Help me, ive got a hole in my finger.

rainbownorth · #1 08-20-2006, 10:59 PM

Hey guys, i was just wondering if anyone knows tricks to develpo callus on my fingers quicker. Right now, ive got a gaping crevasse on my index finger, and its just too tender to play on for any length of time. I could just put tape over it, but when i play itll leave gummy **** on my strings. My sister used to be a gymnast, and she recommended spraying meths on my fingers, apparently it helps them harden and callus quicker. Any thoughts?

EBMatt · #2 08-20-2006, 11:10 PM

Try to let that heal up. Then once it's healed, start playing again, but don't over do it. You don't want to get another hole in your finger. Just play, and if you feel pain on your finger tip, take a break. It doesn't take too long to develop a callus.

BrandonBass · #3 08-21-2006, 02:25 AM

wow ur sister rule. gymnast chicks freakin rule

rainbownorth · #4 08-21-2006, 04:22 AM

Well, thats a matter of opinion. I know her, you dont. Is she right, or not, or is there a quick alternative to what she suggests?

BrandonBass · #5 08-21-2006, 04:23 AM

your sis must be right since shes a gymnast

RoMeRz · #6 08-21-2006, 04:26 AM

yes, gymnasts inherit the knowledge of the universe.

rainbownorth · #7 08-21-2006, 04:28 AM

Well, that doesnt really help, because youre just making an assumption. I never said how good a gymnast she was, and besides, shes only ever played one instrument, it didnt have strins and she was awful at it. My point is, im asking for advice from YOUR experience, or what you know about the topic.

RoMeRz · #8 08-21-2006, 04:29 AM

Well how can she be any good if it had no strings !

Even if she has an all knowing knowlegde of everything, its damn hard to make a guitar or a bass sound good when there are no strings.

rainbownorth · #9 08-21-2006, 04:30 AM

Jeez, if you guys are just gonna drool over the fact that my sisters an ex-gymnast, forget i even asked. Besides, ex-gymnasts get fat, and theyre pretty stupid most of the time. My sister specifically has a tendency to be full of sh*t on a frequent basis.

rainbownorth · #10 08-21-2006, 04:30 AM

She played a recorder, you munt.

RoMeRz · #11 08-21-2006, 04:31 AM

just as well it didn't have any strings, it wouldn't be a very good recorded atall!

Keep up the good work captain.

BrandonBass · #12 08-21-2006, 04:38 AM

Well, if shes fat now then she must wrong!

anyways, the first week I got my bass i played for 8hours straight and my fingers didnt hurt at all. It could be you using wrong technique to pluck, or you can try switching your strings to sometihng smoother, nickel etc.

The only time my fingers hurt was when i popped non-stop, and if thats the case for you i suggest you stop worrying about it. Cause itll heal in afew days....i suggest you can practise pickstyle in the meantime cus it can come in handy.

or you can just practise slap without the pop

morf · #13 08-21-2006, 04:51 AM

Keep practicing, I recommend Rancid - Journey to the end of east bay - that was good to develop callouses if played at the normal speed.

iplaybassguitar · #14 08-21-2006, 12:51 PM

dont keep playing with your finger like that, it wont callus till it gets better, once it heals, practice a lot, but not a lot to the point where it gets close to what it is now, just take it easy, after a while it should start to toughen up.

rainbownorth · #15 08-21-2006, 06:39 PM

Thanks for the rancid recom, morf. Much more helpful than comments about gymnasts, especially since I know more about them than any of the other guys posting here. I probably have been thrashing it a bit. The problem was with my fretting hand, not my plucking hand. I suspect the problem is that i twist my fretting hand a bit, meaning i play with the side of my index finger more than the top of it. If you guys know of anything I can do to fix that, let me know.

jady · #16 08-21-2006, 06:52 PM

If you need to play right away try Newskin. It's a liquid bandage, or you can use superglue in an emergency. I have found that for the first 4 or 5 years of heavy playing, I got less and less blisters as time went on. I still blister occasionally and the first thing I do if they are bad is to lance it and trim away the dead skin with nail clippers. It will be sore for a few days but keep it clean and just be careful with it.

PS - gymnasts arent all that great, I mean have you seen Mary Lou Retton lately?

rainbownorth · #17 08-21-2006, 06:59 PM

Haha, I know enough about gymnasts to steer clear of them for LIFE, and its good to know someone else here does as well! Thankfully my problem hasnt got as bad as blisters yet, i hope it doesn't. It just sort of gets dry and starts to peel off. So I guess I'm stopping before it gets to be a BIG problem.

Flintc · #18 08-21-2006, 07:01 PM

I suffered from the same problem. My solution was to experiment with a single (not too sore) finger, on proper finger placement. I discovered there's a magic sweet spot right behind the fret, and if you place your finger there, you hardly need any force at all and the string won't buzz or muffle. But the sweet spot is very small, so this takes a good deal more accuracy than I have if I try to play quickly. I'm assuming speed will come with time.

So like everything else in life, there's a trick to it. If your finger is getting sore from pushing HARD on the string, you're pushing in the wrong place. Calluses won't cure this problem, but they might mask it a bit.

rainbownorth · #19 08-21-2006, 09:15 PM

Thanks for that hint, flintc. It doesnt get that sore, at least until ive really been thrashing for a long time at once. My problem is that, as far as bassists go, ive got quite small hands, meaning that, in trying to stretch over four frets, my index finger twists inward, so Im really using the side of that finger a lot of the time. But I bet finding that sweet spot of yours will help.

BrandonBass · #20 08-21-2006, 10:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rainbownorth

Haha, I know enough about gymnasts to steer clear of them for LIFE, and its good to know someone else here does as well! Thankfully my problem hasnt got as bad as blisters yet, i hope it doesn't. It just sort of gets dry and starts to peel off. So I guess I'm stopping before it gets to be a BIG problem.

hey, im curious man. what dirty secrets do those gymnast have? mind sharing wif us