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  #1  
Old 07-01-2009, 05:43 PM
Mixolydian Mixolydian is offline
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Red face fret finger protector for sore or damaged finger

I wanted to say thanks to jackstrat for posting that info about the fret hand finger protector, Tory Red Cap - Finger Pads. He mentions some other things to try and I list them again below.

I have one finger that never gets enough callous on it and always gets sore. A permanent groove is etched where the strings contact and it never toughens up. I can only play for a short time then I can’t play for a couple of days.

I have tried athletic tape, doubled – it wears through and gets sticky after a few slides,

Breatheright strips rapped around the tip of the finger and it worked, but too hard of plastic
It would be great if I could find some strong adhesive like that and use it with a piece of leather where you could remove it after you are finished playing. Anyone know of some strong removable adhesive? That might be the ticket.

finger gloves - too flimsy

Swingline finger protectors would be my second choice after Tory.

I would try the GalaxyGuitar Product ZT-1 but for $78 each it is a bit too steep. And what is the deal that you can’t return it? They say for sanitary reasons, that is a bunch of bull, they could re-sterilize it if they wanted to. What if it doesn’t work as advertised, you are stuck with $78 out the window.

So, I really like the Tory product except I do a lot of sliding on the strings in my playing style and even though I can slide with these, it is really too much resistance. So, I tried putting baby oil on the strings and that worked great until the oil wears of and then you have to apply more oil.
So I glued a piece of soft leather on the tip, with the rough side out (the smooth side slips too much), trimmed it down small enough so it would not touch the adjacent strings and it works great. I can do pull offs pretty well with it. I used flexible glue so you can still feel the string through it.

The only thing I could do better is super glue the leather directly to my finger. I’m sure the people at work wouldn’t find that weird! I think it would drive me batty wearing that all day long.
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Old 04-17-2010, 04:05 PM
moconno1 moconno1 is offline
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I would think that putting something between your fingertips and the strings would definitely take away from your ability to 'feel' your instrument.
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Old 04-17-2010, 04:09 PM
edman edman is offline
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Does this happen on every guitar you play?
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Old 04-17-2010, 04:13 PM
D. Dubya D. Dubya is offline
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I got a wicked bad fingertip cut once and was afraid I wouldn't be able to play for a week or two. I picked up some "New Skin Liquid Bandage" at Wal-Mart and it worked like a dream. It's kinda similar to super glue, and comes in a glass bottle with a brush like fingernail polish. You just paint it all over the fingertip, let it dry, paint on another layer, and so on. With a pretty bad cut, I used four or five layers and it was awesome. It felt just like having a slightly stiff, thick callus. I would highly recommend giving it a shot.

God bless - DW
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Old 04-17-2010, 04:28 PM
Turp Turp is offline
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This may be a silly question, but have you considered that you could be fretting the instrument too firmly or its setup needs adjusting?

I ask this because I have had to learn more relaxed fretting and string attack because unnesessary tension in the hands can really interfere with smoothness and fluid like playing.
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Old 04-17-2010, 04:31 PM
skatalite skatalite is offline
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Try using nylon strings.
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Old 04-17-2010, 05:47 PM
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ljguitar ljguitar is offline
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Hi Mixolydian…

First of all, Hello and welcome to the group! Notice it's your first post and already you are getting help you needed...

Welcome to the forum...


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Old 04-17-2010, 05:52 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by moconno1 View Post
I would think that putting something between your fingertips and the strings would definitely take away from your ability to 'feel' your instrument.
And moconno1…
You almost snuck in - noticed it's your first post too, and already you are making suggestions to help.

Welcome to the forum and we are glad you joined.

I think sometimes it's a choice of adapt or don't play (especially during a healing episode) so many of us learn to adapt. I teach acoustic guitar, and there are times that some of my older students (50s & 60s) begin to adapt to injury.

I had a friend who tore off his picking thumb-nail (after it was smashed in a work accident). We had to vamp for him for several months with flat picks, then with superglue, and finally the side of the thumb toughened up as the nail grew out (he's a fingerstyler who would not give up). He was not as proficient, but he was playing...


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Old 04-17-2010, 11:10 PM
D. Dubya D. Dubya is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Turp View Post
This may be a silly question, but have you considered that you could be fretting the instrument too firmly or its setup needs adjusting?
Great point - This is a very real possibility. My first acoustic was a real finger slicer.
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What I Got:
Larrivee Mahogany/Spruce Satin Parlor
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Martin DSS-17
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Fender Special Run Standard Jazz Bass - Flame Maple top - Tobacco Burst (Moderately modified)
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