Heavy guitars - what's your threshold?

Dave_Mc

as light as possible, really

stonevibe

I don't care how heavy it is really as I'm a big strong man....  :-)

badlydrawnbanjo

I've just weighed my Les Paul with a bigsby and that's come in at 9lb10oz which has surprised me as it feels heavier than that.

Van_Hayden

Nothing listed here comes close to heavy.

Couple of years ago I fitted a set of pickups to a solid granite HSS strat, and a Tele. They made your leg go numb sitting down. Was it worth it finally? Don't know my leg hurt too much.

My R8 is just over 9lb which I find fine but don't want to go heavier. . The Crinson T type (if I say the TV derived caster word Nigel will probably get another fender letter) is 7lb and I wouldn't go lighter - they feel odd when they get neck heavy!

bluenose

p90fool said:

Bare shoulder, bit of cheese wire, mere slip of a girl.
Just sayin'.

Aye, she's smiling through the tears though.:-)

DrBob

Despite being 6'6" and 20st + (embarrassingly, but I'm working on it) a combination of basketball injuries from my youth & motorbike mishaps from my later youth mean that anything much more than 8lbs causes discomfort pretty quick Which is a bit ridiculous when you think I manage to carry best part of an excess 36-48lb's around on a day to day basis

Jalapeno

An Anderson Hollow Body is what people with back or neck problems need - really light, great sounding, and very flexible sounds ! 

tbm

My mates 78 p-bass is a back breaker, but it sounds amazing. I've played plenty of 70s and newers stratz and teles that were wieghty but pretty crap sounding. I'm 6'4 but I'm skinny enough that a really heavy guitar will start to hurt after a while. I've done a few gigs with that p-bass and I've always felt it the next day. Wide straps are good, I've a few of the those Levy ones.

Basher

If you're a gigging musician, I suppose it depends on how much you need to move about. Jerry Garcia was not in great health by the 80s but played a 13.5lb custom-made guitar for 3 hour Grateful Dead sets. I seem to remember reading that John McLaughlin's Rex Bogue doubleneck was a staggering weight but I can't remember the exact figure.

It would be much harder for someone like Angus Young to do what he does with a boat anchor guitar.

My Les Paul Historics are 9lb and 9lb 2oz and they feel about right. What's odd is that I had an 8lb 10oz strat that I used to feel was much too heavy. Probably just psychology as I owned it for many years and never weighed it or felt it was heavy. Once the weighing fad kicked in and I realised it was heavy (for a strat) it began to prey on my mind.

p90fool

That's a good point about knowing the weight of your guitar. I don't remember anyone weighing them pre-internet, and I still haven't.

Kebabkid

[quote="octatonic;12052"]Nothing over 9lbs if a LP.Ideally under 8 if anything else.


This ^
My PRS CU24 is a 9 and my Strat is an 8, however, I've played some Nash and MJT Teles around the 7lb mark and enjoyed their lightness, and resonance-are they linked?

stickyfiddle

My bigsby tele is my heaviest, around 9lbs at a guess.  All my others are 7 or 8, which is pretty much perfect for me. I'd happily go up to 10 for a perfect Les Paul, but I generally prefer the woody lighter ones anyway. Eventually I expect to get an 8.5lb R7- that'd make me very happy indeed

jaygtr

I'm much more concerned with the overall feel and balance of a guitar than its actual weight.
Give me a nicely balanced heavy guitar over a neck heavy but lightweight one any day!

Van_Hayden

p90fool;12559" said:

That's a good point about knowing the weight of your guitar. I don't remember anyone weighing them pre-internet, and I still haven't.

I hadn't until somebody asked me to weigh the Hot Rod tele I'm selling. Then I weighed the lot....

ICBM

I weighed some 70s Les Pauls pre-internet, but only because the were so staggeringly heavy I really wanted to know how much, more for the amusement than anything else. Even then the numbers weren't quite as crazy as I expected, the heaviest was just over 14lb. Felt like 20!

I think I might have weighed a 'The Strat' which felt like it was made of solid rock too, but I can't remember for sure.

It certainly wasn't part of the buying ritual like it is now. Everyone knew a Les Paul was a heavy guitar and that was that. Now no-one seems to even consider buying a guitar unless they know the weight to the nearest half ounce...

Adam_MD

I can honestly say I've never weighed any of my guitars and have never asked a seller what weight theirs weighed. I couldn't care less, if I like the guitar I'll deal with the weight. I did move on the Tremonti SE I had as it was super light (felt like a toy on the strap), my Epi Les Paul has a maple neck and feels like a mountain but I love that guitar and its going nowhere.

guitarfishbay

I think my Les Paul is 11.5lbs.

The best thing I did was switch from a 3" Leather strap to a 3" nylon one.  The leather one was suede finish on the underside and it would stick to my shirt.  There was far too much friction, which only got worse when I sweated in to my T-Shirt, it basically glued the strap to my shirt and as I moved around it could get really uncomfortable.  The nylon strap slides around much better.

I've played a lot of guitars and I still think for an immediate attack and a big chunky sound for power chords and palm muting nothing beats a heavy guitar.  Light guitars can sound bigger and warmer but they never have the same snap and power, at least when I play them with a heavy pick attack.  I often find lighter guitars get mushier quicker on the bass end.  Not always though, it is a bit of a minefield, hence why I never buy without trying first.

impmann

I'm actually moving my heavy Les Paul on... its not *that* heavy really, as its 9lbs but having slipped a disc in my neck last year, in conjunction with the lower back issues I have its just too heavy for me.

The Gold Top in my avatar is much lighter - I've never weighed it but its a lovely weight, not much heavier than my SG!

On the subject of heavy vs light and tone, I agree there can be difference - and it works for some and not others. For example I know someone with a late 70s Strat Anniversary that is a total boat anchor, its heavier than my black Les Paul. I think its a hateful thing, and no matter what pickups he's had fitted it still sounds awful when I play it - but he always sounds great on it, and yet sounds 'meh' on my (much lighter) Strat. 

I know a lot of LP players who enjoy the bragging rights of having a boat anchor around their necks... and the footage of Mary Ford gets shown a lot to tell folks to 'man up'. Yes, BUT... most of the '50s Les Pauls I've played have been significantly lighter than later ones. And if you look carefully at both his and her guitars in this piece of footage, they are hardly "stock"!! And knowing how much of an experimenter he was, it wouldn't surprise me if he lightened her one to suit (look at how little the thin strap actually cuts into her shoulder - there's no clothing to cushion it, so its fairly clearly not *that* heavy).

Horses for courses and all that.

bertie

Adam_MD said:

 I couldn't care less, if I like the guitar I'll deal with the weight.

after 3 x 45 minute sets you might have a different opinion.

Playing a 9lb+ guitar at home for 30 minutes is one thing(and these days bad enough ),  gigging it is a different kettle of kippers

jaygtr

I can understand why a person who is old, ill or infirm may need to be careful with the weight of their guitar, and I can sort of see why someone would choose a light one for reasons of tone , but I am struggling to see how 1 lb can make much difference for a healthy adult, especially with a descent strap