Guitar Fretboard Width & Fret Spacing.?

I see that you are also asking/commenting about action, as well as the original question. To me, tat leads to the conclusion that what you're asking about it is the total playability of the guitar. The thing is that there are a lot of things - big and small - that can determine how a guitar feels to play. So let is dissect it a bit further.

Neck profile, string spacing, fingerboard width, fingerboard radius, scale (fret distance) and all that stuff sure plays a role in the feel of a guitar. However, if a guitar, acoustic or electric, feels a bit hard to play, it is far more important to see how well that instrument is set up (adjusted).

Most guitars with steel strings (acoustic or electric) can be set up to to be played quite comfortably. The key is that a knowledgeable person have set them up with light strings and adjusted the neck relief and action accordingly. Any guitar with heavy strings and a poor set up can be really painfully to use - for beginners in particular.

This means that you should have your guitar checked by a competent guitar tech first and foremost if you feel that you are struggling to much with the instrument ... that and developing proper playing technique of course.

The other factors which may make a guitar easier to handle also matters. For instance, you will find that a larger body acoustic guitar, or certain electric body types are harder to get to terms with when it comes to playing comfort.

Same goes for neck width, scale length and fretboard radius. A classical (nylon string) guitar is really a handful for many beginners. This comes down to the increased neck scale (distance between frets), wide and flat fingerboard and high action (string height). Playing certain chords on such a guitar can make anyone give up on guitar.

So, to stick to your question about acoustic guitars: The ones that tend to be easiest to get to terms with, have a smaller body then the largest (Jumbo or Dreadnought sizes). If you get a smaller body steel string properly set up with light strings, you can have an acoustic guitar playing/feeling just as easy to play as an electric guitar.

And please, don't give up on guitar playing just yet - you will eventually find the perfect guitar for you. Keep searching and keep practicing :-)

Unless you have a very small child sized hand then no, one will not fit your hand better than another, and even then its questionable, its more of a matter of preference, Most common shapes are a D and C shaped be it shallow or standard, Fret board radius is just the curvature of its fret board and this is a moot point in my book, Fret spacing is just a matter of scale length, the longer the scale length the further apart the frets, generally on a standard steel string acoustic hover at around 25" Nut width meaning the width of the neck at the nut, the most common is 1 11/16" and 1 3/4" That's a difference of a 16th on an inch, and spacing at the bridge at around 2 1/8 and 2 1/4 about an 8th difference there, If that makes a big difference to you then your obviously OCD, or have developed a very strong preference, So now to get to the real meat and potatoes, Its the way the guitar plays that matters, if it's set up well and sounds good then the way the neck feels can be just a formality, Can I tell the difference all these things add up to? Yes, Do I care? No, As long as its set up well and sounds good then a guitar is a guitar, its neck profile means absolutely nothing to me and not what I base the reason I buy it on, In other words don't blame the neck blame the set up and or the person playing it,

Guitar Fretboard Width

OK...all good responses.

Even half or 3/4 guitars neck "width" is only about 1/8th less than a full size steel string acoustic, as the Anonymous guy said, classical guitars have a pretty significant difference. in width.

However, I have found that some acoustics "fit" my hand better and were for ME more comfortable to play, since I have smaller hands and play Fender Strats.

A true Ovation guitar always felt great for me, even when I was 12 yrs old. And the neck radius is just a bit more curvy than most acoustics, which for me made barre chords easier.

But you really can't KNOW until you go to a store and try out every guitar they have and hten narrow it down to what you'd like one day to have and what is the best for you that is in your price range at the time.

and you never want to rush the decision, like "I want a guitar today!" and settle...so some research and play them again a week later and see how you feel then.

Neck width doesn't vary by more than a fraction of an inch on steel-strings, but some people are very sensitive to minor variations. The neck *thickness* and contour can also vary and this can affect ease of playing.

Fret spacing is determined by scale length, which is 24.5 - 25.5" on full size steel string guitars. Scale length on children's guitars is shorter and frets are closer together. However, this is only needed for kids of about 9 and under.

Well, there are differences in nick width with all guitars. Very minimal. However, Classical acoustic guitars have considerably wider necks than regular acoustics. Fret spacing does not much differ - that would change the pitch.

There are various widths & thicknesses of neck.

Or, if you have small hands, look at a 3/4 or 1/2 size guitar.

(They are not literally "half size" etc. it's just a name).

Both acoustic and electric are available in smaller sizes. They are often sold as childrens guitars, but equally suited as portable practice instruments or just reduced size for convenience.

Examples:

Thin neck acoustic

http://www.gear4music.com/Guitar-and-Bass/Roundbac...

Smaller size ones

http://www.normans.co.uk/p-679-valencia-12-size-cl...

http://www.gear4music.com/Electric_Guitars/Kids_El...

No all are standard but some styles do have bigger fret boards