Nails

artiebear

right lets talk nails. Anyone trying to make an acoustic guitar do its thing knows what we are talking about . Playing ac gtr for a living I have previously used a salon to get what are effectively plecs on the end of each finger , now I do the job myself. Anyone else using false nails ?

Lewy

Although I've spent some time playing music full time, a lot of my playing over the years has been semi pro, working day jobs where fake nails on one hand would have been only slightly less eyebrow raising than a full spider web face tattoo.

So instead I persevered with fingerpicks. It took about 3 months of focused practice to get comfortable with them but haven't looked back since. It's either those, or no picks and flesh if I want a softer sound....

CHRISB50

When I was fingerpicking I just couldn't get used to having anything attached to my fingers, be it picks or anything artificial. I used to spend a fair bit of time with a file shaping my nails with a taper, so you get both the nail and the flesh for a more rounded tone. I could just stop if I noticed my nails taking a hammering, and then reshape them (while I had enough growth to do that). I guess you're in a different situation as it's your job.

AliGorie

Artie, tried false nails years ago on 3 fingers - nah - not for me, sure the 'accuracy' you get from the few mm's protruding from your f/tip is welcome but they were 'cumbersome' for normal every day things.
I only need a mil or so protruding to give the f/tip enough rigidity so I buff the nails with very fine wet / dry paper.
I suspect this is partly why I get a smooth round tone - I'm using mostly skin, and as you say false nails can be it's like having (thin) plectrums stuck on the ends of your fingers, You can actually pick out players who use false nails on good recordings - something about the sound, it can be TO accurate / precise and kinda 'brittle' = 'n not musical

VimFuego

I'm another one with only a fraction of nail showing, generally less than a mm. I often see players with huge great long nails, and while it clearly works for them I just can't get on like that.

Sassafras

They don't have to be very long. I've managed for years with these:

VimFuego

Sassafras said:

They don't have to be very long. I've managed for years with these:

you see, it's this kind of nonsense that really irks me, you don't need a long nail on your pinky.

Jimbro66

I have never liked the idea of false nails. I tried the ProPik Finger-Tone picks thinking they might be a little less clumsy than regular finger picks but still could not get on with them.

https://www.guptillmusic.com/propik-finger-tone-finger-picks

The strange thing is that I spent over ten years using regular ProPiks to play lap-style Dobro without any problem but they just feel and sound wrong for acoustic guitar.

I'm perhaps lucky to have fairly strong nails that I leave slightly long on my picking hand - maybe 2mm which is enough.

Some of the Nashville hybrid pickers strengthen their nails with super glue.

artiebear

Interesting comments. I would love to get away without and did try for around a year but ended up going back to applying an acrylic  over my nails. Totally agree about not keeping them long, just enough to give a solid tone while being able to use the pad of the finger as required. Too long and they can produce a harsh tone. I also spend a lot of time playing keys, bass and electric in the studio , all of which suffer if there's too much nail. 


My own nails are quite brittle, fine for playing at home or a gig or two, but after a few days constant playing there were too many issues to avoid the pain in the ass of having to do something about it. I like the fact that I can reapply the acrylic myself whenever I need it., plus a salon will try to do a neat job where as mine is certainly less obvious. It takes about 20/30 mins to do the job and it sets rock solid. Apart from that I keep them fairly naturally square shaped rather than the typically classic pointy look.

Back in the days before using acrylic I still wince to remember playing a couple of weeks of gigs, the second last of which left my index finger nail almost non existent. It was a bit sore during the second set and afterwards. The real pain started during the night , by the next morning I could'nt bear to touch anything with it, it was red raw. I had a 150 mile drive then the last gig to play, I igot through it but it was bloody excruciating and I decided , never again

BigLicks67

Lewy said:

So instead I persevered with fingerpicks. It took about 3 months of focused practice to get comfortable with them but haven't looked back since. It's either those, or no picks and flesh if I want a softer sound....

I tried these and a thumbpick but whilst I got used to the thumbpick I've never really got to grips with the fingerpicks. Do you find that the fingerpicks provide more attack/volume than nails?

Lewy

BigLicks67 said:

Lewy said:

So instead I persevered with fingerpicks. It took about 3 months of focused practice to get comfortable with them but haven't looked back since. It's either those, or no picks and flesh if I want a softer sound....

I tried these and a thumbpick but whilst I got used to the thumbpick I've never really got to grips with the fingerpicks. Do you find that the fingerpicks provide more attack/volume than nails?

Well they provide more volume and attack than my nails which seem to be made of very thin marzipan.....

I started using them when I was playing almost exclusively resonators and it's just the most effective way to access a reso's dynamic range.

Bridgehouse

I find screws hold better, and less chance of the hammer damaging the nice spruce top...

VimFuego

Bridgehouse said:

I find screws hold better, and less chance of the hammer damaging the nice spruce top...

aren't you s'posed to be a forum break?

octatonic

I strengthened my nails for a few years with a clear, matt coating.
Ultimately I concluded that I preferred the nail and flesh tone so I don't bother with that now.
Building guitars ruins your nails anyway so you have to work around it.

Bridgehouse

VimFuego said:

Bridgehouse said:

I find screws hold better, and less chance of the hammer damaging the nice spruce top...

aren't you s'posed to be a forum break?

Yeah, I am. 

But work is so bloody dull at the moment I decided to post here when I should be working and use my free time to work on my projects

artiebear

Sassafras said:

They don't have to be very long. I've managed for years with these:

Not enough sparkle for me.

usedtobe

VimFuego said:

Sassafras said:

They don't have to be very long. I've managed for years with these:

you see, it's this kind of nonsense that really irks me, you don't need a long nail on your pinky.

Yeah, but one short nail would just look odd!

guitarplucker

Nooooooooo real nails i find the best not too long and filed at an angle which makes like a ramp for the string to move along and release
 (thats classic playing )

brojangles

Is it strictly necessary to use fingernails in finger picking? I ask because I've been trying to learn, but my nails are bitten to the quick (because I am goddamn intense / a nervous wreck / in thrall to bad childhood habits - take your pick) so I've only been using the pads of my fingers, reasoning that if I wanted clarity and volume I'd either plug in or pick up a pick. Am I doing it all wrong? 

VimFuego

some people play acoustic without nails (I assume you're talking acoustic here, no nails is a lot more common for electrc players), I believe Justin Sandercoe is trying it, so may be worth looking at his site for that. It's something I've never managed to get on with, which is a shame as I would like to lose my nailsfor bass playing.

BigLicks67

brojangles said:

Is it strictly necessary to use fingernails in finger picking? I ask because I've been trying to learn, but my nails are bitten to the quick (because I am goddamn intense / a nervous wreck / in thrall to bad childhood habits - take your pick) so I've only been using the pads of my fingers, reasoning that if I wanted clarity and volume I'd either plug in or pick up a pick. Am I doing it all wrong? 

Tommy Emmanuel plays without nails as seen below. I think the idea is to get callouses on your right hand in order play this way for extended periods.