• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

finger exercisers/stretchers

#21
ga_edwards said:
Yep, one finger per fret technique is over rated IMHO. I remember a Scott Devine video sometime ago where he more or less said the same thing.
...
Click to expand...

I don't think he said that. What he seemed to be saying, and I agree, is that both methods have equal.merit and that players should learn how to determine for themselves the right way to approach a given situation. That means being equally proficient in both fingering method or system. But fingering methods or systems are not posture. My experience tells me that good posture is important for any fingering method or system. Luckily for us, the basics of good posture remain the same, and don't change with the method. And that was the OP question.

You will see OFPF and 1-2-4 in my examples. I also use 1-3-4 and a hybrid 1-2/3-4, where 2/3 work the same position. What is important is the transitions are fluid and seamless and that posture is not lost during shifts or extensions.
 
#24
Black Out Jazz said:
Hey all, I'm looking at these gizmos and want to ask the collective, are these things a gimmick or do they really work? I was searching the web for 'finger exercises' and they showed up in the search. The reason I am looking for exercises is because if I stretch 4 frets my middle finger and ring finger are doing all kinds contortionist looking stuff. :D Thanks for any insight or personal experience.
example a
https://www.amazon.com/Riff-BANDZ-T...5SAZDXGA2FT&psc=1&refRID=VSCBPYDFG5SAZDXGA2FT

and b
https://www.amazon.com/Expander-Training-Resistance-Exerciser-Accessories/dp/B08TW5D3SF/ref=sr_1_12?crid=3BMY6LEQSWXQU&dchild=1&keywords=bass+guitar+finger+exerciser&qid=1621087447&sprefix=bass+finger+exerciser,aps,174&sr=8-12
Click to expand...


avoid at all costs, these types of things are a scam. None of the great musicians in the world got good by using these things. Just practice your bass.
 
As an Amazon Associate, TalkBass may receive commissions from qualifying purchases made via links on this site.
  • Like
Reactions: Jdash, lfmn16 and SteveCS
#25
Back when I first started playing,I bought something like this.
excersizer.jpg

Then I learned you don't need bone crushing finger strength,you need to be limber and flexible.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: lfmn16
#26
Yeah the best exercise device for bass is a bass.

strength is never the issue. If your pinky has trouble it’s generally a lack of control combined with poor left hand technique.

points I have not seen mentioned are
  • You must consider your elbow and shoulder as part of the mechanism for fretting. Try taking your thumb completely off the neck and fretting a scale, not the muscles used.
  • You are allowed to move your left hand to reach a note even if you are in a single position.
  • The pinky is always backed up by the other three fingers against the string. Essentially, when you free up with your pinky, you fret with the whole hand
 
  • Like
Reactions: Andrew S Riddle and SteveCS
#27
Black Out Jazz said:
Hey all, I'm looking at these gizmos and want to ask the collective, are these things a gimmick or do they really work? I was searching the web for 'finger exercises' and they showed up in the search. The reason I am looking for exercises is because if I stretch 4 frets my middle finger and ring finger are doing all kinds contortionist looking stuff. :D Thanks for any insight or personal experience.
example a
https://www.amazon.com/Riff-BANDZ-T...5SAZDXGA2FT&psc=1&refRID=VSCBPYDFG5SAZDXGA2FT

and b
https://www.amazon.com/Expander-Training-Resistance-Exerciser-Accessories/dp/B08TW5D3SF/ref=sr_1_12?crid=3BMY6LEQSWXQU&dchild=1&keywords=bass+guitar+finger+exerciser&qid=1621087447&sprefix=bass+finger+exerciser,aps,174&sr=8-12
Click to expand...
They're a good way to injure yourself. There are no shortcuts to good technique other than playing your instrument.
 
As an Amazon Associate, TalkBass may receive commissions from qualifying purchases made via links on this site.
  • Like
Reactions: SteveCS
#28
Black Out Jazz said:
I feel it all down into my freaking forearm.
Click to expand...
You definitely need to fix your technique before you seriously injure yourself. That's the feeling of the tendons that move your fingers trying to detach themselves from the forearm muscles where there are anchored.

My guess is that you are fretting with a severely bent wrist, which prevents those tendons from moving smoothly through your wrist. I strongly recommend watching this:

 
#30
Lobster11 said:
You definitely need to fix your technique before you seriously injure yourself. That's the feeling of the tendons that move your fingers trying to detach themselves from the forearm muscles where there are anchored.

My guess is that you are fretting with a severely bent wrist, which prevents those tendons from moving smoothly through your wrist. I strongly recommend watching this:

Click to expand...

,,
Fretting?
"I can say from personal experience that the Stu Hamm stretches are holy hell and they work really well. Look them up. I do them. I loath them. I benefit from them."
"Good $%*&%ing grief! My hand is exhausted!"
"Yeah. They suck. I have been hating them for a long time. I’m not that good but I can move my pinky ok. Worth it? No. But kind of."
"I feel it all down into my freaking forearm."
 
