Yes another Tele string guage question

[Folk_guy]

In preperation for the jam coming up, I've been giving the Tele more of a workout to get used to playing electric again. Right now I have Diadario 10s on it. Compared to my acoustics (which I now have 12s on, I was using 13s on the Guild d-4 for a long time, but went down to 12s to try and get more consistency in the way the various guitars felt) I barely have to push the strings down at all. I've been concentrating on lightening my grip up on the Tele because if I don't the intonation goes off. I'm contemplating a more to 11s on the Tele to make it feel more like the acoustics. Any reasons why I shouldn't go to 11s on my MIM standard Tele (I realize that this may require some slight setup adjustments). I guess my question is should I work harder at developing a lighter touch on my fretting hand, so that I don't bend notes out of tune, or should I move up to the heavier guage strings. Please bear with me I know we get these string guage questions all the time, and I'm being a dumb-ass for asking again.

Thanks

[PG13]

No reason at all. I used to use 11s on my Tele. Loved the sound, hated the pain in bending.

[Tele-Bob]

If you plan on soloing and doing lots of string bending intentionally, .010's or .011's are both fine. I would say "yes" work on your playing technique some more. Different guitars make different sounds and require different approaches. What's the point of playing electric guitar if you're going to play it like an acoustic? Might as well stay with the acoustic in that case. Try working on a lighter grip and enjoy some of the freedom an electric guitar with lighter action allows you. You'll be rockin in no time!

[photoweborama]

11's will do fine..

[chuckocaster]

they are what i play.

[NeoFauve]

Coming from playing a lot of acoustic, if you want to play solos or fills that involve bends, you'll probably find yourself gravitating toward something lighter than .012. Unless you have some seriously mighty fingers.
When I was still gigging, I made this transition a few years back. But I had played a lot of electric prior to diving into the acoustic coffehouse thing though, so I did the opposite first. I found it really liberating, and the differnt approaches can give you the outlook that they're seperate instruments. I don't really like hearing people play typical "lead" style on acoustic. That's just me.
Don't sweat it too much. You'll figure out something that works for you, physically and stylistically. Just make your ears and your fingers happy.:yay

[Offshore Angler]

I used to do the big string thing, but I play all my electrics wit 9's now. My Teles seem especially happy with them. They came to life. They snarl and snap and and do all the cool things a Tele should. The problem I have with the heavier strings is that they don't slap when played hard. They make the Tele sound a little too ascoustic-like. A little fret slap will add a neat punch to an otherwise boring note for me. YMMV. If I'm doing a sweetypie fill thing with glassy tones I'll reach for the one axe I keep strung with 11's.

[curtisstetka]

Use 11s. What are you?!?! A GIRL?????

[Folk_guy]

Thanks for the comments, I've played a lot of bluegrass style acoustic with the guitar strung with 13s to get the volume needed in an unmiked Bluegrass Jam or Folk song circle. So I know I'm way more heavy handed than I need to be when it comes to both fretting and picking. Even with my acoustics now since I've moved down a guage on those to 12s, and my newer acoustic, a Gibson WM-45 is a shorter scale and has lighter strings, I'm probably fretting too hard on that also. I may spend some more time trying to play in tune on the Tele with the 10s just to force myself to lighten up more, before I decide to make the change. One advantage with the Tele with 10s is that when I squeeze too hard it's really noticible from an intonation standpoint. That isn't the case with the acoustics. So I'll give it some more time, and if I can't get a noticable improvement I'll try 11s then.

[DurkisMcGummell]

Many many people use 11's on their Teles, I'm not one of them though. I think it really depends on how you want to use it.

[Tonefreak]

If 013's are good, then 015's should be fantastic!

[itbepopples]

couldnt u just keep using 13s and get different fretwire put on? i too have struggled with different gauges and i havent decided if im gunna stay as low as possible or as high in order to have no issues when switching to from electric to acoustic. i have an american strat that still has the store 9s on it and i have it tuned to Eb and theres just too much play so im most likely going to just strengthen up my hand and play 12s all around if i can.

[Folk_guy]

I must confess that my main reason for moving down to 12s from 13s on the Guild is that I was starting to get some joint pain in my fretting hand after playing it for a while. So there is a real need for me to lighten up my grip at least a little. Guess it's that old age creeping in, as well as years of playing piano, guitar, and working with my hands.

[Stan Martin]

Clarence White was a bluegrass guy and transistioning to 9's(heavy pick) was no problem. If you plan on playing his style 10's or greater will impede your multiple string bends. The heavier the string the less Tele cluck you're going to get. If you're fretting notes out of tune with 10's I would lighten up on the grip.

Jimi Hendrix used real light strings. Just use an amp with some muscle and avoid carpal tunnel syndrome. Pain in the wrist from bending heavy strings is not a sign of "girly man" syndrome, but a sign of nerve damage.

[Williams]

I guess I'm the minority here then, but I must use at least a .011 set or higher as I'll break anything lighter....

-Kevin

[photoweborama]

I think Fezz said he has 9's on his Tele's..
I developed a condition called "Trigger finger". Lots of pain. Interestingly I developed it when I was still playing 9's.

I play 10's now and it helps keep it loose. I don't want to get another shot if I can help it.. One of the most painful things I ever felt. My Gall bladder and shoulder operations hurt less.

[Folk_guy]

Well I have decided to stay with 10s since I am starting to get joint pain it's probably foolish of me to not try and lighten up on my grip. I may even go down in guage on some of my other guitars also.

Photoweborama, I'm starting to suspect that trigger finger is what I'm getting. It feels like pain in the joint of the finger closest to the palm, but I've been told that trigger finger is similar in symptoms to what I'm getting. What were the symptoms like for you?

[photoweborama]

Well last year when I was invited to tour the Mexico factory, it was pretty bad.
Lots of pain in the morning and I could not straighten out my left ring finger.

I had to use my right hand to straighten out my finger and it would just kill me for that first time in the am... After that, as long as I played chords and lead at least every three hours, it did not hurt as much.

Playing guitar actually made it get better, then I took the shot anyway that killed me taking the shot, but the trigger finger went away until this month.

I think I'll just play guitar instead of taking the shot, and I don't want the operation because they cut things and they just leave them that way...

[fezz parka]

I think Fezz said he has 9's on his Tele's...

9's for country stuff, 10's for the big note, 11's for "D" tuning. Tendonitis hurts. :ahem

[Tele Jr]

I use 9, 11, 13, 24, 32, 40, kind of the James Burton style set with a bit smaller G string.

I have found that with my style the thicker strings take away some of the expressiveness of my fingerpicking as well as with the double string bends. The tone with bigger strings is nice and fat, but the ability of the instrument to express small differences in picking articulations becomes more forgiving and normalized. As a horn man, the thinner strings makes it seem like I'm using a bigger mouthpiece.

Another issue is when comparing a guitar to a horn and string guages is the way you can use a 2 octave register range to do wider intervalic melodic things as well as play longer descending runs with a horn. With too heavy of bottom strings on a guitar the low string notes start to sound too different from the top strings, when you go down on a run it's like, note, note, note, then plunk, plunk, plunk when you get to the heavier strings and you lose your kind of continuity of timbre in your register range.