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Small hands... :(

S

Shade13

Jun 20, 2008
39
0
#1
Hi,

So i bought a fender jazz bass last year. Its worked well for me so far, but as i continue to learn harder songs, it gets my fingers weak. Sometimes I am not able to stretch that far and when I do, my hand placement gets messed up. This coming year, I want to play more funky bass riffs, and I was looking for a new guitar.

The width of my palm is 3". The length of my hand is 7".

Thank you!
 
#2
Getting a bass with more strings may be helpful. My hands are also pretty small (about your size). Using a five or six-string bass allows you to play the same notes further up the neck where the spacing between the frets is smaller. Going with a shorter scale or a bass with more strings will likely be your best bet if you can't get used to the stretch of a 34" four-string.
 
#4
If you are younger you hands will grow and also your hands will become stronger with time and practice, don't get discouraged, one of the best practice routines that i do is i pick up a bass i got for like $50 dollars with a baseball bat neck and terrible action and go through my drills working on intonation and strength. Helps you build up hand strength and ultimately speed as well, but with bass its not how many notes you play but what you do with the ones you choose.
 
#8
I'd say that even with small hands you can manage the bass. A short scale might help. While 5 or 6 string basses are nice and open up more options, I'd be hesitant to recommend that you buy one just so you can avoid playing near the nut. My advice is just to practice - I have fairly large hands and I found that it was difficult to play the first few frets too, when I was starting. Practice enough and you'll gain strength and reach.
 
#9
you may try a ibanez mikro bass. picked one up for my daughter for x-mas and it sounds really good. it's the one with p and j pickups and just using the p pickup does a surprisingly good p sound. small scale and fairly cheap, i got one new for $169 but probably can be picked up cheaper used.

It's not a "toy" bass and is really fun to play. Just a thought.
 
#12
I have hands your size. I play mostly G&L's with the #8 neck and find that really comfortable. Still can't get around too well on the lowest frets so I shift and jump more. When you have obstacles you learn to work around them. Practice makes everything easier.
 
#13
rosanne said:
I have hands your size. The profile of the P neck may be wrong for you. Have you tried the neck on the Jazz bass? I play mostly G&L's with the #8 neck and find that really comfortable. Still can't get around too well on the lowest frets so I shift more. When you have obstacles you learn to work around them. Practice makes everything easier.
Click to expand...

He said he has a jazz, not a P.
 
#14
Shade13 said:
...as i continue to learn harder songs, it gets my fingers weak. Sometimes I am not able to stretch that far and when I do, my hand placement gets messed up....
Click to expand...
That sounds like classic symptoms for better conditioning. :D
The width of my palm is 3". The length of my hand is 7".
Click to expand...
My hands are about the same dimensions (OK, 3-1/2" wide).

Here's a second tip for a 5- or 6-string: Look for a bass with an asymmetrical neck profile. These necks have a shallow depth on the treble side and are deeper for rigidity and thumb support on the bass side. It makes it much easier to get your hand around the neck to the strings and frets you want to use. The one I played (and wish I had) was a mid-'90s Hamer USA Cruise Bass, but there are others out there. I hope somebody chimes in here on which bass makers offer asymmetrical necks.
 
#16
My hands are fairly small.
Maybe that's one of the reasons I prefer Rickenbacker necks: very little taper compared to a Fender style neck.

I'd say just keep practicing.
If you've only been playing a year or so, you won't have mastered the thing yet, and the more you learn and practice, the more comfortable you'll get in many positions on the neck.
We're all still learning.
 
#18
Dave Muscato said:
+1 to extended range basses. Thin necks and proper technique will help you reach farther. I recommend checking out some DVDs on proper classical guitar left-hand technique. I too have small hands yet love my main bass, which is a 6-string with a 34"-scale.
Click to expand...

Dave, I'm so glad to hear that you're still playing and enjoying that bass.

To the OP, find the best bass instructor in your area to help you. It's not your hands. With guidence and some hard work you'll be able to play any bass of any size well.
 
#20
I just measured my hand. 3 1/2" wide at the knuckles not counting thumb, and 8" from bottom of my palm to end of middle finger. Am I measuring the same way you are? If so, I bet it's more a matter of practice and conditioning than it is size. I had a problem with 34" scale (with any scale really) when I started but it soon got better. I play a fairly wide neck 5 string with a 36" B string with no problem and my hand isn't way bigger than yours. If the stretch on your present bass makes your hand sore or tender I'd look at maKing a change pretty quickly, but otherwise it may be normal adaptation that you're going through.
 

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