Advice needed. Adding guitar to the uke family.. how to adapt and learn?

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Unlike a lot of people here, I started with the ukulele and don’t quite know how include the 2 extra strings and a longer scale with steel strings.
My UAS had a brief personality disorder and I have a guitar on its way home.
I have been wondering how to best deal with learning the new instrument.
Any advice is welcome!
 
A good live teacher should be able to assess what you already know, where you want to go, and help you get there from here.

If you like video, there are lots of good guitar lessons available online. Justin Guitar (https://www.justinguitar.com/ ) is highly regarded and free. Book-wise I liked the Acoustic (or Electric) Guitar Crash Course. Your local library probably has a slew of others to skim and see which sings to you. The "Dummies" series has a bunch of different guitar books for different styles (Guitar for Dummies, Blues Guitar for Dummies, Rock Guitar for Dummies, Guitar Theory for Dummies, Printing-More-Money for Dummies, Guitar All-In-One for Dummies) and are generally pretty good.

Assuming you already have a pretty good base of music theory, how to fret, etc. you can also jump straight in and look up basic chords and build a practice routine around them. Most of the concepts are pretty much the same on guitar and ukulele. On the left hand it's just a matter of extending the patterns and practicing the new shapes. On the right hand you'll probably want to work with a pick (if you don't already), and finger-picking gets really fun when you add the bass strings.
 
same here. Learned to play uke first and got UAS.
Now I'm hooked with guitar and got GAS

feel sad for my wallet :(
 
I'm new to guitar myself. In a nutshell, my advice is to try lots of different guitars to see what is comfortable. I was toying with different steel string guitars trying to learn fingerstyle guitar but encountered three challenges:

(1) the standard string spacing and standard fretboard width were so narrow relative to uke that I could not seem to fret cleanly;

(2) the guitar felt so huge, like I was holding a baby elephant compared to my tenor ukes; and,

(3) the strings were hard on my fingers and hard to fret.


The first guitar that made me feel like I might be able to get comfortable was a Blackbird Savoy. Its compact body solved (2) and it was strung with a lower-ish tension string set which helped on (3). If it was available with a wider fretboard and string spacing I would definitely have one.

But as I still struggled with (1), I tried some guitars with wider fretboard and string spacing. Eventually I bought a Martin 0-28VS which was the first guitar I really felt good on. I re-strung it with silk and steel strings that helped with (3). I really started to feel like eventually I might be able play some guitar so was motivated to stick with it. Now I know that prefer body size 00 or smaller, wider string spacing (2 5/16 or 2 3/8), wider fretboards ( 1 7/8) and lower tension strings (now moved up to using silk & bronze 49/11).

I just reluctantly re-homed by 0-28VS as I had commissioned a Wilborn Lion (between a 0 and 00) that arrived. He's an amazing builder who is noted for his ability to build smaller bodied guitars that deliver big sound.

Here is Ben introducing my build:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1nD920zWzY

And here is my guitar teacher taking it for a spin:

https://youtu.be/8e669WrUi5Y

And if anyone is looking for a gateway guitar, I will have this Larrivee Parlor with Zebrano body wood (P-03Z) for sale for $1K net to me. Link to photos below. It has less than 30 minutes play time and is mint. I paid about $1,500. I love its 24" scale and killer tone but wanted a wider string spacing and fretboard, so Larrivee is making one for me. When I pick that one up in a few weeks, I'll also have this one back and will find it a new home. It's been at their shop because originally we were going to just replace the bridge before we decided to just build a new one.

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmsBrUiK


 
I added guitar too, after playing uke for several years. I played an awful lot of uke and my fingers were pretty tough, so I didn’t have a problem with the steel strings. I did find the fretboard a little narrow but not bad. I didn’t go with a tiny guitar but not a big one either (Taylor gs mini, mahog). I still play uke and guitar but for the past year, I have been concentrating on mandolin. Now that’s a narrow fretboard. Makes the guitar seem roomy.
 
Ukulele Eddie said:
I'm new to guitar myself. In a nutshell, my advice is to try lots of different guitars to see what is comfortable. I was toying with different steel string guitars trying to learn fingerstyle guitar but encountered three challenges:

(1) the standard string spacing and standard fretboard width were so narrow relative to uke that I could not seem to fret cleanly;

(2) the guitar felt so huge, like I was holding a baby elephant compared to my tenor ukes; and,

(3) the strings were hard on my fingers and hard to fret.


The first guitar that made me feel like I might be able to get comfortable was a Blackbird Savoy. Its compact body solved (2) and it was strung with a lower-ish tension string set which helped on (3). If it was available with a wider fretboard and string spacing I would definitely have one.

But as I still struggled with (1), I tried some guitars with wider fretboard and string spacing. Eventually I bought a Martin 0-28VS which was the first guitar I really felt good on. I re-strung it with silk and steel strings that helped with (3). I really started to feel like eventually I might be able play some guitar so was motivated to stick with it. Now I know that prefer body size 00 or smaller, wider string spacing (2 5/16 or 2 3/8), wider fretboards ( 1 7/8) and lower tension strings (now moved up to using silk & bronze 49/11).

I just reluctantly re-homed by 0-28VS as I had commissioned a Wilborn Lion (between a 0 and 00) that arrived. He's an amazing builder who is noted for his ability to build smaller bodied guitars that deliver big sound.

