Why aren't there more scalloped guitars?

Muad'zin said:
I do wonder what is the best technique to create a good scalloped fretboard. I've only seen the guy from Crimson Guitars do one in one of his vids and he only did it partially. Up from the 12th fret and then for the high strings only. And leaving a very rough texture cause he's obviously more about form them function.
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Personally I used a rat tail file, a sheet of 60 and 200 grit, and about 3-5 bong hits . . . and it shows in the end results. It's not ideal but it works.

If you were serious you'd set up a CNC for it. A ball-end mill and an adaptive tool path would make short and clean work of it.
 
I always loved the idea of it. I finally found an Yngwie sig in a store, and sat down with it for a little while. I didn't really connect with it. I've heard it takes some time. Maybe if I can ever find a deal on one (haha) I'll pick one up to have for a while. Blackmore used a scalloped neck as well, and he's pretty much god in my book.
 
I have a YJM Fender (signed by the man himself) and I love it but I have to admit that it's not my everyday guitar....
 
Man, if I had a scalloped neck, everything I played would be out of tune. My hand just won’t work with that kind of control.
 
Disconnector said:
Yeah I know they're ugly and you can't play them in tune and if you play a scalloped neck you can't play an unscalloped neck . . . blah blah blah.

Every time I pick up my old mongrel partscaster with the Squier tele neck that I scalloped with a rat tail file a decade ago I got lost in how amazing it feels. The total control over the string, the incredible smoothness of no wood contact, the ease of great vibrato - scallops make it all super easy.

Scallops give you absolute control over the strings. You can completely dominate bends with full confidence that the string is going to do exactly what you tell it to do. Vibrato is easier and more accurate since you never touch the fretboard. Chords to my ears ring a bit clearer and the sound seems to be a smidgen brighter but in a good way. I can play decently without scallops but for most things I prefer them.

Scallops also force you to relax your left hand. After playing scalloped guitars for a while I have far less fatigue and I tend to fret more accurately since there’s no fretboard to stop your finger. It’s not faster really but it feels faster. You can feel your left hand playing more fluidly and comfortably. After a while that extends to all of your playing.

The only downsides are that you can bend things out of tune if you have a kung-fu grip. That’s a bad habit that scallops will break immediately. I started out trying to imitate Yngwie with 8s tuned down a half step and it did take me a week or so to play in tune. But that’s a pretty gnarly setup. Personally now I run 9s tuned to E standard and E flat with no issues at all.

As far as playing both scalloped and non-scalloped guitars the only thing that I feel when I transition to my regular guitars is an annoying fretboard. Hahaha. It’s no problem at all. It’s actually improved my playing on non-scalloped guitars considerably because of a more relaxed left hand.

Why aren't more guitars scalloped? Is it just the dreaded "guitarists are a bunch of nancies that hate change" issue?

My scalloped partscaster. Like the Millennium Falcon she's ugly but she's got it where it counts.

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The body is from an old Strat FSR that I didn’t like the sound of so I used it to practice stripping poly finishes. It was a disaster - it’s a mid 90s Fender 12 piece body with really terrible routing and zero resonance. I was painting a body for my wife so I just threw a couple of coats on this one randomly so my wife could see the color before i painted her real guitar. The finish is rough and the neck pocket is loose as a $10 hooker.

The neck is from an experiment trying to make my own scalloped neck about a decade ago. I took it off of a Squier tele probably 14 years ago that was never quite right. It’s been setting in the garage with no frets literally holding up one end of a workbench. I pulled a set of old Fender frets out of the parts box and pressed them in. I hit the fret ands with my rounding file and did a quick level but I never really took the time to tweak this one.

The electronics, the bridge, the knobs and pretty much all the other parts are literally out of my junk box. The bridge has parts in it from 3-4 guitars - it’s a mix of metric and imperial screws for goodness sake.

But man this guitar just freaking rules. Of course having a set of BKP Trilogy Suites in the pickguard doesn't hurt. Holy fricking crap they are great!

Anyway - why aren't more guitars scalloped from the factory?
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No idea, but if there was a custom fret scalped rat file I'd probably purchase it in a heartbeat and get a cheep guitar and convert it for testing... Always wondered about Yngwie Malmsteen's passion on this, guessing he must have very powerful fingering to depress the notes well past pressures needed to produced a tone.
 
DaveO said:
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No idea, but if there was a custom fret scalped rat file I'd probably purchase it in a heartbeat and get a cheep guitar and convert it for testing... Always wondered about Yngwie Malmsteen's passion on this, guessing he must have very powerful fingering to depress the notes well past pressures needed to produced a tone.
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Don’t you need a lighter touch on a scalloped board? I get off tune sometimes even on a regular neck with big frets.
 
I second the motion. We want more scalloped necks!!

I also wanted a Floyd Rose, so I built my own guitar with parts from Ali-express, for an unbelievable price, and they happened to be of very high quality. Great resonance and playability

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DaveO said:
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No idea, but if there was a custom fret scalped rat file I'd probably purchase it in a heartbeat and get a cheep guitar and convert it for testing... Always wondered about Yngwie Malmsteen's passion on this, guessing he must have very powerful fingering to depress the notes well past pressures needed to produced a tone.
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Hey Dave,

You actually HAVE to maintain a lighter touch with a scalloped neck. It's as much a training device as anything. If you go all the way to the fretboard, then you will be out of tune.

Well rounded guitar teachers should stress the need of a light touch. Sit down sometime and gradually add pressure as you fret a note. Just continuously pluck/pick as you add pressure and see how little pressure is actually required until the note rings out clearly. If you can train yourself to do that subconciously, then you will be able to play faster and with more ease.
 
Seems fine for leads but I can't imagine doing chord work with any kind of consistency outside of a focused practice session. Haven't spent any time with a scalloped board though, only with tall frets.

If the goal is a light touch, I've found the following to encourage that:
Short frets
Straight neck (as little relief as possible)
Smooth, polished frets
Conscious effort
 
alex1fly said:
Seems fine for leads but I can't imagine doing chord work with any kind of consistency outside of a focused practice session. Haven't spent any time with a scalloped board though, only with tall frets.

If the goal is a light touch, I've found the following to encourage that:
Short frets
Straight neck (as little relief as possible)
Smooth, polished frets
Conscious effort
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The goal of a scalloped neck is not to obtain light touch. That comes naturally, as a side effect. The advantage is that you have better control over vibrato and bending, because you are not touching the fretboard. It is the finger against the string, not against the wood.

The first time I played a scalloped neck I got used to play chords on tune after less than one hour
 
Piing said:
The goal of a scalloped neck is not to obtain light touch. That comes naturally, as a side effect. The advantage is that you have better control over vibrato and bending, because you are not touching the fretboard. It is the finger against the string, not against the wood.

The first time I played a scalloped neck I got used to play chords on tune after less than one hour
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It's a good side effect. Another side effect is probably forcing you to listen intently. Maybe it's no more weird than fanned frets which are also quick to get used to. I like the idea of scalloped frets on the upper range of the instrument.
 
Piing said:
The goal of a scalloped neck is not to obtain light touch. That comes naturally, as a side effect. The advantage is that you have better control over vibrato and bending, because you are not touching the fretboard. It is the finger against the string, not against the wood.
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I don't touch the fretboard on any of my guitars that have jumbo frets-just my strat that has vintage frets.
 
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