Weird Barre Chord Problem

spev11

So my weird barre chord problem is this, I can barre perfectly fine on my acoustic (Taylor Big Baby) F at 1st fret for example no problem, all strings ringing fine no dead strings. If i try the same on either of my electrics it all goes to hell ( Epi Les Paul Standard and a DIY tele from Gear4Music) mostly the B string falls under the joint of the barre finger.
    I've tried rolling my hand a little more to avoid the joint(painful), I've used a strap to lift the neck up to give my arm a more "regular" angle (I play sitting down mostly) which helps a little but not always. I'd call myself an average (at best-below parr is more like it) strummer but I've not had problems with Barres at all since getting the Taylor (i've not used an electric again until recently).
   I did wonder about fretboard radius etc but mostly i've read that flatter radius' are harder to barre and the taylor is much flatter that both electrics. I know technique plays a huge part in this but I am a little flummoxed by it all. Any advice greatly appreciated  (even if its just "get on with it and practice)
ta

viz

Probably due to a narrower neck. There’ll be a position where it works, just a question of finding it. 

greejn

Have you tried thumb over the neck version? Works better all the time.

spev11

Thumb over doesn't feel comfortable for me(and the tele is like a baseball bat), I'll  persevere until I find the best position, or fill my finger joint in with fiberglass

Roland

spev11 said:

... Any advice greatly appreciated  (even if its just "get on with it and practice)

I have the same problem, particularly with full barre chords. It’s the second joint which can bridge a string, generally the B. At first I tried placing my first finger a little further over the fret board when I’m playing at the bottom of the neck, so that the joint falls between B and G strings. It works, but isn’t particularly ergonomic. Over the years I’ve developed a slew of little ways of dealing with it, all of which have become unconsciously included in my playing: Finger placement, half barres, thumb over, shorter strap. The biggest steps are that nowadays I play towards the middle of the neck, and I rarely play all six strings at the same time, so that barre placement becomes less of an issue.

spev11

Cheers all, i'm toying with the idea of trying a guitar with taller frets to see if maybe that will help, my theory being that even if the string falls into the joint the fret height will be taller than the joint gap. Clutching at straws really but its nothing if not a good excuse to buy another guitar

Snags

My solution has always not to play full barre chords on the electric

Either that or thumb over with 1st finger for E and B, and thumb for low E, but you've already discounted that above.

On the rare occasions I need to do a full barre on the electric I think I tend to roll my index finger back a bit, but it's not as comfortable.

CarpeDiem

Without seeing pictures, it's difficult to be confident as to what will work for you over what has already been suggested. However, it may be worth trying; angling your finger slightly, different gauge strings, wider neck (eg Les Paul Traditional), or narrower neck (eg Musicman or Sterling).

spev11

im going to try a lighter gauge string (for a different reason) so will see how that goes, also the acoustic sits at a different angle because of  its shape and depth so i'll try and sit differently with the electric to see if thats a factor.
All good info though, cheers

sev112

On a F chord you should only need to be barring the top 2 strings (E and , and use the finger tip to play the 1st fret of the low E string.  (the A D and G strings are fretted by other fingers)
so don’t try and barre all 6 strings for F (at least) , and that might help you out

ICBM

Odd... I use full 6-strings barres a lot, and I've never noticed this as a problem once I learned to straighten my finger enough. I mostly have my thumb behind the neck for this, although it varies if I play other things.

I play sitting down a lot and I hold the guitar with the neck nearly horizontal, rather than tilted upwards classical-style - I don't know if that makes any difference. I also prefer narrow-necked guitars, in fact I find anything wider than about 43mm at the nut is too wide really.

spev11

solved it, its the crappy chair I sit in, the arms get in the way so I sit funny (sat on the sofa I don't have a problem other than not being able to see the PC and the notation/tab that i'm looking at),the acoustic doesn't have the problem cos I sits further away anyway (so the arms don't get in the way). Can't take the arms off either (the back of the chair falls off) so its either new chair or hacksaw time.
cheers all though, it gave me some options

pintspiller

I rarely play the full barre (generally just fifths all the way, LOL), but my thumb moves about a lot depending on the chord or position on the neck. I have some arthritis and some carpal tunnel issues but that's not why i play the way I do.