Originally Posted by: ddiddler

Conveniently found Christopher Siegal tutorial on the CAGED system so was trying the chords using fingers 2,3 and 4 .

Now then.

I can usually make the barre across the frets and I find I can make the chords with the alternate fingers but there is no way I can make both together in any of the CAGED shapes

Just not enough stretch in my hand and fingers. Take it it will only get better

It's important to keep in mind that the CAGED shapes are fundamentally about fretboard visualizing & seeing possible patterns. As I mention in the tutorial several times, it's not necessary to play each & every shape all over the fretboard. Some of them are quite difficult!

Some of them are better used as a visual reference & you actually only play part of the possible notes. Most guitarists just use 3 note groupings, or triads & their inversions. Which are part of the CAGED shapes, but much more managable & practical in many cases.

I encourage you to continue to focus on open chords, barre chords & learning songs. My tutorials on triads & inversions might also be beneficial in this context.

https://www.guitartricks.com/collection/triads-and-inversions

And yes, with practice everything becomes easier & possible.

Hope that helps! Please ask more if necessary.