dont ask me how, but today i have wondering if it is possible to hold guitar with right hand and play with left hand (so vice versa than "normally")...i cant imagine how it even should be possible or how it is look like...so dont you know any metal guitarists playing this way? or do every musicians play with right hand?

I'm a lefty guitarist (and bassist), and I've been playing for roughly 5 years. However, I am naturally right-handed. I know it's confusing, but I feel comfortable playing the guitar like that.

Unfortunately, not many stores carry a decent amount of left-handed guitars, let alone left-handed bass guitars, so more often then not I'm left with a very small selection when it comes to buying a guitar.

Jimi Hendrix, I have no time now to think all but only what I can think in firts moment but alsoI know there are a lot of but Joe Perry sad he write whit left hand but he pl;ayw hit right hand

i don't know any known musicians that are left handed, but i do have a 'lefty' friend that plays guitar. he played flamenco music and it looked funny 'cause everything was like the other way round. but like TombstoneHighway said, the fact that not many stores have these guitars for leftys just shows that it's not really that common

I am left handed and left oriented in general, but hold the guitar like a normal right handed... just because I thought it would be wiser for me to learn as a right handed, thus giving me more choise of guitars in the future.

Dan Swanö, Kelly Schaefer and Rand Burkey (Atheist) are left handed guitarists that I respect a lot. Swano and Burkey actually use right handed guitars upside down.. which means they have the lowest string on the bottom and the highest one on top.. that's freaking confusing ....

Written by Guest on 19.03.2008 at 01:01

I'm a lefty guitarist (and bassist), and I've been playing for roughly 5 years. However, I am naturally right-handed. I know it's confusing, but I feel comfortable playing the guitar like that.

Unfortunately, not many stores carry a decent amount of left-handed guitars, let alone left-handed bass guitars, so more often then not I'm left with a very small selection when it comes to buying a guitar.

My friend is also naturally right handed, but for some reason began playing guitar left-handed and has ever since.

And yes there are not that many stores that carry left handed guitars, but on the bright side my friend is becoming a Luthier myself included. So there will be at least one store with several left-handed guitars for those leftie players out there .

Written by Ellrohir on 19.03.2008 at 00:22

dont ask me how, but today i have wondering if it is possible to hold guitar with right hand and play with left hand (so vice versa than "normally")...i cant imagine how it even should be possible or how it is look like...so dont you know any metal guitarists playing this way? or do every musicians play with right hand?

Oh yes its definitly possible. My friend plays guitar is left handed, its really hard though too lol.

Written by Ellrohir on 19.03.2008 at 00:22

dont ask me how, but today i have wondering if it is possible to hold guitar with right hand and play with left hand (so vice versa than "normally")...i cant imagine how it even should be possible or how it is look like...so dont you know any metal guitarists playing this way? or do every musicians play with right hand?

Well, if you know Jimi Hendrix, then you know its damn possible
Well, only thing you have to do, is to put the strings in inverse order, so when you take the guitar with the opposite hand, it wont be all upside down.
But nowadays, there are guitars for lefties, where not just strings are inverse, but generaly the shape of the guitar, so its more comfortable for left handed people to play it.

Written by Stalker on 01.04.2008 at 21:31

Written by Ellrohir on 19.03.2008 at 00:22

dont ask me how, but today i have wondering if it is possible to hold guitar with right hand and play with left hand (so vice versa than "normally")...i cant imagine how it even should be possible or how it is look like...so dont you know any metal guitarists playing this way? or do every musicians play with right hand?

Well, if you know Jimi Hendrix, then you know its damn possible
Well, only thing you have to do, is to put the strings in inverse order, so when you take the guitar with the opposite hand, it wont be all upside down.
But nowadays, there are guitars for lefties, where not just strings are inverse, but generaly the shape of the guitar, so its more comfortable for left handed people to play it.

why do it in such a difficult way. Just get yourself a guitar for left-handed people

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 01.04.2008 at 23:20

why do it in such a difficult way. Just get yourself a guitar for left-handed people

Well, for instance, back in Jimi's time there was no "guitars for leftahnded people" and even now classical guitars are same (because they are symetrical shape, unlike most electric guitars) so, only thing you can, and have to do, is change the strings to e EBGDAE instead of EADGBE. Dig it? Thats not much of a bothering, you can change strings in like, 20 minutes.

