Fingernail wear

fishfingers

You could try trimming the nails completely and just playing with the flesh. Voulume will be low, at first, but as you build up callus this will improve over a couple of weeks or so. There are several notable fingerstyle players who are flesh only. Listen to Woody Mann's tone as an example

ToneControl

artiebear said:

You don't need to go the whole hog with nail bar acrylic nails to get the benefit of the strength they bring. A tub of acrylic powder, acrylic liquid and a nail brush allows you to just put a coating over the very tip of the nail. It sets rock hard in 15 mins and you can buff it and file it. Way less messy that superglue, lasts until it grows out or can be removed with acrylic brush cleaner. I buy supplies every 18 months or so and can do the whole job in 20 mins including the acrylic drying hard ( I have even done it in an emergency just before going on stage ). Done sparingly and keeping your nails normal length you can't see it, but you have a massive boost in volume and consistency. As well as acoustic players, it has become quite the thing amongst the Nashville guitar players who play either pick and fingers or thumb pick and fingers on electric. There are a few youtube demos to show you the DIY process as well as what you need.

can you please link to a video that shows what you do?
I found lots about full-on fake nails

GTC

artiebear said:

You don't need to go the whole hog with nail bar acrylic nails to get the benefit of the strength they bring. A tub of acrylic powder, acrylic liquid and a nail brush allows you to just put a coating over the very tip of the nail. It sets rock hard in 15 mins and you can buff it and file it. Way less messy that superglue, lasts until it grows out or can be removed with acrylic brush cleaner. I buy supplies every 18 months or so and can do the whole job in 20 mins including the acrylic drying hard ( I have even done it in an emergency just before going on stage ). Done sparingly and keeping your nails normal length you can't see it, but you have a massive boost in volume and consistency. As well as acoustic players, it has become quite the thing amongst the Nashville guitar players who play either pick and fingers or thumb pick and fingers on electric. There are a few youtube demos to show you the DIY process as well as what you need.

This is essentially what I have done for an emergency repair with Orly nail rescue. You just brush the area in question (e.g. fingertip) with the nail glue provided, dip the finger in the pot of acrylic powder, shake / blow off the excess and file / buff off. It doesn't look too pretty but it is simple and fast.

It is most probably cheaper to buy the ingredients individually and it would work just as well.

artiebear

ToneControl said:

artiebear said:

You don't need to go the whole hog with nail bar acrylic nails to get the benefit of the strength they bring. A tub of acrylic powder, acrylic liquid and a nail brush allows you to just put a coating over the very tip of the nail. It sets rock hard in 15 mins and you can buff it and file it. Way less messy that superglue, lasts until it grows out or can be removed with acrylic brush cleaner. I buy supplies every 18 months or so and can do the whole job in 20 mins including the acrylic drying hard ( I have even done it in an emergency just before going on stage ). Done sparingly and keeping your nails normal length you can't see it, but you have a massive boost in volume and consistency. As well as acoustic players, it has become quite the thing amongst the Nashville guitar players who play either pick and fingers or thumb pick and fingers on electric. There are a few youtube demos to show you the DIY process as well as what you need.

can you please link to a video that shows what you do?
I found lots about full-on fake nails

I would have to dig around to find them now, I haven't looked at anything on line for a long time. I can take you through the basic process in steps. You can vary how many nails you treat according to your style. 

1) ensure that your nail is absolutely clean

2) rough up the nail with a heavy  grade file ( you need this for the acrylic to to stick)

3) apply nail primer, this is a sticky substance that brushes on and forms a clean base layer for the acrylic, let it dry for a few minutes.

4) take a fine nail brush ( worth getting a decent one ) dip it into the acrylic liquid (wipe off the excess, you don't want it dripping ) then put it into the acrylic powder, just getting a small blob to adhere to the brush.

5) roll the accumulated gel off the brush onto the middle of the nail ( this takes a bit of getting used to as it remains quite sloppy at first.

