Who prefers the 7.25 radius?

[shoule79]

7.25 for me. I like the feel of my jag and JM over my 9.5 Tele (for the most part. I’ve also been playing 7.25 for my 25 years of playing, so it’s probably just what I’m used to.

However, I can adjust to flatter radius in a Gibson without any issues. My wife’s Danelectro is so flat I can’t play it comfortably.

[supersonicjazzmaster]

7.25 for me. In my first years playing I didn´t thought about such things..
On my thin skin Jaguar I realized that I don´t like the feeling of the neck at last. 9.5 radius. I sold it..
I like the feeling of my vintage Mustangs, Jags, JMs..

Thinking about giving a handshake to someone (before Corona...), take a look at your hand/fingers: It´s 7.25 radius exactly.

[MrJagsquire]

I've had my Strat for 38 years and it's a '57 spec, so has 7.25" radius (and also very small 'vintage' frets), so I guess I was just used to it. Didn't know until relatively recently* that the were such things as different radii, though I knew my Epiphone Les Paul felt different to play, I just thought it was part of the difference between 'Gibson' style and 'Fender'.

These days I actually like to mix things up, so I have a Tele with a 9.5" and very fat neck, another Tele with 7.25" radius and a medium C neck/vintage frets, my Jaguar is a Player series, with a 'modern C' and 9.5" radius and I'm currently building a second Strat with a very fat neck, medium jumbo frets and 9.5" radius. I've got a mix of 'slim taper' and 'rounded 50s' necks on my Epiphone/Gibson guitars too.

I think it's good to swap between these different types, scale lengths, neck profiles, radii and fret sizes. It's pretty unlikely to happen, but should I need to carry on a gig with a strange guitar I reckon I'd be able to do it. (Of course in practice I'll have one of my own as a spare anyway, but maybe I'll be out somewhere and they'll ask if there is a guitarist in the house ).


*Once I joined guitar forums of course.

[Rockabilly69]

... take a look at your hand/fingers: It´s 7.25 radius exactly.

Best quote of this thread

[Flurko]

I have no idea what radius any of my guitars have, except the classical I guess, flat fretboard and all ?
I guess my jazzmaster has a more curved radius, mostly because I can't get the action low enough on the high frets without the 1-step bends fretting out, which is annoying. But I never cared much about neck size/confort, 10seconds after picking up a guitar I have no idea what the neck shape is like -except on some oddities like the 8 string I used to own-.

Out of curiosity, how do you measure neck radius without buying a specialized luthier's tool ?

i was going to suppose that the radius being measured in inches has something to do with me having no idea what different sizes are like, but this would be equally puzzling even if it was spelled out in metric !

[kgbAttack]

Out of curiosity, how do you measure neck radius without buying a specialized luthier's tool ?

https://hazeguitars.com/downloadradiusgauges/ you can print cutouts of different fingerboard radius gauges

[Cornelius Plum]

As long as it doesn't buzz, or the action is too high.. Just bring it. Whatever radius.

Ditto. I switch between guitar types frequently and, as long as the guitar is set up properly, it never bothers me.

[FenderBob]

7.25” and vintage-sized frets for me, please.

+ 1

[Powdered Toast Man]

Not me. I've had two 7.25" guitars and I never bonded with either. I found them more difficult to play especially with small vintage fret wire. Just nothing to get my finger onto when doing bends.

Maybe I prefer 9.5" because that's what I came of age playing in the late 90's? Vintage spec guitars were way to pricey and out of reach for me. So I played MIM and MIA standards until I'd been playing for over a decade and a half.

I LOVE the AO series guitars! Finally I can have a vintage style guitar with a 9.5 radius and a bit taller frets.

[sunburster]

7.25" is my favorite, but I can play my Ric 360 with its 10" radius just as easily. Same deal with acoustic guitars and their flatter fingerboards.

One thing I can't stand is big frets (tall or wide). I really only like vintage-size frets.

[pscates]

I've always, and only, have owned Fenders with vintage style 7.25" necks and the rest. I'm sure I could play whatever I wanted - we're humans, we adapt pretty well to things much more crucial than fretboard radius - but it's all I've ever known, suits my taste and the nonsense I play, etc. So, yeah...if I have a choice between 7.25" and everything else, I'm gonna stick with what I already know and like.

But I don't think I'd let it be any sort of deal-killer on an otherwise perfect model or build. I'm sure, before I keel over, I'll own something with a 9.5" radius, and I know my world won't come crashing down either.

But I do like that curve. I'm not a shredder or even much of a "bend-y" kind of player, so never found myself wanting/needing flatter radius fretboards. It's just never really been an issue. I just always sought out/bought/owned 50's/60's reissue Fenders because that's the era of music I love and play (for the most part). Those all come with that sort of radius.

I think this is strictly a case of "what you came up on/what you've owned", vs. any sort of real ability/desire to get into the weeds on 7.25" vs. 9.5" (or higher). Anyone here can play anything, with just a few hours/days/weeks of adjustment. But we've probably all spent more time on certain things in those formative years (7.25", 9.5", 12", etc.) and that kinda makes an impression. I just happened to cut my teeth on various reissues with 50's/60's specs, vs. any modern era models. 7.25" is all I really know, and, at 52 (and the bulk of my playing years now behind me) I'm okay with what I'm already used to.

[gnoleb]

Playing at home, I don't really mind the radius (fret size is a different issue), but when I tried to use the Silver Sky live, I noticed it was just enough to make swapping to my Gretsch or Gibson "weird" in a way my 9.5" JM doesn't. Like I was no longer warmed-up and I was going to make some mistakes. And I didn't like that feeling.

[Liquitone]

I have always played Epiphones, and later switched to Squiers so I was used to larger radius medium jumbo frets. However playing narrow vintage necks (cheap stuff like a Morris les paul or Pearl sg copy) always made me feel right at home. Then after playing a Johnny Marr Jag I knew that was what I wanted. I have very slim 'feminine' piano hands so that may have something to do with it. I eventually bought a roadworn 60s jazzmaster with 7.25 radius and vintage frets. It just feels so natural and comfortable to me. Choking out isn't too much of a problem for me as I moved towards sliding instead of bending more because of the wound G flatwounds I use. Funny thing is, the lead guitar player in the band I play bass in has the exact same looking guitar as me (both sunburst, gold guard, american trem) but he went for a 9.5 radius thinner necked avri 62 because he absolutely hates the chunkier 7.25 radius neck. And we're both totally in love and at home with our own guitars.

[ohm-men]

I always thought the radius didn't matter to me. Been playing 7.25", 9.5", 10, 12" and 14" for years.
Switching between these never bothered me that much, same for fret size. I didn't even have a 7.25" guitar for years.
But ever since I got my Vintera Jazzmaster last year, I just know 7.25" radius and vintage sized frets are my prefered dish.
Whenever I pick up this Jazzmaster, I feel right at home. I now find myself struggling more with the 9.5", 10" and 12" radiï fretboards.

[Pepe Silvia]

I never noticed a difference until about 5 years until playing and I learned my one guitar has a 9.5" radius and one has a 16" radius. Shortly after becoming cognizant of that, the 16" seemed less comfortable. 7.25" is ok, bit I still really prefer 9.5", it is the best of both worlds for me. Now everything I own is 9.5" except my SG, which is starting to feel too flat for me.