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Weird question. But I gotta know...

#123
@Joe Nerve , I don't know if it's been mentioned yet, but a product that has been wonderfully successful for me is called Bag Balm. It's primary use is on cow udders, to protect them from cracking. If you know any dairymen, they'll tell you the stuff is magical. Comes in a square metal tin and has a consistency similar to vaseline. Been in use over 120 years, and since so many people use it on themselves (and their doggo's paws) the packaging now reflects these uses.
Tried & True Bag Balm Uses

Best of luck from someone who's been there.
 
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#124
My wife suffers from cracked fingers & thumbs in winter. Several years ago, while looking for the best treatment, the pharmacist where she worked at the time said a large percentage of people who have cracked fingers have a fungus, not just dry skin. When she has cracks (mostly thumbs) she uses an anti fungal medication the pharmacist recommended. I don’t have the name at the moment (and my wife is asleep!) but I do remember it was described on the packaging as an athlete’s foot treatment.
 
#125
From a Boston guy (not exactly Miami-like this time of year):

Exclusively use moisturizing hand sanitizer after #1 (the lotion/cream-like type) and only soap after going #2. Moisturize your hands throughout day or when they look dry.

Suffered cracked, dry hands my whole life — lived in this cold/dry place for over half a century — and until I figured the above out — no amount of hand cream solved it.

Washing hands is the killer.
 
#126
Joe Nerve said:
Do any of you have any thoughts or idea for strengthening your skin :) ? Allow me to explain.

I play lots and have been doing so for decades. Saying that because this isn't a lack of callous or experience issue. Its a skin issue.

A few years back, due to the cold winter weather (or heat inside), my skin began to crack. When it happened on my right pointer, my most used finger, it became a very bad situation. I taped it, crazy glued it, bandaided it, vitamin E'ed it, liquid bandaged it... and it didn't heal until the winter ended.

Well... its happening again. It split open 2 weeks ago. I got through a gig with a bandage, but it sucks doing that. My band fortunately has a few weeks off, and I really want to heal this thing up. I'm currently dousing it with Vaseline and wrapping it up, but the skin is still dry once I clean it up - and I know will crack right open within 15 minutes of solid playing.

My best solution thus far is practicing to play with my ring and middle finger, but wow! Try running through a few songs like that :) .

Any and all thoughts welcome. Thanks.
Click to expand...
To combat blistering, I’ve been using musician’s practice gloves. I put them on for a few songs when I feel like I’m on the edge of blistering. Looks weird. Works great.

Musician's Practice Gloves Guitar/Bass Glove - Medium - Black
 
#128
Joe Nerve said:
Do any of you have any thoughts or idea for strengthening your skin :) ? Allow me to explain.

I play lots and have been doing so for decades. Saying that because this isn't a lack of callous or experience issue. Its a skin issue.

A few years back, due to the cold winter weather (or heat inside), my skin began to crack. When it happened on my right pointer, my most used finger, it became a very bad situation. I taped it, crazy glued it, bandaided it, vitamin E'ed it, liquid bandaged it... and it didn't heal until the winter ended.

Well... its happening again. It split open 2 weeks ago. I got through a gig with a bandage, but it sucks doing that. My band fortunately has a few weeks off, and I really want to heal this thing up. I'm currently dousing it with Vaseline and wrapping it up, but the skin is still dry once I clean it up - and I know will crack right open within 15 minutes of solid playing.

My best solution thus far is practicing to play with my ring and middle finger, but wow! Try running through a few songs like that :) .

Any and all thoughts welcome. Thanks.
Click to expand...
1675231705827360653577954939488.jpg

One suggestion would be to keep your hands away from chainsaws. Hahaha. Three weeks, and a bottle of Loctite, and the tip of my thumb is born once again



But, you just gotta get dirty. Man hands come from work. Not moisturizer.
 
#129
Joe Nerve said:
Do any of you have any thoughts or idea for strengthening your skin :) ? Allow me to explain.

I play lots and have been doing so for decades. Saying that because this isn't a lack of callous or experience issue. Its a skin issue.

A few years back, due to the cold winter weather (or heat inside), my skin began to crack. When it happened on my right pointer, my most used finger, it became a very bad situation. I taped it, crazy glued it, bandaided it, vitamin E'ed it, liquid bandaged it... and it didn't heal until the winter ended.

Well... its happening again. It split open 2 weeks ago. I got through a gig with a bandage, but it sucks doing that. My band fortunately has a few weeks off, and I really want to heal this thing up. I'm currently dousing it with Vaseline and wrapping it up, but the skin is still dry once I clean it up - and I know will crack right open within 15 minutes of solid playing.

My best solution thus far is practicing to play with my ring and middle finger, but wow! Try running through a few songs like that :) .

Any and all thoughts welcome. Thanks.
Click to expand...

This stuff is magic.

All

Screenshot_20230201-011206_Chrome.jpg
 
#130
My fingers crack in the same way you describe. I didn't look through all of the many postings here, but I do two things that absolutely cure the problem. 1.) Before bed I slather my hands with a huge amount of bag balm and then put on cotton gloves like these: https://a.co/d/fMq2cj0
This way I'm not coating my sheets with goo or rubbing it off of my hands so my skin can absorb as much as is possible overnight. In my experience, quantity counts and so do the gloves. These factors are probably more important than exactly which hand lotion you use. 2.) During the day, apply small amounts of any hand lotion after washing your hands each time. 3 days of this will transform/cure your hands and you can be back to playing regularly.
 
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#131
Whenever I use soaps like hand cream, with moisturisers that are advertised for skin care, my callauses and fingertips loosen up and shed dead skin instantly. Mostly at winter too.
When I use natural olive oil based soaps (they are cheap and traditional here) It never happens.
 
