How to Convert a Right-Handed Guitar to a Left-Handed Guitar

Would you like to convert a right-handed guitar to a left-handed guitar? This is an easy conversion to do, but you'll need to do more than just change the strings. While I believe that it's better to just buy a quality left-handed guitar, maybe you've found a right-handed guitar that you really like. Perhaps you're a lefty just dabbling in guitar playing and not yet ready to make an investment in a left-handed guitar. Most left-handed guitar and bass players are faced with this dilemma.
When I was learning to play, I didn't have a lot of money to invest in a high-quality guitar, so I went to the flea market and purchased the cheapest guitar I could find, a twenty-dollar acoustic. Even with its standard setup, the action was terrible because the neck was warped. The strings wouldn't stay in tune. In short, the guitar sounded like a dying animal. But I converted it to a right-handed guitar by flipping the strings. I didn't bother to change the nut or the bridge, and this was part of my problem.
Eventually I swallowed my pride and visited a music store. Their luthier looked at it and shook his head. He said it would cost a couple hundred dollars to make it sound really good, but for about forty he could make it serviceable. I went with the latter option. In addition to doing the work, he explained what needed to be done to convert a right-handed guitar to a left-handed guitar.
This works for acoustics, electrics, and electric basses. The materials required to convert a guitar are new strings, a tuner, and wood glue. You may also need a blank nut, a screw driver, sandpaper, and a truss rod adjuster. A string winder is a handy tool to have as well.
First you need to remove the old strings. Once the strings are off, remove the nut (the little thing at the top of the neck). You may need to pry this out with a flat screwdriver. Once it's out, scrape out the crusty glue with a screwdriver or some sandpaper. Add a little bit of fresh glue to the nut and replace it with its direction reversed. The nut has a groove sized for each string, and if you don't change it around, there will be play in the little strings and the big strings won't seat properly.
If something happens in this step, for example the nut breaks or the angle causes the strings to sit too low to the fret board, you'll need to file your own nut. You can have a guitar shop do this, or you can purchase a file and do it yourself. Plenty of video tutorials are available.
For electric guitars, you might want to reverse the directions of the pickups. To do this, usually you just need to unscrew the pick guard or pickup frames. Be careful not to lose the springs that allow for height adjustment. Once your glue dries, go ahead and install your new strings. To keep your nut from flying away, don't tighten the strings to full tension until all six strings are on. Use your tuner to get close to the correct pitch. Stretch your strings a bit as you tighten them up.
After they're installed, play for a while and give them time to go to their length. Once this happens, it's time to set your intonation. Maybe you'll be lucky and you won't have to set it. To check intonation, you compare the pitch at the twelfth fret (octave) with the pitch of an open string. They should be the same.
On acoustic guitars, you may need to alter the bridge to ensure correct intonation. Sometimes this is just a matter of getting a blank and filing it down. If you are converting an expensive guitar (not recommended), take it to a luthier and let them do it.
For electric guitars and basses, this process is much easier. The string saddles are usually adjustable with a Phillips screwdriver. All you need to do is adjust them until the pitches of the twelfth fret and open string match. Always use a tuner for this process, and don't forget to re-check the open-string tuning every time you make an adjustment to the string saddle.
That covers about everything you need to know about converting a righty guitar to a left-handed guitar. For more information about left-handed guitars, check out the resource box below


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Four Options To Consider For Learning The Guitar

By: Art Gib

Everyone has a different learning style. Learning an instrument comes easier to some than to others. Some people are able to learn from example while others need to be more hands on. Luckily, there is more than one way to master this stringed instrument. In fact, there are four ways that can be utilized to learn the guitar. This is incredibly helpful information to have considering the fact that everyone learns differently. With one of these four options, everyone should find a suitable way for them to learn to play this instrument.

Of course, the first option is still the most common that is chosen. This is to opt for traditional lessons that involve an instructor. This is indeed a popular choice for good reason. Instructors have a way of explaining things that can be tailored specifically to your learning curve. Being able to ask questions to someone who can show you the answers is indeed a great help. While traditional lessons with instructors can be a great avenue to take, it is not the best choice for everyone.

Some tend to learn better on paper. Having instructional books can help novices to take in the information at their own pace. The same is true for instructional videos. Being able to pause, and rewind the information to hear it as many times as is needed is indeed a helpful tool. While some people are too shy to ask their instructors to repeat things, those who need to hear information a few times before it saturates will do well with the method of learning from instructional books and videos.

An option similar to instructional books and videos is turning to the internet for help. The World Wide Web has a plethora of videos and instructional writings that can be had for free. There are many forums out there as well that bring like-minded people together who can share their problems and solutions together. Indeed, the internet is undoubtedly a great resource and yet another tool that can be used to help learn the guitar.

The last way to learn the guitar is probably the least common, mostly because it requires skill that many do not have. Some skilled musicians have been able to teach themselves instruments simply by learning by ear. This means hearing something and being able to follow it. These types of musicians are incredibly musically talented and rarely learn to read sheet music. There are several choices out there for those who wish to learn the guitar. Regardless of your learning style, there should be at least one that is right for you.


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