| Author |
 Topic  |
|
JeffC
Lokahi
USA
189 Posts |
 Posted - 01/07/2006 : 1:32:59 PM
|
Do any of you other slackers out there get bruised fingertips? Seems like every few months or so I'll end up with the tip of one of my fingers feeling very tender to the touch. Usually goes away in about 3 to 5 days. I play plenty and it is not a problem of blisters--calluses are in good shape.
I've got one now. Funny thing is this time I notice it more at the computer (report crunch time) than while playing. There is an obvious message there, or what.
JC
|
Jeff
Making Trout Country safe for Slack Key! |
|
|
slackkeymike
Lokahi
440 Posts |
Posted - 01/07/2006 : 2:39:23 PM
|
Yeah...ya gotta stop messin' with dat "compootah"!!
Mike
|
Aloha, Mike |
 |
|
|
RJS
Ha`aha`a
1635 Posts |
Posted - 01/07/2006 : 6:20:42 PM
|
| It periodically happened to me, just as you described, so I tried to pay attention to what was going on -- it typically happened at one of 2 times -- if my left hand nails were getting a bit long, and if I got sloppy with hand positioning. So I've been careful about that stuff for the past 6 or 7 months and the "bruises" have not reappeared. Oh yeah, 3rd time - if there's a crowd at the restaurant at which I play and I stay an extra hour or so, my fingers hurt for a day or so -- but that's just from going at it over 3 hours with short breaks in between. |
|
|
|
JeffC
Lokahi
USA
189 Posts |
Posted - 01/08/2006 : 7:25:26 PM
|
Thanks Raymond (and Mike). I hadn't really noticed the left hand fingernail length issue (although I can see the connection). It usually happens when I'm working (and reworking) on something new. This time it was a chord change my fingers were not accustomed to and making an adjustment to a finger position without losing my rhythm or the note. And it's not as if I starts hurting while I'm still playing; I usually notice it afterwards.
Anyway, I had never heard anyone else mention it before. Now I know there's at least two of us. Mahalo
Jeff |
Jeff
Making Trout Country safe for Slack Key! |
|
|
|
Sarah
`Olu`olu
571 Posts |
Posted - 01/09/2006 : 06:36:58 AM
|
Aloha e Jeff,
I get it once in a while. It's because I've been pressing too hard -- or too hard for too long a time. Pressing too hard is easy to do especially when you are working on something you don't know very well, or are trying to get the hang of. (It's as if gripping harder will make it "happen"). That sounds like just what you were working on.
aloha,
Sarah |
|
|
|
n/a
deleted
50 Posts |
Posted - 01/09/2006 : 07:26:58 AM
|
| I carry around a jar of Carmex (for chapped lips) in my pocket, and rub some into my fingertip calouses a few times a day. That keeps them from peeling or breaking off. |
|
|
|
slkho
`Olu`olu
740 Posts |
Posted - 01/09/2006 : 08:00:53 AM
|
Dear Marshmellow Fingers,
You know, you will never play as hard as you practice. Typically most people "play" harder when they practice a song, or section of a song then when they actually play. Your sore fingertips at the time fo playing may just be a carry over from a previous hard workout.
I agree with Sarah, (pressing too hard). RJS noted an important but often overlooked cause as well. Steel strings vs. nylon etc...blah-blah-blah. Sounds like it may only be an isolated incident, you'll be fine. I wouldn't recommend softening your callous's however. They take a while to form, but can quickly go away. |
|
|
|
RJS
Ha`aha`a
1635 Posts |
Posted - 01/09/2006 : 2:46:58 PM
|
| I forgot -- Normally the pain only lasts a short time and isn;t too bad. If, however, there is some reason I need to play through it (like I'm on a gig) or I just don't want to deal with it, I keep a can od Lanacain handy. Just a spray or two does the trick. |
|
|
|
JeffC
Lokahi
USA
189 Posts |
Posted - 01/09/2006 : 5:33:16 PM
|
Thanks for the Lanacain tip. Wouldn't have thought of it.
Jeff |
Jeff
Making Trout Country safe for Slack Key! |
|
|
|
duke
Lokahi
USA
163 Posts |
Posted - 01/09/2006 : 8:07:21 PM
|
One of the best tips I ever got for dealing with pressing too hard, is this:
With your left hand fingers, starting with the index finger, lightly place it on a string, any string, any fret, so that when you pluck the string, it sounds muted. Keep plucking while GRADUALLY increasing the pressure on the string. Note how little pressure is required to produce a clear and clean tone. Repeat with other fingers and strings to complete the exercise. I return to this excercise frequently to remind myself to ease-up on my grip when I catch myself squeezing the life out of my guitar neck and my finger tips start to throb.
Duke |
|
|
|
JeffC
Lokahi
USA
189 Posts |
Posted - 01/11/2006 : 06:51:04 AM
|
Good tip, Duke. I'll try that. It can be hard to keep in mind that brute strength in fingering is not always, uh ever, the answer.
Thanks
Jeff |
Jeff
Making Trout Country safe for Slack Key! |
|
|
|
Kiwini
Lokahi
USA
203 Posts |
Posted - 01/15/2006 : 9:07:36 PM
|
Jeff,
Quit procrastinating! Do your reports on time so you won't take it out on your computer in frustration!
|
Me Ke Aloha,
Steve |
|
|
|
JeffC
Lokahi
USA
189 Posts |
Posted - 01/19/2006 : 08:03:11 AM
|
That just might be the real problem!!! I have been working a little with Duke's suggestion to test the amount of pressure you need to make a clean sounding note. It is instructive. It is so easy to end up strangling the strings though, especially when working diligently on some part of a song...
Jeff |
Jeff
Making Trout Country safe for Slack Key! |
|
|
|
Larry Goldstein
Lokahi
267 Posts |
Posted - 01/19/2006 : 8:26:14 PM
|
Hey, I figure if folks will respond to a thread about bruises, perhaps I'll luck out and get some advice on calluses.
My calluses are well developed but almost counter productive. Rather than being nice even surfaces they are more conical in shape. The result is my fingertips tend to roll off the string, especially on nylon strings. I'm finding it difficult to get a good solid feeling and play a note cleanly and consistently.
Any advice is appreciated.
Mahalo,
Larry |
|
|
|
Rlowenote
Akahai
84 Posts |
Posted - 01/20/2006 : 04:25:16 AM
|
Larry,
When I shape/file my nails, I sometimes file my calluses if they are a problem. My index finger has some weird scar tissue from chopping it off as a kid. It was reattached ok but is slighty mishapened with a little scar tissue between the nail and the center of the finger tip. This fingertip gets filed the most often with a nail board. The others get filed as needed.
Ralph |
|
|
|
JeffC
Lokahi
USA
189 Posts |
Posted - 01/20/2006 : 07:48:18 AM
|
Hi Larry
Amazing what we will talk about, isn't it? I have had that issue too. Unlike Ralph, I occasionally notice that a callus has gotten so thick that it starts to feel a little like a hoof or something, and (using the low-tech method) I gnaw it off. This usually happens while sitting in front of my computer contemplating work. It doesn't result in the cleanest job, but interestingly the callus is usually smooth enough to not get my attention again for a while. I never chew my fingernails, BTW, but it works for calluses.
Jeff |
Jeff
Making Trout Country safe for Slack Key! |
|
|
|
Topic |
|
Topic Locked
