Help: My 6-year-old wants to play guitar...

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Gasgano
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Help: My 6-year-old wants to play guitar...

Post by Gasgano » Sun Jun 28, 2020 6:18 pm

... BUT HE IS LEFT HANDED :shock: .

I am struggling to find anything interesting in the 1/2 size scale department. Or course, I don't know if he'll like it so I dont' want to spend a fortune on a starter pack. Most everything I fopund that was of interest is not in stock (because: LEFT HANDED).

Does anyone of you have experience with left-handed stuff? I fear this is going to be a lifelong problem but now I've got a kid that wants to play guitar and I can't find anything is the local ads.

Any help is welcome.
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Pepe
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Re: Help: My 6-year-old wants to play guitar...

Post by Pepe » Sun Jun 28, 2020 7:19 pm

I worked for 18 years as a salesman in a music shop, so I think I can help you.

In most cases left handed kids have to use a left handed guitar. I only met a handful of left-handed persons who preferred to play a standard guitar instead. So the majority of left-handed people who are interested in playing guitar don't have a real chance to learn to play guitar with a right-handed model.

What you can do is the following: buy a standard 1/2 sized classical guitar and order a fitting nut for a left-handed guitar. You can normally just take the bridge saddle out and put it in in the other direction. Now restring the guitar (with a new pack of strings, because they should sound better than the stock strings anyway!) in the left handed way. That's it!

I know that this is not a perfect method, but it definitely works. You can do it with 1/2 and 3/4 classical guitar models, especially since kids won't have to play on the full fretboard in the first years.
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Gasgano
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Re: Help: My 6-year-old wants to play guitar...

Post by Gasgano » Tue Jun 30, 2020 1:20 am

Can I apply the solution to an electric guitar? I would definitely consider it.
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Re: Help: My 6-year-old wants to play guitar...

Post by BearBoy » Tue Jun 30, 2020 6:08 am

Squier make a left handed Mini Strat: https://shop.fender.com/en-GB/squier-el ... 23506.html

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Re: Help: My 6-year-old wants to play guitar...

Post by Pepe » Tue Jun 30, 2020 6:28 am

To restring a standard electric guitar for a left-handed player is the Jimi Hendrix way. ;)
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visserman
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Re: Help: My 6-year-old wants to play guitar...

Post by visserman » Thu Sep 24, 2020 2:36 pm

Gasgano wrote:
Tue Jun 30, 2020 1:20 am
Can I apply the solution to an electric guitar? I would definitely consider it.
Apart form what has already been mentioned I would just say, try and try. Even just standard electric.
I have had so many left handed students, and with a lot of them I never knew since they played regular stringed instruments.
Some of them changed to electric, but it did not make a big change in their skills and feel for the guitar.

You have less choice for left-handed instruments and the costs are usually higher. Just try and try. I think I would resting a right handed, and do all the adjustments Pepe mentioned before. Just go easy and enjoy!

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