Written by Stalker on 01.04.2008 at 23:54

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 01.04.2008 at 23:20

Written by Stalker on 01.04.2008 at 21:31

Written by Ellrohir on 19.03.2008 at 00:22

dont ask me how, but today i have wondering if it is possible to hold guitar with right hand and play with left hand (so vice versa than "normally")...i cant imagine how it even should be possible or how it is look like...so dont you know any metal guitarists playing this way? or do every musicians play with right hand?

Well, if you know Jimi Hendrix, then you know its damn possible
Well, only thing you have to do, is to put the strings in inverse order, so when you take the guitar with the opposite hand, it wont be all upside down.
But nowadays, there are guitars for lefties, where not just strings are inverse, but generaly the shape of the guitar, so its more comfortable for left handed people to play it.

why do it in such a difficult way. Just get yourself a guitar for left-handed people

Well, for instance, back in Jimi's time there was no "guitars for leftahnded people" and even now classical guitars are same (because they are symetrical shape, unlike most electric guitars) so, only thing you can, and have to do, is change the strings to e EBGDAE instead of EADGBE. Dig it? Thats not much of a bothering, you can change strings in like, 20 minutes.

there actually are classical guitars around nowadays for left-handed people because not all classical guitars are symetrical. You are right about Hendrix' days but for electric guitars nowadays it is easier to buy a left-handed opne because of the knobs, tremelo etc. on the body.

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 02.04.2008 at 00:01


there actually are classical guitars around nowadays for left-handed people because not all classical guitars are symetrical. You are right about Hendrix' days but for electric guitars nowadays it is easier to buy a left-handed opne because of the knobs, tremelo etc. on the body.

Well, I doubt its EASIER (money, harder to find) but it surely is more practical... Hm... Not sure about classical guitars, you sure you didint mean accoustic guitar?? Cause thats not the same. I doubt I have seen non symetrical classical guitar.

Written by Stalker on 02.04.2008 at 00:05

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 02.04.2008 at 00:01


there actually are classical guitars around nowadays for left-handed people because not all classical guitars are symetrical. You are right about Hendrix' days but for electric guitars nowadays it is easier to buy a left-handed opne because of the knobs, tremelo etc. on the body.

Well, I doubt its EASIER (money, harder to find) but it surely is more practical... Hm... Not sure about classical guitars, you sure you didint mean accoustic guitar?? Cause thats not the same. I doubt I have seen non symetrical classical guitar.

SOrry, I meant accoustic guitars yes, not sure about classical. What I meant by "easier" was "more practical" not so much hassle. plus it would be more natural to the guitar player.

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 02.04.2008 at 00:10

Written by Stalker on 02.04.2008 at 00:05

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 02.04.2008 at 00:01


there actually are classical guitars around nowadays for left-handed people because not all classical guitars are symetrical. You are right about Hendrix' days but for electric guitars nowadays it is easier to buy a left-handed opne because of the knobs, tremelo etc. on the body.

Well, I doubt its EASIER (money, harder to find) but it surely is more practical... Hm... Not sure about classical guitars, you sure you didint mean accoustic guitar?? Cause thats not the same. I doubt I have seen non symetrical classical guitar.

SOrry, I meant accoustic guitars yes, not sure about classical. What I meant by "easier" was "more practical" not so much hassle. plus it would be more natural to the guitar player.

Yes, thats right. Definitely more practical and more comfortable. And yes, you are right about acoustic guitars, but classical are traditionaly the same.

Written by Stalker on 02.04.2008 at 00:13

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 02.04.2008 at 00:10

Written by Stalker on 02.04.2008 at 00:05

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 02.04.2008 at 00:01


there actually are classical guitars around nowadays for left-handed people because not all classical guitars are symetrical. You are right about Hendrix' days but for electric guitars nowadays it is easier to buy a left-handed one because of the knobs, tremelo etc. on the body.

Well, I doubt its EASIER (money, harder to find) but it surely is more practical... Hm... Not sure about classical guitars, you sure you didint mean accoustic guitar?? Cause thats not the same. I doubt I have seen non symetrical classical guitar.

SOrry, I meant accoustic guitars yes, not sure about classical. What I meant by "easier" was "more practical" not so much hassle. plus it would be more natural to the guitar player.

Yes, thats right. Definitely more practical and more comfortable. And yes, you are right about acoustic guitars, but classical are traditionaly the same.

