[rayvon87]

Hey there all, I have just a question,

Recently, I cut off the nails on my right hand so that I could develop the callouses for picking. I was just wondering around how long will it take for the callouses to develop?

Also, if someone could point me towards some good 'Boom-Chick' picking tutorials, I'd be very grateful.

Thanks.

This post has been edited by rayvon87: 27 November 2005 - 10:22 PM

[kooldood1]

well you have to keep practicing or they will soften up but i would say maybe a month

[robert2000]

why would you need calluses on your picking hand? when I had my nails short my fingers never hurt, and if you grow nails you wont ever touch the strings with your flesh.

[Irishcocacola]

why would you need calluses on your picking hand? when I had my nails short my fingers never hurt, and if you grow nails you wont ever touch the strings with your flesh.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I use nails myself...why would you use yourr flesh?

[Will_Wood]

I refuse to use my nails. I hate the sound of my own finger nails scraping across the strings.

I pick with the tips of my fingers.

[rayvon87]

I know a lot of guitar greats grow callouses on their picking hand so that they don't have to bother with their nails and they also like the sound it produces. It can also help with accuracy, so I've heard. I just wanted to try it out. It's gonna take a little time to get used to , but I'm sure I'll get it.

A month...sounds alright. Thanks.

This post has been edited by rayvon87: 28 November 2005 - 03:26 AM

[nealmac]

why would you need calluses on your picking hand? when I had my nails short my fingers never hurt, and if you grow nails you wont ever touch the strings with your flesh.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Maybe he wants to do 2 hand tapping but the obvious answer would be that he's left handed? Could be wrong though........................

[dadfad]

I know a lot of guitar greats grow callouses on their picking hand so that they don't have to bother with their nails and they also like the sound it produces. It can also help with accuracy, so I've heard. I just wanted to try it out. It's gonna take a little time to get used to , but I'm sure I'll get it.

A month...sounds alright. Thanks.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The majority of the sound I make when I play comes from the flesh. I have nails slightly longer than the tips of my fingers but I don't use my nails per se for picking. The nails add strength and reinforcement to my finger tips for a stronger attack. Occasionally I'll intentionally use nails only to pick with, and sometimes use the backs of them in a banjo-picking claw-hammer or frailing sort of way, or when fingerpicking on some tunes that require fingerpicking in both directions. But playing a steel-string guitar as hard as you need to for the dynamics necessary for many fingerstyle country blues tunes would rip your nails off to the quick within a couple of tunes if you used nails-only. John Jackson, the person who taught me a great deal (in my sig-pic) had fingertips that were as hard as burnt-hickory sticks. His thumb had a fairly substantial callous on the side (on a toe, you might even have called it a bunyon! ) and a noticeable bend in the first thumb digit. Mine are starting to get the same way. Nails-only are fine for classical and other more delicate styles, or nylon strings, but you need a pretty strong attack for some steel-string styles that nails-only just can't provide.

[rayvon87]

I used to use nails-only and the nail-flesh combination, but then I got tired of the upkeep, because, if the nails get too long, they sound awful and if you cut too short, they hurt a bit and I can't play properly. The I heard that you can pick without nails using the callouses, so I figured, a little bit of pain for a little while, for a lifetime of minimal nail upkeep and good sounding guitar was a pretty good trade-off...

This post has been edited by rayvon87: 28 November 2005 - 08:00 PM

[robert2000]

I still don't understand why your fingers would hurt or need callouses. Before I grew my nails semi-long (sometimes I prefer the soft sound that can only be created with flesh) my fingers never hurt and I never had a problem with that.

If you do want callouses though, it all depends on how much you play.

[Beachgirl]

I agree with Will, not only do I hate the sound, the feeling of my fingernails being pulled is unbearable.. but then again, I'm borderline OCD. Meh...

I'm constantly biting my callouses off,I'm a bit unbearing as a rule, so I can't tell you how long it takes callouses to grow... You're a chick right? Sacrafice the nails for the greater good. And if you are a guy, please don't grow your nails long... I don't care what they say, it's disgusting.

Be Achers[/bumbling rant]

[rayvon87]

Well, after playing with nails for so long, then playing with just the flesh sorta got my fingers hurting, but that'll go away. Callouses on your picking allows you to get the attack and volume in your pickling without having to use nails or, as dadfad said, only using nails for supporting the flesh...just read dadfads post...

Actually, I'm a dude. My nails weren't long really, maybe 1 - 1 1/2mm off the bed, about even with the flesh itself. I had them a bit longer once, about 2 1/2 - 3 mm off the bed...that was just annoying, dunno how chicks can stand it.