6) when you have a small blob on the middle of the nail, use the brush very gently and slowly to gradually roll the gel upwards and outwards to the nail tip. Don't worry if it slops over the edge of the nail, it is still liquid enough to wipe off or with a purpose made salon brush you can collect any excess on the handle end and wipe off.

7) once you have a coating across the upper part of the nail ( you do not need to coat down to the base of the nail ( in fact this is problematical because as it grows out you will leave an unpleasant ridge at the end of the acrylic which can catch on the string ) you should let it dry until it feels hard ( about 10/15 mins ). At that point you can shape the nail with files and either buff smooth the nail with a fine file are with a nail block. Also file the underside of the nail smooth as ridges of acrylic can  build up and set causing catch points for the strings.

8) wipe down the brush and clean it in acrylic brush cleaner ( keep the brush in good condition or it becomes impossible to work with )

The two hardest parts to master at first are 1} controlling the brush with your left hand while applying to your right and 2) getting the shape you want while filing again with your left hand. You get better at this every time to reapply, or so the theory goes, I still make a mess every now and then and have to restart.

At first it is pretty much trial and error ( it's easy to wipe off any disasters as you go and start again, unlike superglue ) and a good soaking in the acrylic brush cleaner will loosen an acrylic enough to peel it off should you so wish.

The biggest difference between this quick and easy way and the salon way is that they are typically glueing a plastic nail on then applying the rest of the procedure. That's more about nail length and aesthetics, which hardly apply here.

As you get more used to working the gel with the brush, it is quite easy to extend your own nail length by working the gel over the tip and slowly allowing an overhang to set , which once hard can be shaped. I learned this from the days when I used to get my nails done by a professional. She did not bother with plastic underneath but could make the acrylic any length just by coaxing the gel with the brush. 

If you have enough good nail of your own, you don't need to extend the nail, just reinforce it.

Using the above techniques, I can make mine last for approx 3 weeks, before I need to sit down and sort them. Every so often one might start to separate from the nail, at that point it is a quick repair to either file away the breakage and apply a small dot of acrylic into the gap, or just peel the acrylic off and apply a fresh coating.

The only pain with acrylics is that you have to work hard not get get oil, mud etc under the edges because it is near on impossible to clean out. Again it's easier to rip the thing off and redo.

I've been using them now for around 10/11 years ( doing them myself for the last 8 ), and love them for the way they open up techniques, such as frailing and percussive attack, not to mention how much more I can get out of an acoustic guitar in conjunction with a thumb pick. I tried picks but I hate the sense of drag as the pick hits the string and the slight lag in control.

In the meantime I will try to remember the name of one of the guys who showed this process on Youtube.

Hope that's helpful in some way

ToneControl

artiebear said:

In the meantime I will try to remember the name of one of the guys who showed this process on Youtube.

Hope that's helpful in some way

Excellent thanks, will order today

Snags

Further update on the cream stuff, another month on:

- still mostly using it once at bedtime and once in the morning, but some days forget one or the other

- nails are definitely thicker and stronger and don't wear down anything like as much

- have been playing with nails a lot more than usual

- no awkward angled wear on my index finger like I used to get

- only once did I start to get a bit of a snag on one nail when I'd let it grow a bit too much. Filed it out gently and it's been fine; in the past the act of filing would probably have torn the nail tip off at that point

So I'm calling a success, for my purposes, on the Barielle stuff.

ToneControl

ToneControl said:

artiebear said:

In the meantime I will try to remember the name of one of the guys who showed this process on Youtube.

Hope that's helpful in some way

Excellent thanks, will order today

I now have everything except the brush cleaner, which should arrive soon
Aparrently you can use the liquid as brush cleaner

I got my daughter to put some on last night, I think she was using too little liquid, it is a bit lumpy, I've had to sand off some lumps. Seems impressive, but needs redoing. 

