Lefty With Very Small Hands

[Cutsdean]

Hey everyone as the title suggests I am a lefty with very small hands, which makes some chords very difficult, especially barre chords.  I am playing on a full size guitar which was a present from my son but I am loosing motivation to practice because I am not progressing.  

 

Because my hands are so small I have considered a 3/4 guitar but struggling to find anything worthwhile in the £200 to £250 range, any recommendations would be great. Alternatively if anyone could recommend a full size guitar with a narrow neck that may also work.

 

I have tried so hard with a full size guitar but My  hand span is only 7 1/2 inches so any help and suggestions would also be greatfully received 

 

Thanks

 

Cutsdean 

[Dad3353]

4 hours ago, Cutsdean said:

... which makes some chords very difficult, especially barre chords...

 

Some of this comes with practise, but another approach is to not play barre chords..! No, it's not a joke; it's not necessary, for much modern music, to play all the strings. Not the same for the classical guitar repertoire (and there are many tiny tots managing to play full chords on  flat finger boards, so it can be done..!). Most of the guitar stuff I play, for instance, uses jazz-style 'drop-two' chords; there are very few barre chords used in jazz playing. What style (what repertoire...) are you aiming for..? I can't think, off-hand of many genres that use the whole width of the finger board, except campfire stuff or some folk strumming. Have a look here, for instance; there are many other sources and examples of how to do without barring and such ...

 

The Barre Chord Alternative ...

 

I started playing, at sixteen, on a Russian-built steel-strung classical-style guitar, with a wide, flat neck, as thick as a baseball bat. My first method book was Mickey Baker's 'Jazz Guitar', where the whole first page is full of chord diagrammes. It was a struggle, and far from ideal, but it taught me a lot. I don't believe in the 'small hands' syndrome, really; it's just a case of adapting one's technique to one's morphology. If you really need them, start off by playing them at the twelfth fret, and move down a fret each week or so. You'll find it all comes together, just by doing it, and there's no 'silver bullet'. I certainly wouldn't recommend a smaller guitar; your choices are already limited enough. Perseverance is the key, I'd say; that's how everyone learnt, whatever their physique.
Hope this helps. 

[Stub Mandrel]

How many fingers do you need?

 

[EdwardMarlowe]

I can think of a few guitars that would give a smaller or narrower neck option, though most will be pricier. The Bonnie Raitt Strat had a pretty narrow neck (designed to her original, and in particular with female players in mind as they tend to have smaller hands, and Raitt wanted to attract more women to guitar). Johnny Ramone's Mosrites had narrower than average necks, which he liked because he played almost exclusively barrre chords. A number of Fenders and Squiers are short-scale, including Duosonics, Mustangs, and Supersonics. 

Alas, all of these will be pricier than OP's set budget, even used, BUT.... Squier have now introduced the Bullet Mustang HH, with a 24" scale and somewhat smaller neck like all Mustangs / Duosonics: 

https://www.fender.com/en-US/squier-electric-guitars/mustang/bullet-mustang-hh/0371220548.html

https://www.fender.com/en-US/squier-electric-guitars/mustang/bullet-mustang-hh/0371220548.html

My first inclination, TBH, would be to find a way around it and gradually get used to the "normal" necks as it won't limit your choice of guitars so much going forwards. THat said - and speaking as a left handed player - a limited choice is always better than giving up, so if it makes that much difference...