a baritone ukulele (known as Chicago tuning in the tenor ukulele community), so I didn't have to learn new chord shapes. I love it to death. It sounds like a guitar and has gotten me accustomed to guitar string spacing. I bought mine on eBay from Jamie at Hot Strings Guitars in Rhode Island. That's Jamie in the video.

 
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I have to say that having very briefly dabbled with guitars, but never having really got into it, I now find that playing the uke has really got me interested in giving guitar a go.

I'm looking for a short scale guitar, but the choices are really limited in the UK (as far as I've been able to tell) - if anyone's got any pointers, or better still a cheap starter (short scale) guitar for sale - I'm on the lookout! :D
 
So - I managed to bag myself a Squier Mini Strat (3/4 size) - secondhand - for the princely sum of £45!! Happy with that - pics to follow when it arrives....... :D
 
I know nothing about guitars other than they're big. I do have a question after reading these posts. Do all guitar strings have to be steel or metal? Ouch. I think ukulele strings hurt, how can you stand it with bare fingertips?
 
There are steel string guitars and Classical guitars. Classical guitars use strings similar to the ukulele.

If you want to play guitar just get a full size guitar. As others above have said, don't waste your money moving up incrementally. That would be just like someone going the opposite way and wasting a lot of money buying several ukes to get from guitar down to a soprano. Like Nike says...just do it!
 
2 things that I find frustrating with learning guitar, comming from a ukulele are 1. Steel strings 2. Limited (vertical) space on fretboard between strings. The classical guitar is easier to learn on for these 2 reasons.....though that wide fretboard also makes certain chords more difficult, but this may not be an issue for a beginner who's learning basic chords.
 
I'm with the folks who recommend going straight to a full-on guitar. Less money in the long run, uuuunnnnnless you develop a bad case of GAS.

Before taking the plunge, however, you may want to cruise whatever stores are around, and try out bunches of models. Just hold one (while sitting down, preferably), make a random chord shape or few, and strum. Guitars come in a wide variety of sizes and shapes, and this should help you find the best possible fit. The guitar you choose may also need a setup, just as many ukuleles do.

(It always helps my jitters to come right out and tell the proprietor that I'm just thinking about starting out.)

Whether you go for steel strings or nylon, your fingers will feel it. This should go away in a week or two as your callouses develop -- if not, the guitar may need a setup, or lighter strings.
 
I
I'm with the folks who recommend going straight to a full-on guitar. Less money in the long run, uuuunnnnnless you develop a bad case of GAS.

Before taking the plunge, however, you may want to cruise whatever stores are around, and try out bunches of models. Just hold one (while sitting down, preferably), make a random chord shape or few, and strum. Guitars come in a wide variety of sizes and shapes, and this should help you find the best possible fit. The guitar you choose may also need a setup, just as many ukuleles do.

(It always helps my jitters to come right out and tell the proprietor that I'm just thinking about starting out.)

Whether you go for steel strings or nylon, your fingers will feel it. This should go away in a week or two as your callouses develop -- if not, the guitar may need a setup, or lighter strings.

I just got a Taylor GS Mini because it wasn't a huge transition in to a much larger size. The GS doesn't feel much bigger than a tenor Uke.
 
For comfy (well, comfier) fingertips, a classical (nylon-string) guitar may be the way to go.

Fingers can learn to stretch over time ... but ... if size is a barrier, you may want to consider a 1/2- or 3/4-size classical. They're often found used in smaller, local shops. The advantage over a tenor guitar or guitalele is that smaller classicals are tuned exactly the same as a full-size (4/4) guitar.
 
Well, after getting a collection of ukuleles, I now have a smaller collection of guitars. I could not get used to metal strings so I do play a classical style - reminds me more of a Uke. I have classical Blackbird for playing outside, camping, etc. My favorite is a Pepe Romero from Romero Creations. The size is perfect. I have no idea what size you'd call it. (I started with. Guitar I bought from Thomas on UU. The top is sinker redwood and sounds wonderful. It's the same size as a baritone). This is helping my playing cause when I get a song, I'll play on both to see which works best. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. Complete justification
 
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