Do you clean it off with acetone before you redo it?

artiebear

ToneControl said:

ToneControl said:

artiebear said:

In the meantime I will try to remember the name of one of the guys who showed this process on Youtube.

Hope that's helpful in some way

Excellent thanks, will order today

I now have everything except the brush cleaner, which should arrive soon
Aparrently you can use the liquid as brush cleaner

I got my daughter to put some on last night, I think she was using too little liquid, it is a bit lumpy, I've had to sand off some lumps. Seems impressive, but needs redoing. 

Do you clean it off with acetone before you redo it?

If it's still soft, just wipe / peel it off, and then for best results rough up the nail again, prime and go again. Don't worry if you end up with an uneven surface or lumps. Just let it dry hard and then use a file to take off any excess and shape it. Hope it works for you as it does for me .

artiebear

How are you getting on with it @ToneControl  ? takes a bit of practise, but worth it for the results.

ToneControl

artiebear said:

How are you getting on with it @ToneControl  ? takes a bit of practise, but worth it for the results.

brush cleaner arrived today, I was waiting for that to have second attempt
do I strip all the existing acylic off before starting again? How is that best done? acetone?

artiebear

ToneControl said:

artiebear said:

How are you getting on with it @ToneControl  ? takes a bit of practise, but worth it for the results.

brush cleaner arrived today, I was waiting for that to have second attempt
do I strip all the existing acylic off before starting again? How is that best done? acetone?

You probable are supposed to, but TBH I usually just file it back as far as I can, rough it up then after priming , just apply over the top for the sake of speed. It still holds firmly and does the job The same applies to when it starts to grow out, leaving an obvious ridge to the natural nail. I just file that area flat to blend into the nail then apply over that area and onto the existing acrylic, just making sure that it doesn't get too thick ( that being said, I used to get asked by the girl who used to do them for me how thick I wanted them and used to ask her to make them like hammers on the end of each finger ). As long as there is enough acrylic to make each nail rigid, that is probably enough. 

DartmoorHedgehog

Interesting thread.  I always play with nails, even on electric in a punk/quite heavy at times band.  I do a fair bit of finger-picking in some of our songs, alternating with strumming, and just don't get on with using a pick, but the heavy strumming was wearing my nail down pretty badly.  For the last five years or so I've been painting the index and middle finger nails on my right hand with superglue and it works fine and hasn't caused me any problems.  It wears through after a few hours heavy playing, but can be replaced easily and cleans off with acetone.  Doesn't look too weird either (says a bloke with long nails on one hand).

On times when I've broken a nail and needed to play a gig I've superglued a false nail on, or at a push just a piece of plastic bottle cut to shape - stayed on fine.

artiebear

DartmoorHedgehog said:

Interesting thread.  I always play with nails, even on electric in a punk/quite heavy at times band.  I do a fair bit of finger-picking in some of our songs, alternating with strumming, and just don't get on with using a pick, but the heavy strumming was wearing my nail down pretty badly.  For the last five years or so I've been painting the index and middle finger nails on my right hand with superglue and it works fine and hasn't caused me any problems.  It wears through after a few hours heavy playing, but can be replaced easily and cleans off with acetone.  Doesn't look too weird either (says a bloke with long nails on one hand).

On times when I've broken a nail and needed to play a gig I've superglued a false nail on, or at a push just a piece of plastic bottle cut to shape - stayed on fine.

I know a few guys who go this route. Whenever I go near superglue it always ends up all over my hands, bet I still couldn't get it just onto the nail !

malcolmkindness

May I just say a word of caution. I used professional salon applied acrylic nails for a couple of years and they were great. BUT all that filing and application of primers, dryers etc. will damage your natural nails and it may take quite a while for them to recover. Eighteen months after I stopped using the acrylics my nails are still quite weak.

DartmoorHedgehog

malcolmkindness said:

May I just say a word of caution. I used professional salon applied acrylic nails for a couple of years and they were great. BUT all that filing and application of primers, dryers etc. will damage your natural nails and it may take quite a while for them to recover. Eighteen months after I stopped using the acrylics my nails are still quite weak.

