To Scallop Or Not To Scallop, that is the question :) Options

[K1R]

I'm working on renewing my Musima strat copy, the fretboard has some small pits, so it needs to be polished in anyway. I thought of scalloping it instead of polishing. Can you give me some pros and cons of scalloping?

[Daniel Realpe]

I've never played a scalloped guitar, but it would cool to experiment with one.

I'd say do it if you know how to. They say you can play faster, I guess it feels lighter,

[Azzaboi]

A scallop neck for a guitar isn't a requirement, you can still play everything on a standard guitar.

The natural response of the finger on a normal fretboard is to go down and touch the wood. This isn't required and too much force just slows you down, the scallop is mostly there just to pervent this. It like those shredder training picks with a hook on them, it force-teachs correct position, else your'll hear about it! Depending on the stubbornness user, this could be a good or bad thing, make or break your playing.

Scallop Neck Pros:
Better vibrato
Better bends
Lighter playing style
Faster playing

Scallop Neck Cons:
Learning curve to get use to
Forces you into lighter playing, if you fight it your notes will go out of tune
No longer have that finger comfort of touching wood
Strings can go under each other more easier on bends
Becomes unplayable if you have bad techniques/habits which you can't break or don't want to break

This post has been edited by Azzaboi: Oct 5 2011, 07:02 PM

[AK Rich]

I'm working on renewing my Musima strat copy, the fretboard has some small pits, so it needs to be polished in anyway. I thought of scalloping it instead of polishing. Can you give me some pros and cons of scalloping?

Hey K1R,

Testtubemammoth just addressed this dilema of to scallop or not recently and then scalloped his own neck. Check out his thread here http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/guitar_fo...showtopic=40740

hope it helps.
Peace, Rich........

[Adrian Figallo]

that thread is very useful, be sure to check it out!

[JaxN4]

Scallop Neck Pros:
Better vibrato
Better bends
Lighter playing style
Faster playing

Scallop Neck Cons:
Learning curve to get use to
Forces you into lighter playing, if you fight it your notes will go out of tune
No longer have that finger comfort of touching wood
Strings can go under each other more easier on bends
Becomes unplayable if you have bad techniques/habits which you can't break or don't want to break

Gotta disagree here .... You don't play faster at all, in fact your actually slower until you really master the lightness of touch. Just because fast players play a scallop guitar doesn't mean if you pick it up you will be faster....

I dont know what you mean about strings going under each opther while bending....????

Finger Comfort? It's actually better because the wood of the neck doesn't get in the way, therefore, you grip the strings better....

Anyway, as adrian said we did a scallop thread a while ago with TestTubeMammoth....also search in Forum's... if you search Marcus Lvendall + Scallop you will find a thread where Marcus and Kris talk about the pro's and Con's...

Cheers

This post has been edited by JaxN4: Oct 6 2011, 03:17 AM

[Gary]

I play a fully scalloped strat.. a Malmsteen I bought new a couple years ago. I bought the guitar without trying it (risky for sure) and when I got it I was pretty shocked at how much different it felt from my other strat. To be honest I was disappointed in the beginning but over time I got used to it and now I rarely play the un-scalloped one. The thing you notice right away is how much easier and overall better bending and vibrato is.. night and day difference. You also have much more control over the strings as your fingers can be positioned in ways that are simply not possible on a non-scalloped neck.

It's really hard to advise someone on whether they should scallop their neck or not. Had I tried my guitar prior to buying it I probably would not have bought it.. having said that I am actually glad I did not try it because now I love it

Good luck with whatever you choose.
Gary

[TesttubeMammoth]

After doing this to a guitar really recently I have only one piece of advice, try a scalloped guitar before you do it!
The process of scalloping isn't that difficult - just pretty time consuming.

The guitar I scalloped is very different to play, I wouldn't say it is better or worse, just different. It isn't something you can really quantify with words. Try one, you'll see what I mean.

Hope this helps

[Cosmin Lupu]

I have NEVER tried one but this thread just opened a big thirst for trying one

[K1R]

Thanks a lot guys I guess, I have to visit a music store and search for scalloped guitar to try