#32
My lowly $0.02

Image one: Im going to go out on a limb and suggest you get a simple rubber band (maybe even a thick one) and twist it around each finger as illustrated by image of 'the stretcher'.. I am positive it will give you the same effect. I also use a rubber band to improve finger strength/dexterity by anchoring one end to my thumb and individually work each finger for a few reps. and also anchoring to the thumb (again) and wrapping all my fingers and doing a 5 digit stretch.

Image two: seems so much like torture device rather that a helpful aid for stretching -for bass guitar strength/endurance- I strongly suggest you find something else.

Also

Im with others in that... you dont need anything other than a bass..
what I do besides the O.F.P.F. (one finger per fret) is: I use the back of the neck opposite the strings, and run my fingers down the back -from nut to the base of the bass body- slowly: doing so with each gap. so the gap between index and middle, the gap between middle and ring, and the gab between ring and pinky. I do this several times as part of my warm up routine and during practice and also gigs

I got a gig on Saturday! :woot:

so I am hopeful that some recent work on stamina helps get me through the sort of last minute gig I got asked to do.

I will try to find the stretch videos I think may be of some help.. however this thread is loaded with good bits IMO.

as for you stay low, and stretch often.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 20GLJazz
#33
  • Like
Reactions: Black Out Jazz
#34
I agree with most of what is written above, however, I did buy the riff band thing myself (it was cheap). As an experienced drummer and early intermediate bass player, I realize that good technique is everything. I put it on my hand once in a while to really pay attention and focus on what my pinky is doing. I don't thing the band itself does squat, but it does make me aware of what shape my hand is holding. It actually forces me to think about keeping my thumb in the right place on the back of the neck, curling my hand correctly, and focusing on keeping my third and fourth fingers closer to the board. So for that reason, I do like it and use it from time to time.

As an aside, I am a lifetime member of SBL and cannot recommend Scott's platform highly enough. The (add on) six month technique course was extremely well done and helpful to me.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Black Out Jazz
#35
rickstrong said:
I use a Grip-Master
Click to expand...

They are as bad as the gadgets in the original post. You don't need gripping strength to play bass. The hands should as relaxed as possible. This can't be achieved while gripping. Instead, what needs to be developed are the tendons that open the hand...quite the opposite of gripping.

See 01.51 in this clip :
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: AFRO and Black Out Jazz
#36
fearceol said:
They are as bad as the gadgets in the original post. You don't need gripping strength to play bass. The hands should as relaxed as possible. This can't be achieved while gripping. Instead, what needs to be developed are the tendons that open the hand...quite the opposite of gripping.


<snip>
Click to expand...

This is one of the videos I was going to share.. there is another I will hunt down and edit this post when I do..
 
  • Like
Reactions: fearceol
#38
AFRO said:
This is one of the videos I was going to share.. there is another I will hunt down and edit this post when I do..
Click to expand...



I dont do 5 solid minutes, but I do these stretches..



again I dont do this for 8 minutes but I do these stretches.
skim it over, i find these pretty helpful.



and finally, this one seems to cover what you are most after with no contraption for your fingers...


I do a lot of typing for my job and am a gamer when I can get some time (former shell anyhow, like before I settled down.. prime days) and obv play Bass guitar in my remaining spare time(s). so I appreciate loose hands wrists and fingers and do a lot of stretching during the day.

I again will maintain, you dont really need anything besides a Bass and Time in the shed.

I will typically start the OFPF in the middle of the neck around the 8th or 9th fret, and when I need to practice stretching head toward the 7th 6th and 5th (or 3rd if I really need a stretch, but know my limits and prefer the 8th/9th slot for general purposes)
I find that the D and G strings are much more comfortable than the B and E when I am in these positions.


stay low my friend.
 
#39
Good bass technique has nothing to do with raw hand strength. The most technically proficient bassists use a very relaxed, loose, light touch. I am sure one can come up with exceptions to this, but they would be just that.. exceptions. You dont have to pound your instrument (no jokes please...), to make it do what you want. You dont need hand strengthening gimmicks/tools. Good technique comes from proper touch and great coordination between the two hands (as a unit) and between the plucking hand fingers. As always, the road to great technique is just about putting in the time, and being patient.
 
  • Like
Reactions: StatesideRambler and jdcraignh
#40
You don’t need any of these gizmos. Limbering and stretching before playing is fine, but weights or resistance can do more harm than good. You only need to press on the string enough to not get fret buzz and that isn’t that much. Speed is developed by muscle memory and practice. If your hands are too small to stretch, then shift. There are some incredible bass players with small hands that do just fine, so don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Anybody that tries to sell you on any shortcuts so you don’t have to put in the shed time is just after your money and doesn’t care at all about you or your health.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back