I've not noticed any ill effects from using superglue on my nails (it's been five or more years now), but my nails are naturally quite thick and strong so perhaps I get away with it more than some people would.

DartmoorHedgehog

artiebear said:

I know a few guys who go this route. Whenever I go near superglue it always ends up all over my hands, bet I still couldn't get it just onto the nail !

I use thin superglue and put a drop in the middle of my nail, then spread it out with a bit of paper - I've got quite good at it now, so it just flows over the nail surface and not (usually) on the skin.  Takes a few minutes to dry but ends up just like clear nail varnish, only thicker and stronger.

artiebear

malcolmkindness said:

May I just say a word of caution. I used professional salon applied acrylic nails for a couple of years and they were great. BUT all that filing and application of primers, dryers etc. will damage your natural nails and it may take quite a while for them to recover. Eighteen months after I stopped using the acrylics my nails are still quite weak.

I took a break sometime back, maybe will do again soon when I can guarantee a period of less acoustic work. You are right in what you say. In my case, my nails started to get weak anyway about 12 years ago, I was eventually diagnosed with fairly serious thyroid issues which it turns out, weakens nails. 
The last time I took a break, it was fine as I had approx 12 months of playing on the finger pad, which I had previously done year in year out for around 30 years, therefore, my fingers are pretty hardened anyway. In terms of playing keys, bass and electric guitar (especially without a pick) it was great as there is nothing to get in the way, particularly bass where, with nails I have to work hard on technique to avoid nail contact on the strings. While it was good in it's own way, I kept picking up guitars like my Sobell and realising that there was a whole world of power and tone that I could not access without acrylics or something similar, so back to it I went.

DartmoorHedgehog said:

artiebear said:

I know a few guys who go this route. Whenever I go near superglue it always ends up all over my hands, bet I still couldn't get it just onto the nail !

I use thin superglue and put a drop in the middle of my nail, then spread it out with a bit of paper - I've got quite good at it now, so it just flows over the nail surface and not (usually) on the skin.  Takes a few minutes to dry but ends up just like clear nail varnish, only thicker and stronger.

That sound great, so a very similar technique to acrylic but a process that needs to be done quickly before the glue sets ? 

DartmoorHedgehog

artiebear said:

DartmoorHedgehog said:

I use thin superglue and put a drop in the middle of my nail, then spread it out with a bit of paper - I've got quite good at it now, so it just flows over the nail surface and not (usually) on the skin.  Takes a few minutes to dry but ends up just like clear nail varnish, only thicker and stronger.

That sound great, so a very similar technique to acrylic but a process that needs to be done quickly before the glue sets ? 

It doesn't really have to be that quick - it takes a few minutes to dry when it's spread quite thickly (hard to explain, but it's almost "flowed" over the nail rather than painted).  In fact, when I've left it to the last minute as I often seem to, I've often been carrying kit out to the car trying to avoid using those fingers - in those situations I'd be glad if it dried a bit faster!

artiebear

@DartmoorHedgehog I know what you mean about last minute. I have had some strange looks for folk seeing me backstage flapping my hand about, desperately trying to dry an emergency application of gunk. I have also discovered that it is not worth trying to explain to non guitar players, or worse a non musician 

malcolmkindness

DartmoorHedgehog said:

artiebear said:

I know a few guys who go this route. Whenever I go near superglue it always ends up all over my hands, bet I still couldn't get it just onto the nail !

I use thin superglue and put a drop in the middle of my nail, then spread it out with a bit of paper - I've got quite good at it now, so it just flows over the nail surface and not (usually) on the skin.  Takes a few minutes to dry but ends up just like clear nail varnish, only thicker and stronger.

I might try that, it seems much less extreme than the all over acrylics.
You have also reminded me that Pierre Bensusan used to recommend super glue and baking soda, I don't know if he still uses this method.