medium gauge La Bella Tape Strings

**Jabberwocky** · 03-23-2016, 02:15 PM

**Greentone** · 03-23-2016, 02:26 PM

Jabs,

Were those the Galli or the LaBella that gave you that problem with unwinding? I didn't experience that problem with the LaBella. However, I saw that the 6th string was going to be too fat if I cut it, so I wrapped the string from the very end, with lots of wraps. It worked, but ordinarily I would use about three inches less of string at the tuner end.

Sorry that your string broke. Woof!

**Jabberwocky** · 03-23-2016, 02:33 PM

Those were Gallis. And that bloke isn't I!!!

**Greentone** · 03-23-2016, 02:49 PM

Sorry, Jabberwocky. When I saw the name of the fellow in the clip, I figured it wasn't you, but I had already hit "post."

I don't think the LaBella and Galli strings are wound the same way. You can definitely cut the LB strings without the winding coming undone.

**m_d** · 03-23-2016, 03:13 PM

**Greentone** · 03-23-2016, 03:37 PM

Yep. JP's Moll gets the sound of an archtop strung with LaBella tapewounds. That's more or less what my PE-185 sounds like with those strings. As JazzyJim said above, you get a very specific sound from these strings. I think they sound quite good. Since I first heard JP using them several years back, I wanted to give them a try. Glad that I did.

If you want to know what the LaBellas will sound like on your guitar, the clip above is VERY representative.

**Greentone** · 03-23-2016, 03:40 PM

Here is the same set of strings with JP playing electrically, laminated body, humbucker.

**Nate Miller** · 03-31-2016, 01:51 PM

I have a question about these LaBella tape wound strings. I was going to try a set, but on their website, they say that these strings aren't to be used with guitars with scales of 24.75 or 25.5

lucky me, my Gibson ES-175 has a scale length of 24.75

will a set of these LaBella tapes be usable on my 175? or are they saying that the strings aren't long enough to go on guitars with that scale length?

or is it that they are not meant for solid body guitars?

basically, am I cool to order a set for my 175, or are they not going to fit?

**Greentone** · 03-31-2016, 01:58 PM

I have my tapes on a 25.5" scale guitar. They work just great. I doubt seriously that LaBella would make strings that cannot be used on the two most widely produced scale lengths for all guitars. Come on.

**MaxTwang** · 03-31-2016, 02:03 PM

From La Bella's site:

These professional Jazz Guitar Strings are made to fit archtops and hollow-body guitars, therefore are NOT suitable for standard solid body guitars with 25.5” or 24.75” scale like a Stratocaster or Les Paul model.

**Nate Miller** · 03-31-2016, 02:10 PM

Originally Posted by Greentone

I have my tapes on a 25.5" scale guitar. They work just great. I doubt seriously that LaBella would make strings that cannot be used on the two most widely produced scale lengths for all guitars. Come on.

hey, thanks buddy!

yea, I was really thrown by that on their website. Its right there on the page where you order the damn things, too.

the reason I wanted to check is that I know LaBella makes strings for all sorts of crazy fretted string instruments, so yea, if anybody would make a set of strings that are made for only a small niche of the guitar playing world, its LaBella

but thanks again for letting me know they work on regular guitars

**Nate Miller** · 03-31-2016, 02:15 PM

Originally Posted by MaxTwang

From La Bella's site:

These professional Jazz Guitar Strings are made to fit archtops and hollow-body guitars, therefore are NOT suitable for standard solid body guitars with 25.5” or 24.75” scale like a Stratocaster or Les Paul model.

see THIS is what scared me off...the "NOT suitable for standard guitars" bit

I guess the key is the phrase "solid body"?

I do play a number of whack folk instruments and I have bought strings that weren't long enough before, so I really want to check this out with people who have actually used these strings on something like a 175

That's why I was glad to hear from Greentone

I think I'm going to order a set and give them a try

**mr. beaumont** · 03-31-2016, 02:38 PM

Now I'm interested as to why they would not be suitable?