Let me clear a few things up for you, since neither of you obviously play guitar [sorry for the cheekiness Marcel, but I can't take this any longer ]:

Jimi Hendrix could actually have switched by the time he was really famous. By mid-twenties he could have played a left-handed - problem was he had learnt the way he had learnt. He had played that way for over a decade, and was not about to change even though they were starting to get introduced and were finally becoming easily available [not as much for usual people rocking up to their local guitar shop, but for someone who knows where to go and has the cash to pay for it]. Besides, consider the fact that he probably cultivated a lot of his unique tremolo and strumming combinations born directly from the strange positioning of the knobs and tremolo.

On acoustic not classical they found that stringing upside down still didn't work for some reason - even if the body was symmetrical.
One simple reason - the bridge! That white strip you see bridging the strings before they lead into the pegs isn't at an angle just for show, you know! It was important for managing the obvious tautness and thickness difference in the strings as well as the material difference - one half nickel wound, one half steel.
The answer? After manufacturing left-only acoustic guitars [which they still do] for some time, some guitar enthusiast figured out that if he could design an easily detachable and reversable bridge strip, he could sell acoustic guitars for both right and left-handed.
They are not as well known, and are considered a little gimmicky - how many guitarist do you know that actually need both those options? or want them? There is however no denying the innovation and practical nature of it. And that, gentleman, is the key difference in acoustic left-handed guitars - not the body, the bridge.
Now it is possible for a left-handed player to buy just the bridge, in a little off-the-rack bag and attach it to a normal right-handed acoustic as long as he detaches the original carefully, or gets the shop guy to do it for him.

thanks for clearing it all up. And I agree with you that Hendrix probably got a bit of his uniqueness from playing left-handed on a right-handed guitar.

Written by Nox Lux on 02.04.2008 at 02:13

Written by Stalker on 02.04.2008 at 00:13

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 02.04.2008 at 00:10

Written by Stalker on 02.04.2008 at 00:05

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 02.04.2008 at 00:01


there actually are classical guitars around nowadays for left-handed people because not all classical guitars are symetrical. You are right about Hendrix' days but for electric guitars nowadays it is easier to buy a left-handed one because of the knobs, tremelo etc. on the body.

Well, I doubt its EASIER (money, harder to find) but it surely is more practical... Hm... Not sure about classical guitars, you sure you didint mean accoustic guitar?? Cause thats not the same. I doubt I have seen non symetrical classical guitar.

SOrry, I meant accoustic guitars yes, not sure about classical. What I meant by "easier" was "more practical" not so much hassle. plus it would be more natural to the guitar player.

Yes, thats right. Definitely more practical and more comfortable. And yes, you are right about acoustic guitars, but classical are traditionaly the same.

Let me clear a few things up for you, since neither of you obviously play guitar [sorry for the cheekiness Marcel, but I can't take this any longer ]:

Jimi Hendrix could actually have switched by the time he was really famous. By mid-twenties he could have played a left-handed - problem was he had learnt the way he had learnt. He had played that way for over a decade, and was not about to change even though they were starting to get introduced and were finally becoming easily available [not as much for usual people rocking up to their local guitar shop, but for someone who knows where to go and has the cash to pay for it]. Besides, consider the fact that he probably cultivated a lot of his unique tremolo and strumming combinations born directly from the strange positioning of the knobs and tremolo.

On acoustic not classical they found that stringing upside down still didn't work for some reason - even if the body was symmetrical.
One simple reason - the bridge! That white strip you see bridging the strings before they lead into the pegs isn't at an angle just for show, you know! It was important for managing the obvious tautness and thickness difference in the strings as well as the material difference - one half nickel wound, one half steel.
The answer? After manufacturing left-only acoustic guitars [which they still do] for some time, some guitar enthusiast figured out that if he could design an easily detachable and reversable bridge strip, he could sell acoustic guitars for both right and left-handed.
They are not as well known, and are considered a little gimmicky - how many guitarist do you know that actually need both those options? or want them? There is however no denying the innovation and practical nature of it. And that, gentleman, is the key difference in acoustic left-handed guitars - not the body, the bridge.
Now it is possible for a left-handed player to buy just the bridge, in a little off-the-rack bag and attach it to a normal right-handed acoustic as long as he detaches the original carefully, or gets the shop guy to do it for him.

