The "I have small hands" idea
Instruments- discuss specific features, luthiers, instrument problems & questions
Hey Lisa...out of curiosity I checked the measurement that you are talking about and mine is exactly the same as yours. I had to stretch my hand a bit to make it to 8 inches. I agree with the guys however, persistence does pay off. It took me almost a year to develop the muscle strength in my pinky to be able to use it successfully. During that year however, I had to find creative ways to "cheat". I would use the pinky as much as I could, but would have to finger some chords differently or use my ring finger. After several months of doing this I started to use my pinky without thinking about it. Gradually the length of "use" time became longer and longer. Now it is not a problem at all and all of my hard work has improved my playing skills. I have played dulcimers with a 23 to a 30 VSL. I find that a 27 VSL suits me pretty well. It is very important to find what works for YOU! If I might make one suggestion,....whatever VSL you decide on, you may want to stick to that length. I have been play the 27VSL for so long now, that my brain gets "confused" when I try to swap to another VSL. LOL. The most important thing is to find what works for you!
