Calluses effect on sound & playing and possible remedies?

[RyanRC]

Hello all

I starting playing Guitar just this past Christmas just for personal pleasure and as I was a drummer years ago and for many years I know the training process’s and am starting off at the beginning and doing what I can when I can to get the basics I need down and focus on getting those and my technique on the various levels correct from the start so that will not be an issue later.

From all this I have been building up calluses on my fingertips over time to this point and for whatever that has been personally physically wise it has never been a bother to me.

I would say though that as I cannot practice or play on any regular amount as my life is just like that it would not surprise me that I probably will never be one that will ever play them away and so there will probably always be a certain amount I am dealing with.

So as mentioned personal wise they are not a bother to me in any way, but as I have had the unusual opportunity to do a lot over the past two weeks they have gotten rather thick and at this point I am starting to notice they are having an effect on my playing.

For one as they are kind of thick and ruff and uneven, they seem to not let things play or sound as smooth as they were before they got this way.

Also as they are on the tips mostly, it is a noticeable change if I ever drift off them more to the palm of my fingers.

So I am not sure if this is ever an issue for anyone else, but the one thing I tried was I took some 220 grit sandpaper and just sanded them down till they were at least flat and smooth again and this really did seem to help a lot.

So was just wondering if this is the same thing any others do (?) or if it’s a bad thing to keep doing (?) or if anyone has any better ideas for a person in the same situations as mine?


Thanks for any help.

[Goodallboy]

I’ve never had the issues you are seeming to have. My thick callouses are something that aids my playing so I’m afraid I can’t relate, and hopefully someone else can.

I do agree that filing them sounds reasonable if the thickness is bothering your fretting.

[dwasifar]

I'm not sure I understand this. In what way does it sound different? Are you having difficulty fully fretting the strings?

When I first started playing, the calluses came up as hard little lumps like grains of rice. That was temporary; eventually my fingertips simply got tough. I still get calluses, but they're not lumps anymore, just areas of tough skin. So I guess just stick with it until that happens. There's nothing wrong with sanding down the calluses if they bother you.

The only inconvenient side effect of calluses for me is that I have trouble with touch screens with my left hand.

[Matts67]

Originally Posted by dwasifar

I'm not sure I understand this. In what way does it sound different? Are you having difficulty fully fretting the strings?

When I first started playing, the calluses came up as hard little lumps like grains of rice. That was temporary; eventually my fingertips simply got tough. I still get calluses, but they're not lumps anymore, just areas of tough skin. So I guess just stick with it until that happens. There's nothing wrong with sanding down the calluses if they bother you.

The only inconvenient side effect of calluses for me is that I have trouble with touch screens with my left hand.

Same here...and sometimes I can't feel the keys when I'm typing, or the touchpad on my laptop.

[RyanRC]

Perhaps to somewhat describe the action going on, picture having a flexible piece of plastic about the thickness of a credit card then with a layer of sandpaper after that for what is making contact to the stings and how that would change the sound, and then imagine the feel transmission back to your fingers that would provide.

Perhaps is a bit of a exaggeration of whats going on, but am just trying to put into words the two things that are happening.


I would also think a pretty good contributor to the end result issues is due to how much of my playing at this point is hardly constant or precise and also regularly consists of new things I am trying to get down, so buzzing, finger muting and not 100% perfect contact in the right places which for all are something that is not a quick fix thing that will only get better with time, also makes the situation stand out more

[Dbone]

Originally Posted by RyanRC

Hello all

I starting playing Guitar just this past Christmas just for personal pleasure and as I was a drummer years ago and for many years I know the training process’s and am starting off at the beginning and doing what I can when I can to get the basics I need down and focus on getting those and my technique on the various levels correct from the start so that will not be an issue later.

From all this I have been building up calluses on my fingertips over time to this point and for whatever that has been personally physically wise it has never been a bother to me.

I would say though that as I cannot practice or play on any regular amount as my life is just like that it would not surprise me that I probably will never be one that will ever play them away and so there will probably always be a certain amount I am dealing with.

So as mentioned personal wise they are not a bother to me in any way, but as I have had the unusual opportunity to do a lot over the past two weeks they have gotten rather thick and at this point I am starting to notice they are having an effect on my playing.

For one as they are kind of thick and ruff and uneven, they seem to not let things play or sound as smooth as they were before they got this way.

Also as they are on the tips mostly, it is a noticeable change if I ever drift off them more to the palm of my fingers.

So I am not sure if this is ever an issue for anyone else, but the one thing I tried was I took some 220 grit sandpaper and just sanded them down till they were at least flat and smooth again and this really did seem to help a lot.

So was just wondering if this is the same thing any others do (?) or if it’s a bad thing to keep doing (?) or if anyone has any better ideas for a person in the same situations as mine?


Thanks for any help.

This is exactly what I had to do in the beginning. Very occasionally I still do it. Basically the act of sanding them eventually makes the actual surface of your finger tips supple but still firm and tough...It’s like it almost pushes the “toughness” you are trying to build up under the skin...This way the roughness that would otherwise be on the surface of your skin is no longer impeding your play. Before I started doing this the calluses were getting so unruly sometimes that they were catching on strings etc...Impeding my play...I know exactly what you are talking about....It was frustrating...

Only difference is I use some of my wife’s nail files.

