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Guitar chord forum - chordie → Electric → Strings nylon vs steel
I am a beginner with an electric guitar. I have been playing several months and my finger tips apear well colloused. However after playing awhile they become quite sore. I was wondering if nylon strings are an option as - presently use steel. What are the pros and cons of each? Thanks in advance.
Hi doral and welcome to Chordie nylon strings are used on acoustic guitars steel on electric the pickups on an electric are designed for steel strings there are some electric acoustics but putting nylon strings on a electric would affect the sustain and volume you might try useing a lighter gauge set of strings and its normal with a lot of practice for your fingers to hurt but with time that will go away but I would try a lighter set and see if that helps first before putting nylon on your electric 
Duh... That makes sense, thanks for the info!
Hi Doral, and Welcome to Chordie!
Electric/Acoustic, or just Electric? If you have an A/E, you might be able to get away with changing over IF the pickup is piezoelectric. But if your guitar is Electric and fitted with any kind of magnetic pickups, you are stuck with steel... and steel especially for electric guitars, as other alloys may not be detected by the pickups.
As another option, you might want to have the action checked on your guitar, as electrics usually require much less pressure to properly fret than acoustics.... unless the action is too high. Another option is switching to a lighter gauge string which needs less tension to bring up to pitch. You might also be pressing too hard. I know that sounds strange, but really you only have to apply as much pressure as is needed to get the string onto the crown of the fret wire, not clear through the neck.
One thing to note here is that nylon strings are much larger in diameter than the equivalent steel and if you are digging the steels into yourself, the nylons would surely be worse. Like the difference between a grain of sand in your shoe and a rock.
There is an easy way to check your action: Capo the first fret and check clearance at the third. Then capo the 6 fret and check the 12.... a business card is about .024" thick and should slide between the strings and fret wires without too much effort. Actual clearance is usually considered good at .021" at both locations, but anything over .013 without buzzing is acceptable. Over .024 should be adjusted by a competent technician.
There may be others with thoughts on this as opinions vary, but hopefully you will find value in all of them.
Visit often, keep playing and don't be shy we're all in this together.
Take Care;
Doug
Guitar chord forum - chordie → Electric → Strings nylon vs steel
