First let me say Im a left handed newbie. I purchased a Les Paul style guitar which to my untrained ears sounds great , looks even better and was a great price.( see my NGD)- I am really pleased with it but its so heavy that I can only play for an hour or so before shoulder aches. I live out in the sticks and have no shop anywhere near me so I bought online. I am thinking of buying something lighter but for years ive been ogling / hankering after LPs (sounds daft I know). Is there such a thing as a lightweight or is it intrinsic in their design? Any tips gratefully received. If not ill just persevere with the one i`ve got . Thanks
Most electric guitars will have some weight to them due to the way they’re made… (mostly) solid bodies, metal parts, etc. But they’re not all equal, there are certainly some which are lighter than others.
With that said, I’m of the opinion that you should maybe persevere with the Les Paul. Your shoulder starts aching because it’s getting a workout. What’s the best way to gradually reduce and eventually stop the aching? To make the workout easier and stay weak, or to keep going and strengthen the muscles, so that they can do the work without getting tired as easily? It’s of course the latter.
Also, are you always playing standing up? If so perhaps buy a stool or chair and sit down to play when the ache begins. That way you increase your playing time while still working on shoulder strength.
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Fellow les paul lover here. There are les pauls with chambered bodies that are lighter than more traditional les pauls. My Gibson Les Paul Tribute for example has it. They’re still heavier than Stratocasters though. I’m with Ross that maybe try persevere and see if you could get used to it.
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My advice would be to play the one you have, the one you already love, and alleviate your problem in a simple way.
Buy and wear a wide suede or padded strap or a wide strap with an elasticated property to it. Wear the strap so it is taut and holds the guitar, not loose and floppy.
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Thanks guys–will perservere–A strap is cheaper than a new guitar 
I`ll wait a while for the goldtop 
I’ve gone to this strap. My guitar isn’t as heavy as a Les Paul, but it’s noticeably more comfortable than what I had before. It’s wider, padded, and a little stretchy. The built-in locks was a nice feature too.
Have you weighed it? Some electric guitars are really heavy.
Hello fellow lefty!
Sounds like you are an LP lover so my first idea was a bood, wide, maybe padded strap (as mentioned before)
Also, check your posture
(feet slightly apart, don’t slouch with an arced back etc. being bent over the guitar to watch the fret can mess up your posture.)
Try mixing standing up and sitting down for a while first; gently train the standing up
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Matt Heafy of Trivium has a signature strap built to remedy this. It basically has an extra strap as a support to spread the load in a more efficient way.
It’s expensive and I honestly feel it looks a bit weird, but I’ve heared that it’s really good at making heavy guitars feel more comfortabel.
You can find it on the link below:
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Since you like your LP, a good strap is the best option as suggested above.
I prefer lightweight guitars because of my bad back. So in my case a strap doesn’t help, the guitar has to be light. If you ever decide to buy a new guitar besides an LP style you can:
- Check the PRS SE range. Their body is quite slim so in general they should be around 3.5kg.
- Ibanez RG style guitars. As far as I know the cheap GIO series has a body made of Poplar which is lightweight. I have the GRG131DX and weighs 2.8kg.
- Look for a semi/full hollow body guitar. Ibanez makes a few models as does PRS. Also a lot of other brands make them.
Unfortunately you may be limited in options with left handed guitars. Although I’m left handed (probably ambidextrous is more appropriate in my case) I play right handed so never had the need to look for available options.
Note that due to wood density variation guitars of the same model can vary in weight. Unfortunately individual guitar weight is usually not provided in websites. But check Peach guitars in the UK and Sweetwater in the US, they provide the individual weight for a lot of their guitars.
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All duly noted—-on reflection I think i will keep current guitar until I know more and use a decent strap. Also as a beginner I am definitely peering at my frets all the time which isn`t helping.
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Seems to be around 8.5 -9lbs when I jump on the bathroom scales
That’s way on the lighter end for a Les Paul. Around the same as my Tele. My Squier Strat is from a lighter wood and around 3.5kg (7.5lb), which is really quite light for an electric.
I’d definitely say persevere, and look at those strap tips others gave you - a nice wide strap will help.
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I might have weighed it slightly wrong —bit tricky on my rubbish bathroom scales. Hey ho
Hi Kostas,
I have and know much very much lighter alternatives from the same brands,…and there are a number of sellers where you can view the weight per guitar,…so if you ever need to lighter I can look up some tips,…
Greetings,Rogier
Thanks Roger, I’ll keep your offer in mind. At the moment I am managing my GAS. Haven’t bought a guitar for 71 days and counting! 