Adjusting to acrylic nails

[anton]

Hi Folks,

A few months ago I had acrylic nails put on for the third time, this time determined to make them work. Alot of the guitarists I admire, Tony Mcmanus, Pierre Bensusan, Martin Simpson, and Doug Young use acrylics and sound great. I figure if they can make them work so can I.

I am settling on a nail shape that works, which is not that disimilar to when I used natural nails. The acrylic provides a much thicker contact point for the string and feels solid.

The thing I am having trouble adjusting to is the thickness of the acrylic nail and the back of nail accidentally hitting the next lowest string when I pluck. For example if I am plucking the second string sometimes the back of the nail will contact the first string when I go to plant and pluck the string. Given the nature of the acrylic material this produces a pretty noticeable noise.

Has anyone else had this problem, and if so how did you deal with it? My right hand technique is fairly classical based, though I think I tend to initially contact the string a bit farther towards the thumb side of the nail.

I dont know if I can totally overhaul my right hand technique, but I would really like to make these acrylics work.

Anton

[Doug Young]

Hey Anton, I think that just takes a bit of practice to adjust to. It's been too long for me to remember all that well, but I know there was an adjustment period. One thing I recall clearly was that going to acrylics ended my electric playing. The first time I accidentally hit the strings, pretty much as you describe, on an overdriven electric was "memorable". I'm sure I could have adjusted to that, too, but for me, it was just a clear message that it was time to choose!

[murrmac123]

Originally Posted by anton

Hi Folks,

A few months ago I had acrylic nails put on for the third time, this time determined to make them work. Alot of the guitarists I admire, Tony Mcmanus, Pierre Bensusan, Martin Simpson, and Doug Young use acrylics and sound great. I figure if they can make them work so can I.

I am settling on a nail shape that works, which is not that disimilar to when I used natural nails. The acrylic provides a much thicker contact point for the string and feels solid.

The thing I am having trouble adjusting to is the thickness of the acrylic nail and the back of nail accidentally hitting the next lowest string when I pluck. For example if I am plucking the second string sometimes the back of the nail will contact the first string when I go to plant and pluck the string. Given the nature of the acrylic material this produces a pretty noticeable noise.

Has anyone else had this problem, and if so how did you deal with it? My right hand technique is fairly classical based, though I think I tend to initially contact the string a bit farther towards the thumb side of the nail.

I dont know if I can totally overhaul my right hand technique, but I would really like to make these acrylics work.

Anton

When I lived in the States, one of the ongoing issues I had was that the nail techs used to apply the acrylic too thick, and I would end up with a hump in the middle of the nail, which was both functionally and aesthetically undesirable from my point of view, although that may well have been how women preferred their nails to look at that time.

Thankfully, the Polish girl who does my nails now understands my requirements perfectly.

Make sure your nail tech understands that you only need a thin coating of acrylic.

[philjs]

Anton, I've had acrylic nails (three fingers) on my right hand for 25 years now and have been doing my own nails for a bit more than 1/2 of those years. I started doing my own backfills, which you can do more frequently -- and cheaper -- than trips to the salon, but am now comfortable replacing a nail if needed. More frequent backfills (for me every 2 to 3 weeks, usually closer to 2) alleviate a lot of the lifting issues and make it MUCH harder to lose a nail while doing other things. Keeping the edges of the nails sealed -- daily, at least, using thin fast-set cyanoacrylate nail glue that easily "wicks" under the edges -- to keep water out from under the acrylic also prevents many problems that people encounter

I suggest that one of the first investments you'll need, besides a nail kit (FYI, I use the KISS kits that are readily available at drug stores), is a rotary file, aka a Dremel tool. The one I use is the Dremel 8220. It has a 12v rechargeable lithium battery making it cordless and maneuverable. It has adjustable speeds but you don't need anything higher than the lowest, 5000 rpm, speed for acrylics. The second thing you'll need are some graduated buffer blocks to smooth the nail after shaping. Having these two tools will let you more easily shape and smooth the acrylics regardless of who does the application...

Nail techs at salons have a tendency to just glob the stuff on. Keep in mind that for the vast majority of their customers it doesn't matter because the nails are going to be very long (needing the mass on the top of the nail to be thin at the tips) and they're going to be painted. If you continue to use a salon, make sure they know what you want. If you have or can find photos of guitarists' with acrylics then bring them along to show them what you want. Better, if you know someone in your area that gets acrylics then get them to suggest a tech or salon. In any case, as has been pointed out, try to get them to keep the acrylic coating as thin as possible and the whole nail shaped as much like your natural nails as possible.

However, if you do get into doing your own, keep in mind that the hardest part of doing your own acrylics is adjusting to using your "off" hand to apply the acrylic and hold the rotary file! It's not hard, just awkward...and if I can do it, anyone can!

Phil

[anton]

Thanks for the replies everyone. Ill keep that all in mind, and maybe try a thinner coating of acrylic sometime. It can be hard to communicate specific details to the nail tech due to the language barrier, so I might try the Dremel tool method at home.

I go to the same salon as fingerstyle virtuoso Doug Smith, he lives here in Portland. Maybe Ill hit him up about this and see what he says.

Anton

[Doug Young]

For what it's worth, Anton, I often ask my nail person for thicker. Just like a heavier pick, you get a fatter tone.

[jomaynor]

Doug, what length does your nail extend past the fleshy tip of your middle finger?

I play a fair amount of hybrid picking, and my middle fingernail is eroding faster than it can grow, for getting a good crisp attack. The right hand ring fingernail is fine, but I'm curious to try an acrylic on just the middle fingernail. I want it as short as is feasible for it to still be effective.

[Doug Young]

I'm pretty sloppy about length these days. I prefer the tone of them when they're pretty short, but I get lazy and let them grow, and it doesn't bother me unless I'm going to record something. Right now, they're maybe somewhere in the middle, and I measure them as 3/32nds past my fingertip, using the "NailScale" a cool little measuring gizmo I got from somewhere. I should use it more often to try to be more consistent. 2/32nds or even a tad less is probably a better goal, for me.

But of course it's all individual. Some people prefer really long nails, some no nails at all.

[anton]

Originally Posted by Doug Young

For what it's worth, Anton, I often ask my nail person for thicker. Just like a heavier pick, you get a fatter tone.

Yea I thinking I remember you saying that at some point in the past when we were talking. Maybe I am over thinking this... If I keep playing perhaps my fingers will sort it out.

[jomaynor]

Originally Posted by Doug Young

I'm pretty sloppy about length these days. I prefer the tone of them when they're pretty short, but I get lazy and let them grow, and it doesn't bother me unless I'm going to record something. Right now, they're maybe somewhere in the middle, and I measure them as 3/32nds past my fingertip, using the "NailScale" a cool little measuring gizmo I got from somewhere. I should use it more often to try to be more consistent. 2/32nds or even a tad less is probably a better goal, for me.

But of course it's all individual. Some people prefer really long nails, some no nails at all.

Thanks for the info.