Acoustic fingerboard radii through the years?

[casey2048]

I've finally realized at this point in my guitar playing career (30 years or so) that I have a preference for a slightly rounder FB radius on an acoustic guitar. The modern 12" radius of Guild acoustics is very pleasant to me. When I got my Corona era D40CE I noticed right away that, while still fun to play, the fingerboard is definitely flatter ... maybe more of a 14" radius. (The nut widths on the other hand are very close.) This made me wonder - are Westerly RI Acoustics generally of a similar neck radius? I saw a previous post where @hansmoust said they all seemed to be eyeballed, just wondering if I were to pick up an acoustic 70s or 80s what would that fingerboard feel like in comparison. Grateful for any perspective!

 

[Boneman]

I believe the D46 from ’82 I have has a 16” radius, might even be 20, now you’ve got me questioning my memory, and wanting to measure it again. Getting old sucks!

 

[Nuuska]

Conical or cylindrical ? Remains a mystery.

 

[Christopher Cozad]

...The modern 12" radius of Guild acoustics is very pleasant to me... This made me wonder - are Westerly RI Acoustics generally of a similar neck radius... if I were to pick up an acoustic 70s or 80s what would that fingerboard feel like in comparison. Grateful for any perspective!

The Westerly 6 string Guilds I have owned, played, or repaired have all been consistent at or near a 12" radius. The 12 strings have ranged from 12" to 16" (mostly 12" -ish). That includes approximately 30 guitars from the '70s, '80s and '90s.

 

[Rocky]

I'm not sure if I could tell a 12" from a 16".

 

[chazmo]

Conical or cylindrical ? Remains a mystery.

TImo, do you know of any guitars that use conical radii? I assumed (maybe wrongly) that we're talking cylindrical here, i.e., the radius at fret 20 is the same as fret 1 (even if the board is wider at that point).

 

[Nuuska]

Conical would be more natural - in my opinion - since the strings fan out.

But since I've always been comfortable w any radius - including the negative radius on my Carmelo Gonzales - and also neck width has never been any issue - my pondering remains strictly academical . . .

 

[GAD]

TImo, do you know of any guitars that use conical radii? I assumed (maybe wrongly) that we're talking cylindrical here, i.e., the radius at fret 20 is the same as fret 1 (even if the board is wider at that point).

I have a couple of shredder guitars that have a slightly conical radius. They even had some snazzy marketing name for it but I forget what that is. The idea was that a more curved fretboard for chording and more flat for soloing was a good idea. I don’t find radius to be a huge deal until it gets in the 7.5” territory so it never really excited me but I love the concept.

 

[West R Lee]

Conical would be more natural - in my opinion - since the strings fan out.

But since I've always been comfortable w any radius - including the negative radius on my Carmelo Gonzales - and also neck width has never been any issue - my pondering remains strictly academical . . .

Which is precisely what Collings does.

Top	Sitka spruce
Back & Sides	Honduran mahogany
Neck	Honduran mahogany
Body Binding	Tortoise with b/w/b/w top purfling
Fingerboard Binding	None
Peghead Binding	None
Bridge	Ebony belly-style with 2 3/16" spacing
Fingerboard	Ebony with MOP long dots
Fingerboard Radius	14" - 26" compound
Bridge Pins/End Pin	Ebony with MOP dot
Nut	Bone, 1 11/16"
Saddle	Bone, drop-in
Neck Profile	Modified V
Peghead Profile	Square
Neck Joint	Mortise & tenon hybrid
Truss Rod	Fully adjustable
Frets	Medium 18% nickel-silver
Peghead Veneer	Ebony with MOP Collings logo
Tuners	Nickel Waverly
Backstrip	1-style (Walnut)
Rosette	b/w Purfling
Scale Length	25 1/2"
Brace Material	Sitka spruce
Brace Pattern	Pre-war scalloped X-brace
Body Finish	High gloss nitrocellulose lacquer
Neck Finish	High gloss polyester resin
Pickguard	Tortoise
Strings	D'Addario EJ-17 (.013"- .056")
Case	Deluxe hardshell case by TKL

14"-26" Compound Radius.

West

 

[chazmo]

Well, it makes sense to me either way. That's cool.

 

[Prince of Darkness]

I remember seeing ad's for Warmoth necks with compound radius fretboards and, having just checked, see that they still make them. Conical and either 10"-16", 9.5"-14", or 12"-16".
On a side note, my Thorn touring bicycles use conical frame tubes

 

[chazmo]

FYI, the difference between a cornet and a trumpet is that a cornet has a conical bore (increases from the minimum at the mouthpiece up to the bell), whereas the trumpet has a straight bore (stays the same from the end of the lead pipe until the bell flare). I learned to play on a cornet, but the trumpet is my main instrument since the 8th grade.

 

[zulu]

This whole discussion has become conical

 

[Nuuska]

As long we don't get conical about it, all is well

 

[davidbeinct]

I remember seeing ad's for Warmoth necks with compound radius fretboards and, having just checked, see that they still make them. Conical and either 10"-16", 9.5"-14", or 12"-16".
On a side note, my Thorn touring bicycles use conical frame tubes

Jeez you get a lot of bike for your money from them. I like the looks of the Audax.

 

[Christopher Cozad]

In more recent years (decades) conical radii (compound radius) fretboards have gained in popularity, with the tighter radius (more curve) toward the nut. Loads of experiments have been done in combining the radii, but the gist of the matter is smaller numbers (more curve) for the cowboy chords and bigger numbers (flatter surface) as you move toward the saddle. The numbers can vary greatly depending on whether the neck is for an electric or acoustic player, a strummer, scrubber, or shredder, and overall familiarity with the concept. I set up my (edit: acoustic) 12 strings to measure as a 12" radius across the 1st fret and a 20" radius at the saddle. The flatter board area provides for faster lead playing while, conversely, making chording much more difficult.

 

[casey2048]

That’s pretty neat. I think I would probably enjoy playing a 12 string with those specs.