Scalloping? Yes or no?

[wbreslin951]

I wanna do it... Should I? I play alot of solos.. Alotta of improvising, alot of power chords, alot of slides.. pretty much everything. how much will it effect my guitars playability, and in which way? Is it a good idea for a metal/blues/hardcore guitarist (i'm very well rounded in the ways of music genres lol)

[Mike239]

No it takes a while to get used to it and imo dosen't really offer up much more than a standard guitar, with what you play a normal un-scalloped guitar should be plenty

[jono]

In my experience you need a very light tough not to ruin relative tuning when you play a scalloped guitar. It also practically ruins the resale value of the instrument, you'll only ever sell to folks who themselves want a fully scalloped guitar.

If you only have one guitar, or the means to only have one guitar you may well regret taking action in this way. If you are in the fortunate position to be able to have loads of guitars, go out and acquire a Malmsteen strat that's pre-scalloped and give it a try. At least you can sell that one on in it's undamaged form still having tried the scalloped vibe

[Lefty Robb]

Originally Posted by jono

If you are in the fortunate position to be able to have loads of guitars, go out and acquire a Malmsteen strat that's pre-scalloped and give it a try. At least you can sell that one on in it's undamaged form still having tried the scalloped vibe

I'd get one of those Agile Strats fron Rondo, there quite good and super cheap, so if you ruin it, oh well.
http://www.rondomusic.com/electricguitar.html

[Dee]

Originally Posted by wbreslin951

I wanna do it... Should I?

Yes. Of course you should. Unless you are useless at woodwork, that is.

Alternatively, refret the neck with the biggest frets you can find.

[wbreslin951]

i do have a very light touch, i don't ever plan on reselling it. I'm pretty damn confident in my woodwork. and i can't tell you how many times I do a bend and make the other strings go boing when I return the note to pitch. I'll probably scallop like, 19-24 and see how it turns out. I have a '00 RG520QS by the way.

[jono]

I really recommend that you do it on something that's not your main guitar before you possibly ruin your baby!

[waylay00]

Originally Posted by jono

I really recommend that you do it on something that's not your main guitar before you possibly ruin your baby!

+1000

[wbreslin951]

Originally Posted by jono

I really recommend that you do it on something that's not your main guitar before you possibly ruin your baby!

definately, but i don't really have that option. I've got the itch and I'm thinkin about just goin for it. Just be really careful.. I did the wiring on my guitar my self without any practice on any other guitar ever, and it came out great.. maybe I should post some pics? =)

Main control cavity, theres a switch between the two pots that bypasses the volume and tone on the guitar, it makes it scream when the switch is on lol



Killswitch in the output jack cavity. Its fun to play with =)



And there she is in all her glory lol. That yellow pedal in the BG is one kick arse distortion pedal (Boss OD-20)



You can see the two switches I installed real good



=)



I love how low the action is, and it hardly buzzes =)

[mi2tom]

I love scallop board, they are much easier to play if you've got a lt of solo going on. But it'll be hell when you have to cover rhythm and lead at the same time.

[wbreslin951]

Originally Posted by mi2tom

I love scallop board, they are much easier to play if you've got a lt of solo going on. But it'll be hell when you have to cover rhythm and lead at the same time.

id like to talk to some one on aim about the whole endeavor.. you up for it? lol

[wbreslin951]

I thought I'd let you all know, I've removed the neck from my guitar, found an interesting marking on the neck (ARG570), considering my guitar is supposed to be an RG520QS, i think guitar center marked it wrong, maybe not.. i dunno.. but i taped up the frets to protect them, and have scalloped the third and fourth frets, poll is pointless now lol I've gone past the point of no return! It's comin out great so far, BTW

[Dee]

Don't take too much notice of the neck stamp. Ibanez frequently mix and match when two or models share the same neck. It's nothing to do with Guitar Center, the stamps are done in the factory. Take for example the RG550 and the RG570 -- the necks are identical. Similarly, I have an RG7421 with a 7621 neck.

Best of luck with the scalloping! Post pics when you're done.

[yoyo1299]

what exactly is scalloping and why would one do it? I''m still confused about it. lol. all i know is it's a touchy wood working job.

[Dee]

Scalloping is removing the wood between frets, like this:



One good thing about scalloping is the fingers only make contact with the frets and don't touch the wood of the fretboard. This creates less friction and improves vibrato and bending. Less pressure can be applied, too.