Here is Ben introducing my build:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1nD920zWzY

And here is my guitar teacher taking it for a spin:

https://youtu.be/8e669WrUi5Y

And if anyone is looking for a gateway guitar, I will have this Larrivee Parlor with Zebrano body wood (P-03Z) for sale for $1K net to me. Link to photos below. It has less than 30 minutes play time and is mint. I paid about $1,500. I love its 24" scale and killer tone but wanted a wider string spacing and fretboard, so Larrivee is making one for me. When I pick that one up in a few weeks, I'll also have this one back and will find it a new home. It's been at their shop because originally we were going to just replace the bridge before we decided to just build a new one.

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmsBrUiK
Click to expand...

Never heard of this builder before. His Bantam model looks amazing.
 
Ukulele Eddie said:
I'm new to guitar myself. In a nutshell, my advice is to try lots of different guitars to see what is comfortable. I was toying with different steel string guitars trying to learn fingerstyle guitar but encountered three challenges:

(1) the standard string spacing and standard fretboard width were so narrow relative to uke that I could not seem to fret cleanly;

(2) the guitar felt so huge, like I was holding a baby elephant compared to my tenor ukes; and,

(3) the strings were hard on my fingers and hard to fret.


The first guitar that made me feel like I might be able to get comfortable was a Blackbird Savoy. Its compact body solved (2) and it was strung with a lower-ish tension string set which helped on (3). If it was available with a wider fretboard and string spacing I would definitely have one.

But as I still struggled with (1), I tried some guitars with wider fretboard and string spacing. Eventually I bought a Martin 0-28VS which was the first guitar I really felt good on. I re-strung it with silk and steel strings that helped with (3). I really started to feel like eventually I might be able play some guitar so was motivated to stick with it. Now I know that prefer body size 00 or smaller, wider string spacing (2 5/16 or 2 3/8), wider fretboards ( 1 7/8) and lower tension strings (now moved up to using silk & bronze 49/11).

I just reluctantly re-homed by 0-28VS as I had commissioned a Wilborn Lion (between a 0 and 00) that arrived. He's an amazing builder who is noted for his ability to build smaller bodied guitars that deliver big sound.

Here is Ben introducing my build:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1nD920zWzY

And here is my guitar teacher taking it for a spin:

https://youtu.be/8e669WrUi5Y

And if anyone is looking for a gateway guitar, I will have this Larrivee Parlor with Zebrano body wood (P-03Z) for sale for $1K net to me. Link to photos below. It has less than 30 minutes play time and is mint. I paid about $1,500. I love its 24" scale and killer tone but wanted a wider string spacing and fretboard, so Larrivee is making one for me. When I pick that one up in a few weeks, I'll also have this one back and will find it a new home. It's been at their shop because originally we were going to just replace the bridge before we decided to just build a new one.

https://flic.kr/s/aHsmsBrUiK
Click to expand...
Eddie, you should have kept the Blackbird! (Not really cause I wouldn't have it now) It’s an easy transition to play a song on my uke and then play it on the guitar. I just can’t get comfortable with those big guitars with the stiffer steel strings. Guess that’s from getting used to ukes first.

I’d thought I could learn enough to start the guitar by myself but I soon found a live teacher made things much easier.
There’s lots of help on the internet but a live person will make the process go quicker. Have fun!
 
There is only one and he has already been mentioned

Justin Sandercoe aka justinguitar.

Once you watch one of his videos you will compare all others to him.

Tip
Any you watch that start with wasssup, move on quickly.
 
That's my rule, too!

Col50 said:
There is only one and he has already been mentioned

Justin Sandercoe aka justinguitar.

Once you watch one of his videos you will compare all others to him.

Tip
Any you watch that start with wasssup, move on quickly.
Click to expand...
 
Thank you!! Some great info!! Will need to sit down and try it all out once the guitar is here
 
Man. some days ukulele sounds like 'chink-chink chinka ping ping ping. like all the chords sound the same etc. i suggest diving into the next "THING" in your life and wave goodbye in your rear view window to what will come to seem like a toy.
 
matty78 said:
Man. some days ukulele sounds like 'chink-chink chinka ping ping ping. like all the chords sound the same etc. i suggest diving into the next "THING" in your life and wave goodbye in your rear view window to what will come to seem like a toy.
Click to expand...

With respect, my ukuleles have never sounded like this, some days or any day! To suggest they are something that "will come to seem like a toy" I think is quite a bold statement to make on the UKULELE underground forum...
 
matty78 said:
Man. some days ukulele sounds like 'chink-chink chinka ping ping ping. like all the chords sound the same etc. i suggest diving into the next "THING" in your life and wave goodbye in your rear view window to what will come to seem like a toy.
Click to expand...

:troll::troll::troll:
 
If anyone wants a good transitional instrument (or the best classical travel guitar ever!), I’d highly recommend the Codoba Mini. It’s 20” scale (long enough to tune E-E like a regular guitar yet smaller than any 1/2 or 3/4 size guitars), nylon strings (or fluorocarbon, or nylgut, just like a uke), wide classical string spacing (similar to uke string spacing), but the neck is thin and comfortable (unlike the chunky neck of the Gretch 17” scale guitarlele), and the body is a bit less deep so it’s really comfortable to hold (more like a uke). I find myself playing this when I want to play guitar. I might even sell my full sized acoustic guitar. I did start with electric guitar, so acoustics always felt “too big” to me.

And as someone who started on guitar, then fell in love with uke, I will try to end the side conversation with what we’ve all heard before: Neither is better, they’re just different. Don’t feed the trolls. Don’t be a troll. Enough said.
 
matty78 said:
Man. some days ukulele sounds like 'chink-chink chinka ping ping ping. like all the chords sound the same etc. i suggest diving into the next "THING" in your life and wave goodbye in your rear view window to what will come to seem like a toy.
Click to expand...


 
Play Key of G songs on your guitar. Then you see ukulele's key of C songs on your fretboard (see the figure below).

 
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