Ummm.. I do play guitar
Did they make Strats for lefties in 60'es? I really dont know, but I doubt.
Yes, I am aware of the bridge thing, well, that falls into cathegory of non-symetric body, too, IMO, bridge is also part of guitar.

Yeah but the point is you weren't mentioning that, were you. So I was just adding something to clear up what you were talking about. Something that you weren't going to add. I struggle to see the problem here. And what do you mean category? there's no category in this discussion - you can't say that non-symmetry is a sub-genre of how to discuss left-handed guitarisms.
And I wasn't talking about only strats. That's why I didn't say it was or was not available only on strats.
The threads about "left-handed guitarists." Not just "Jimi and strats."
I also clearly stated that the stringing and the problem on a left-handed acoustic has nothing to do with the body. I clearly stated that it could be a right-handed or a left-handed, you can whack that bridge on and go to town. It could be in the shape of my cock for all they care, although that might prove somewhat uncomfortable to play - physically and emotionally.

Anyway, no worries. We both know what we're talking about

Written by Nox Lux on 02.04.2008 at 13:07

Yeah but the point is you weren't mentioning that, were you. So I was just adding something to clear up what you were talking about. Something that you weren't going to add. I struggle to see the problem here. And what do you mean category? there's no category in this discussion - you can't say that non-symmetry is a sub-genre of how to discuss left-handed guitarisms.
And I wasn't talking about only strats. That's why I didn't say it was or was not available only on strats.
The threads about "left-handed guitarists." Not just "Jimi and strats."
I also clearly stated that the stringing and the problem on a left-handed acoustic has nothing to do with the body. I clearly stated that it could be a right-handed or a left-handed, you can whack that bridge on and go to town. It could be in the shape of my cock for all they care, although that might prove somewhat uncomfortable to play - physically and emotionally.

Anyway, no worries. We both know what we're talking about

Well, of course, everything you said is right, I wasnt questioning that. Well, wha I wanted to say about Jimi, is that as we know he played Strats in 99% cases, and I think he couldnt find liftie one back then.
Also with cathegory (yeah, maybe not right word, sorry ) i meant, that, when I said "symetrical" i was talking about whole guitar, not just the body, but all parts (inside, outside)
But ok, i think we cleared it now

Sure they made guitars for left handed people back then. Tony Iommi played on one, if I'm not mistaken.

Written by Smurfophagist on 19.04.2008 at 17:03

Sure they made guitars for left handed people back then. Tony Iommi played on one, if I'm not mistaken.

You are not mistaken. I saw Iommi play last year with Heaven And Hell. He plays left handed.

Here's a recent pic of him doing just that on Siegler's Sabbath website, but I didn't take it.

http://www.black-sabbath.com/gallery_2/v/concertpics/2007tour/050207/iommi.jpg.html?g2_imageViewsIndex=3

This seems like the right thread to revive for my question.

When I started playing guitar I learned to play left handed, because that made sense. But shortly after I started wanted to play right handed just because I couldn't play any guitar I found lying around, I could only play my left strung one. So I've been playing guitar right handed for many years now, but my picking hand just can't quite get up to the speeds and precision that I want to achieve. No matter how much I practice, it always feels a bit clumsier than it ought to. I guess I'm just asking: does it really make that big of a difference, playing left or right handed? Should I switch back and see if I have more potential with the left hand, or am I just a bit of a clumsy guitar player?

Any good advise?

I think the problem is there arent many people who have personal experience with playing guitar "both sides"

Yeah, it seems to be that way. Of the few examples I've been able to find online some people had a big positive change in their picking when they switched to left handed right away. Now my only problem is deciding to reconfigure my electric to be all upside down (UGH), or to...I don't know. Buy a new one? That's whats even more tragic, the severely limited options of left-handed guitars. Decisions decisions...

I'm left handed but I learned to play guitar right handed.

I have just started playing. after starting chording I realized that an old left elbow injury is likly going to prevent me from chording.

I am thinking of purchasing a left hand guitar, even though I am right handed.

As I am not too far into the lessons I thinking this is the time to play left handed. The option would be to stop, or have surgery on my elbow.

There are quite a few people who play left handed. I have played in bands with guys that do. Some have actual left handed guitars while others modify a right handed guitar to play it lefty. Its getting easier today to get left handed guitars but some colors and options are still not available as lefty. so it depends on what you will settle for sometimes. Lots of famous left handed guitar players that are household names too. https://killerrig.com/left-handed-guitar-playing/

It is possible with practice