Difficult

[MacAoidh]

Is it difficult to switch onto a tenor guitar from the mandolin?

[zoukboy]

If you put it in "Irish tuning" an octave below the mandolin it's not too difficult, although you might need to change some of your fingerings depending on the scale length of the tenor guitar. Using chromatic guitar fingering with the pinky on the 5th fret (rather than diatonic mandolin fingering with the ring finger on 5th fret and the pinky for 6th and 7th frets).

[Eddie Sheehy]

No, it's not difficult. But it it will require practice - ditto Tenor Banjo. The plus is the strings require less pressure to fret than a mandolin, the negative is the stretch...

[John Kelly]

What Eddie and Roger say above. Tune it in GDAE an octave below mandolin pitch and you will manage it, bearing in mind the extra scale length which might make you re-finger some tunes depending on your stretch and hand size.

[Dolamon]

One suggestion MacAoidh - The strings for a C strung instrument (CGda), are different from those for an instrument tuned GDae. And there is always the various scale lengths which may alter the choice of strings. As for the fingering, yes to all the above responses. But, you can do it, it just takes time and persistence to make it feel correct under the fingers. And then who knows, you may end up like quite a few of us who just moved over to the tenor world and while we still play mandolin or mandola ... these don't any longer feel right.

As for string choice for the particular scale length you're looking for, there are quite a few threads in this forum heading which will get you headed in the right direction.

[jfonner]

Here's a different take from a strummer (not a picker.)

I thought the move from tenor guitar (CGDA) to the shorter neck of the mandolin would be easy since I have small hands. I understand the transposing required since the chord structures are the same. However, I was used to strumming chords on my tenor at the top of the neck, often with 1 or 2 open strings. However Bluegrass mando done right means playing chords further down the neck with all the strings covered to get the "chop." With small hands and the additional pressure required, I really have trouble stretching to get all the strings on the mandolin.

Ukuleles are now my small instrument of choice but I'll circle back to the mandolin once I improve my picking techniques.

[Beanzy]

Another approach is to go for CGda tuning and begin by using loads of closed-chords thinking of the 7th fret as your nut.
You can even capo there at first until you get used to it, then shed the capo to gain the freedom further up. This lets you begin straight away with all your existing mandolin knowledge but gets you used to just a little bit of extra stretch, while keeping the sound up around where you're used to hearing your mandolin play. You then can begin to grow into the chords and melodies further down the fretboard as you get more familiar with the feel.

Personally I find the CGda tuning with the lighter strings is bright and sweet and gives a really lovely space to the sound of chords. I also find it manages to keep ringing out even when playing with six string guitars. The lower GDAE is lovely and warm sounding and still holds onto that great 5th tuning advantage in how chords turn out sounding like they've got space between the notes. They can seem to get a bit more lost in Gdae if there are more six strings playing. I find 6 string guitar chords can now sound too wooly and a bit packed out for my ear. Maybe playing TG has ruined my taste ? :grin:

[jfonner]

I absolutely agree with Eoin about the nice place TG's occupy between the guitars and mandolins. I've had many listeners comment on hearing me, the only TG in the jam, through a half-dozen flat picking Martin guitars and a few mandos.