They'd probably sound bunk on a flattop, though, I'd imagine.

**BigDaddyLoveHandles** · 03-31-2016, 02:50 PM

There's the silk on the ball end. It works with a trapeze bridge but might get in the way on, say, a hardtail Strat. You could always strip it off, it doen't really do anything, eh?

**JazzyJim** · 03-31-2016, 02:54 PM

I think the E and A are probably too thick to fit through the bridge of a Strat or Tele. Maybe they don't fit through Gibson stoptails, either? I don't think the acute break angle behind the saddles would do the tape wrapping any favours. You could probably use them on something with a shallow break angle, like a Jazzmaster, although I can say with 100% certainty, the low E will not go into the top retaining hole on the "vintage style" Fender tuning posts, even if they do fit through the bridge and the tuning post itself.

**JazzyJim** · 03-31-2016, 02:56 PM

Originally Posted by BigDaddyLoveHandles

There's the silk on the ball end. It works with a trapeze bridge but might get in the way on, say, a hardtail Strat. You could always strip it off, it doen't really do anything, eh?

The silk prevents stress on the wrapping. Regular flats have them to stop the wrapper getting dented or pierced. The LaBella tapes will "unwind" if the nylon is pierced/broken.

My terminology is not correct but I'm sure you know what I mean!

**Groyniad** · 03-31-2016, 07:38 PM

ten minutes trying to find them on the internet has turned up nothing for me. i keep finding strings for bass guitar and nothing for guitar guitar.

where do i get them?

thanks

**Greentone** · 03-31-2016, 07:55 PM

You can find them at JustStrings.com which is where I usually buy strings. I got so flummoxed by the not for 24.75 and 25.5 inch scales that I ignored the solid-body part of the blurb. I can see why LaBella has that posted.

I doubt seriously if I could thread these strings through the inertia block on my Stratocaster--the wound bass strings are just too thick. LaBella probably doesn't want people trying to return sets of opened, cut strings, hence the warning.

They work just fine on archtops, let me tell you.

Say, does anyone else wish that every tuning key maker used the slotted shaft system that Kluson came out with on the old Fender guitars (and that Gotoh faithfully copies today)? That system would accept even the fattest wound string. Heck, Dick Dale used to use .16-.60 gauge strings on his Stratocaster.

**Slide** · 03-31-2016, 09:35 PM

Originally Posted by MaxTwang

From La Bella's site:

These professional Jazz Guitar Strings are made to fit archtops and hollow-body guitars, therefore are NOT suitable for standard solid body guitars with 25.5” or 24.75” scale like a Stratocaster or Les Paul model.

I believe a read somewhere that Bucky's Benedettos have a 25" scale and John Pizzarelli's Molls are 25.5" They both use tape wound strings. I don't understand the warning about the scale length. Obviously they work on John's 25.5" inch guitars. Depending on the placement of the tuners and tailpiece a 24.75" might need a longer string than some 25" guitars.

**JazzyJim** · 04-01-2016, 01:47 AM

Originally Posted by Groyniad

ten minutes trying to find them on the internet has turned up nothing for me. i keep finding strings for bass guitar and nothing for guitar guitar.

where do i get them?

thanks

I see you're in the UK - they are rather difficult to find here! I have a spare set I don't need, if you message me your address I'll send them to you, free of charge mate.

**MaxTwang** · 04-01-2016, 02:01 AM

I think the issue with solid body guitars is that the strings are too long (not too short). The silk may be a problem for guitars without a trapeze tailpiece or you might need to cut the string short of the silk. I recently put La Bella flats on a solid body 25" scale and had to cut before the silk as the strings were too long with the silk and There would have been overlaps around the tuner posts. I suspect there is the possibility the flat or nylon wrap may unravel without the silk. IIRC the strings also tapered thinner under the silk which might be more tuner friendly on an archtop.

The La Bella flats are super smooth and feel much nicer than Chromes. I would like to try the tapes on an archtop.