Official Luthiers Forum!

What are the reasons for selecting a particular scale length? I understand that it is twice the length from the nut to the 12th fret, so that a longer scale would give you a bit more room inbetween the frets, but is there more to it? Do certain models have to be made to a particular scale? I'm starting a small (OLF plans) jumbo for my 2nd build and the plans say I can pick from 2 scale lengths.

Thanks in advance - I've been reading the archives and all the posts and I must say there is more information here than I can ever likely use.

Steve

The scale length of an instrument has a signifigant effect on both the sound and feel, and there are wide variations in peoples ideal. Some like 'em long, some like 'em short. It is hard to avoid generalities when talking about these things, so the best thing to do is start paying attention to the scale of guitars you play, and see if you arrive at any conclusions about what you like. Guitar stores are good for this.

The length of vibrating string is a major design element, and its the first thing i lay out when designing a guitar, then the body joint location. Everything else like body shape, bracing, headstock, nut width and fingerboard taper falls in to place around the string length.

Until you have some opinions of your own about your prefered scale length for a given guitar, i'm sure either of the ones shown on your plan will work well, with the longer one being generally more "bright" and "snappy", with a stiffer feel, and the shorter of the two being more "mellow" and "sweet". These are total generalizations, and i'm sure someone would use them in the opposite order to describe the same thing.

To get an immediate idea of the effect of shortening a scale length, take a guitar and tune it down 1/2 step, then put a capo on the first fret. You have just effectively shortened the scale length by whatever the distance for the nut to fret #1 is. This will probably be shorter than most commonly used scale lengths, but it does give you an idea of what shortening a scale does, tone and feel wise.

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Jordan Aceto
Ithaca, NY