Life is weird and I'm....going lefty...

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gunslinger_burrito
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Life is weird and I'm....going lefty...

Post by gunslinger_burrito »

Hey fuzzbreaux:

I have no clue what section this belongs in, so here goes.

Some of you might know that I developed some crazy tendinitis issues in my picking arm a couple years back. While the immediate tendinitis and pain has long since healed, my right hand/arm has never been the same. There's no chronic pain, but whenever I try to draw, pick, or write, my forearm muscles spasm and I don't have any fine motor control unless I tense the ever-living hell out of it, which, of course, is likely what fucked it up in the first place. I'm pretty sure it's focal dystonia. Google it if you'd like. I've tried everything under the sun short of getting surgery because there's simply no way I can afford it. I've spent countless hours trying to retrain my picking hand, and I might still do so yet. Strangely, I can play finger style bass just fine, but picking motions seem to be out of the question. I've been writing almost entirely left handed and have been practicing art the same way.....

I got tired and frustrated trying to play with my friends only to be missing notes and generally fucking up all over the place. . .so I flipped one of my junkier guitars over, nut, bridge and all, and have been learning left handed for the last month and a half or so. I can play simple chords, simple scales and have even done some very, very simple jamming with my roommate on drums. It's very tedious and arduous but also really rewarding, especially since there's no pain or discomfort in either hand. I can play pretty fast alternate picking on single strings even.

Soooooooo that's a kind of long explanation of why I'm going to ask if anyone knows of some cheap guitars, bodies/necks that have the jack on the side of the guitar body and not the face, like a tele, LP, or whatever... for like, really cheap. I've been checking out some of the cheapo sites for affordable lefties and might go that route, but I thought I'd ask around here before I get anything. The guitar I flipped is a jazzmaster clone, and when I plug it in the chord pokes me right in the wrist and makes playing even more awkward. I'm pooooooooor, but I need something that I can more comfortably play with. I have tons of pick ups, bridges, tuners, etc....but no bodies or necks....PM me if you have junk you'll part with, I'd be happy to trade stuff. I like building guitars too. I just don't want to drill a new jack hole, as I don't have the means to, and I'm not sure if I want to alter my other instruments just yet.

Thanks dudes, you're the best :hello:
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Re: Life is weird and I'm....going lefty...

Post by Muff_Diver »

Natural lefty here!
From my personal experiences playing rightys upside down, id recommend getting a proper lefty guitar. Your best bet would probably reverb/ebay/clist. Theres always a few mim fenders from people who started but never kept up with playing going for 200, which id imagine you could haggle down a bit.
With upside down guitars the cable will always be weird and in the way, the knobs are a pain in the ass, and if you want a trem, its anything but natural/comfortable.-OR- just get a lefty body and throw your jm neck on it.
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Re: Life is weird and I'm....going lefty...

Post by DADGBD »

I hear Paul McCartney's secret replacement had to learn to play lefty also. Sounds tough. Glad you're having success with it though!
;)
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Re: Life is weird and I'm....going lefty...

Post by gunslinger_burrito »

Thanks guys. I forgot to check out reverb! :thumb:
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Re: Life is weird and I'm....going lefty...

Post by goroth »

Get a cheap Rondo. They've got heaps of lefties.

Playing a righty upside down sucks.
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Re: Life is weird and I'm....going lefty...

Post by ognoy »

Check out Puresalem guitars, they have all their models available as lefty, sometimes lists older (usually lefty) models for "cheap"(300-400$) on instagram/facebook.
OGNOY/solo(ambient/noise/drones)https://ognoy.bandcamp.com/
Solstorm(doom/postmetal) https://solstormdoom.bandcamp.com/
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Re: Life is weird and I'm....going lefty...

Post by gunslinger_burrito »

playing a righty upside down does suck! As if learning lefty wasn't awkward-feeling enough!

Some of those pure salems are neat, but a chunk above my price range right now. :/
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Re: Life is weird and I'm....going lefty...

Post by Moustache_Bash »

I only read the title at first, and wanted to come into this thread to say, "DON'T DO IT." Since finding lefty guitars sucks.
But, playing lefty is better than not playing at all. Bummer about that tendinitis, but at least you can play.

Like Goroth said, Rondo stuff is pretty great for the price. Their quality is pretty hit and miss for me, but you can keep sending stuff back until you get the right one. If you can pay even more and don't mind LP style guitars, their Agile line is actually great. Otherwise, I'd just get any cheap guitar and give it a good set up. I play a squier affinity tele, and enjoy it as much as my G&L, after giving it a proper set up.

I wouldn't do the lefty flip thing, though, it's super annoying in my experience.
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Re: Life is weird and I'm....going lefty...

Post by gunslinger_burrito »

Yeah, the longer I play this way the more awkward it does feel. Still not as awkward as my right hand betraying me while trying to pick with it! What sucks is that I'm suuuuuuuuuper broke. Like, going more into debt instead of out, because of bills and random car expenses and shit. I think I'm going to post some shit in BST to see if I can raise some money.
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Re: Life is weird and I'm....going lefty...

Post by gunslinger_burrito »

Thinking about ordering this thing.... I have a bunch of pickups and shit I can swap out on it, provided the neck is in good condition.

:idk:

http://www.rondomusic.com/eg491vwhlh.html
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Re: Life is weird and I'm....going lefty...

Post by ognoy »

That is stupid cheap! Def worth a try!
OGNOY/solo(ambient/noise/drones)https://ognoy.bandcamp.com/
Solstorm(doom/postmetal) https://solstormdoom.bandcamp.com/
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Re: Life is weird and I'm....going lefty...

Post by gunslinger_burrito »

A guitar I had on consignment sold, so I just ordered it...!
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