#133
I get these cracks on my fingers all year long and I live where there is always humidity. I put lotion on my hands every night before I go to bed. Once I get a split on my fingers there is nothing that immediately works. If it starts on Monday I am assured that by Friday I am still fighting with trying to get them healed. The pain is so intense it is unbelievable. Hard to believe that such a tiny split can hurt so bad. I have tried all of the lotions and cremes that everyone has mentioned. I retired from a bank and have had doctors and nurses as customers and they would bring me lotions and cremes from the hospitals they work for and they swear by them but none of them is an immediate cure which is what I need. I use the liquid bandage, I have used fingernail polish and whatever it takes and alternating fingers, played with a pick many times because my playing fingers all had cracks at once. My latest creme will arrive tomorrow, it's called aquaphor and I am not sure if it is just going to be another jar of creme sitting on my shelf. All I know is that once they start I will be dealing with it for about a week. Then when they start healing and you play it opens back up. Some of my cuts just open back up because they never really have a chance to heal fully. I guess we need a TB doctor or something that can create something that will work. LOL
 
#134
Joe Nerve said:
Do any of you have any thoughts or idea for strengthening your skin :) ? Allow me to explain.

I play lots and have been doing so for decades. Saying that because this isn't a lack of callous or experience issue. Its a skin issue.

A few years back, due to the cold winter weather (or heat inside), my skin began to crack. When it happened on my right pointer, my most used finger, it became a very bad situation. I taped it, crazy glued it, bandaided it, vitamin E'ed it, liquid bandaged it... and it didn't heal until the winter ended.

Well... its happening again. It split open 2 weeks ago. I got through a gig with a bandage, but it sucks doing that. My band fortunately has a few weeks off, and I really want to heal this thing up. I'm currently dousing it with Vaseline and wrapping it up, but the skin is still dry once I clean it up - and I know will crack right open within 15 minutes of solid playing.

My best solution thus far is practicing to play with my ring and middle finger, but wow! Try running through a few songs like that :) .

Any and all thoughts welcome. Thanks.
Click to expand...

I frequently put cocoa butter on my hands a few times a day. At night before I go to bed I'll put bag balm on my hands and then gloves. Works like a charm.

Also make sure you're hydrating and drinking lots of water.

upload_2023-2-1_0-33-17.png


Hand & Body Moisturizer


*no affiliation
 
#135
Joe Nerve said:
Do any of you have any thoughts or idea for strengthening your skin :) ? Allow me to explain.

I play lots and have been doing so for decades. Saying that because this isn't a lack of callous or experience issue. Its a skin issue.

A few years back, due to the cold winter weather (or heat inside), my skin began to crack. When it happened on my right pointer, my most used finger, it became a very bad situation. I taped it, crazy glued it, bandaided it, vitamin E'ed it, liquid bandaged it... and it didn't heal until the winter ended.

Well... its happening again. It split open 2 weeks ago. I got through a gig with a bandage, but it sucks doing that. My band fortunately has a few weeks off, and I really want to heal this thing up. I'm currently dousing it with Vaseline and wrapping it up, but the skin is still dry once I clean it up - and I know will crack right open within 15 minutes of solid playing.

My best solution thus far is practicing to play with my ring and middle finger, but wow! Try running through a few songs like that :) .

Any and all thoughts welcome. Thanks.
Click to expand...
My Ostheoarthritis started like that.
 
#136
Joe Nerve said:
Do any of you have any thoughts or idea for strengthening your skin :) ? Allow me to explain.

I play lots and have been doing so for decades. Saying that because this isn't a lack of callous or experience issue. Its a skin issue.

A few years back, due to the cold winter weather (or heat inside), my skin began to crack. When it happened on my right pointer, my most used finger, it became a very bad situation. I taped it, crazy glued it, bandaided it, vitamin E'ed it, liquid bandaged it... and it didn't heal until the winter ended.

Well... its happening again. It split open 2 weeks ago. I got through a gig with a bandage, but it sucks doing that. My band fortunately has a few weeks off, and I really want to heal this thing up. I'm currently dousing it with Vaseline and wrapping it up, but the skin is still dry once I clean it up - and I know will crack right open within 15 minutes of solid playing.

My best solution thus far is practicing to play with my ring and middle finger, but wow! Try running through a few songs like that :) .

Any and all thoughts welcome. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Have you tried playing with a pick?
 
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#137
Every now and again I would get a blister on my plucking hand, and I remember years ago reading a Stanley Clarke interview where he said he used to take a small piece of brick and hone his fingertips to reduce friction, sort of like pumice stone on your heels of your feet. I tried it but carrying around a piece of brick was a pain and I don't overplay like I used to when I was gigging a whole lot more.

The hand creams don't really work for me, I'm pretty oily as it is, but I do use lotion on my feet and legs because in the winter time they seem to dry out and just the application of the lotion is enough to keep my hands kind of soft.
I play half rounds on some of my gear and flats on the rest. And I play a lot of classical guitar so I really don't have a friction or a callus issue right now, but if I was out playing more and really digging in... I think I would have problems with the current state of my calluses.
 
#139
FWIW...

I always wear gloves when washing dishes.

I wear gloves when its 40 degrees (F) or less outside.

I wash my hands as infrequently as possible and keep them away from my mouth face and eyes. And everyone else's too :) .

I play with a pic as much as possible but it ain't always fun.

I need to drink more water, fo sure.

I need to get comfortable putting crap on my hands regularly.

And I challenge all of you to go through your entire set using only your ring and middle finger on your plucking hand! Wow is all I can say. Trying also to do triplets up and down the neck alternating R-M-R-M-R-M (A-G#-G---G#-G-F#- etc) is a challenge I didn't expect. Feel like I just started playing bass.

Its fun though.
 
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