Keep up the good fight ;-0

[dwasifar]

Originally Posted by RyanRC

Perhaps to somewhat describe the action going on, picture having a flexible piece of plastic about the thickness of a credit card then with a layer of sandpaper after that for what is making contact to the stings and how that would change the sound, and then imagine the feel transmission back to your fingers that would provide.

Perhaps is a bit of a exaggeration of whats going on, but am just trying to put into words the two things that are happening.

If the strings are being fully fretted, and fully behind the fret, then it really shouldn't matter very much soundwise what is pressing them down. If you're hearing a lot of difference, that makes me wonder if you're fretting the strings completely, or if your fingertips are spilling onto the frets rather than staying fully behind them. That was the point of my question. It's a common issue for new players. I'm guessing that as your technique improves, this will be less of a problem.

EDIT: After I posted this I saw your edit about buzzing and finger muting, and I think we're on the same page with this. As you eliminate those things from your playing, your calluses will stop affecting the sound so much.

[dwasifar]

Originally Posted by Matts67

Same here...and sometimes I can't feel the keys when I'm typing, or the touchpad on my laptop.

You should try typing on a mechanical keyboard. I use an IBM Model M.

[RyanRC]

Originally Posted by dwasifar

If the strings are being fully fretted, and fully behind the fret, then it really shouldn't matter very much soundwise what is pressing them down. If you're hearing a lot of difference, that makes me wonder if you're fretting the strings completely, or if your fingertips are spilling onto the frets rather than staying fully behind them. That was the point of my question. It's a common issue for new players. I'm guessing that as your technique improves, this will be less of a problem.

EDIT: After I posted this I saw your edit about buzzing and finger muting, and I think we're on the same page with this. As you eliminate those things from your playing, your calluses will stop affecting the sound so much.

I would say that for every mistake possible you could think of I am sure I am doing this, and even more so every time I move to a new exercise in the book I am working through...so for sure that is very much a contributing factor as well, but guess what my talking point is that it was less of problem when the Calluses were not to the point they are now.

On other thing I think is a hurt/help thing is the Guitar I am training on while I feel its a great one to do this with is a concert size I think they call it, so its just a tad on the smaller side and while I always had the feeling the strings were kinda close, I found out they are the closest ones in the Yamaha Transacoustic series which for the FS/TA is only .39" (10.0 MM).

So the hurt/help part is while this does not give me much room for error, its also forcing me to be more accurate, but then too the ultimate result seems to be that at least for my fingers I basically have to 100% bring the very end of the tips straight down to keep from touching another string and even then I still do.

So guess my point to all that is to better explain why the very tips have built up the calluses, and the rest of my fingers have not, and also that this means that is pretty much the only area I have that I can use and especially if I have to play something on the next string.

Eventually I probably will get something acoustic that is bigger and I have recently just gone through getting a American Professional Stratocaster, but for now I am training on this mostly and would also add just how much I love the sound and all other parts of the Guitar and right off too as I could tell in just playing it for one hour its a Guitar I will have for the rest of my life.

[rick-slo]

I have had calluses for brief periods in the past but only when I started up playing guitar after having taken a long break. Soon they would go away.

Helpful is a well set up guitar with action low enough that you don't have to press down on the strings very hard to prevent buzzes.

Coated strings will help a lot to reduce callus buildup (I like Elixir Nano strings).

You can sand to smooth the calluses a little but more than that may slow or prevent the fingertip's build up of it's own resistance to further calluses developing.

[dwasifar]

Originally Posted by RyanRC

So the hurt/help part is while this does not give me much room for error, its also forcing me to be more accurate, but then too the ultimate result seems to be that at least for my fingers I basically have to 100% bring the very end of the tips straight down to keep from touching another string and even then I still do.

That is exactly what you should be doing. The very tips of your fingers are where you play. Yes, later on you'll get to the point where some chords require you to press two strings with one finger, and you'll have to learn a slightly different finger position for that, but at the beginning stage, playing on your fingertips is the goal.

I was actually going to comment earlier that if your calluses are only on the tips, then your finger position is good for a beginner.

Originally Posted by RyanRC

So guess my point to all that is to better explain why the very tips have built up the calluses, and the rest of my fingers have not, and also that this means that is pretty much the only area I have that I can use and especially if I have to play something on the next string.

Don't worry, you'll get there. You're on the right road.

[nowgypsy]

I don't remember when my calluses changed to just tough pads. I describe my fingertips as leather. However I occasionally use a nail file on them to keep them smooth. If I don't layers seem to work loose and can catch on the strings.

[Earl49]

I have been playing for about 51 years now, and I need to sand my fretting hand callouses weekly to keep them smooth and avoid edges that could catch on a string. In extreme cases, you could even peel the whole callous off (ouch). I consider it part of normal fingernail maintenance. I play on average about 60 minutes a day.. Some days I miss entirely, and today I jammed with friends in the back yard for 2½ hours. My fingertips are fairly hard and do not work on touch screens very well. At this point the callouses are thick enough that I don't lose much if I miss a week of playing.

My preferred method is foam sanding block or sponge of about medium 100 grit. As it wears down it becomes smoother, more like 250 grit. The cheap ones wear out fairly quickly -- in a few weeks -- but are so cheap that it really doesn't matter. More expensive name brand like 3M last a fairly long time and seem to have the grit bonded on to the foam much better. https://www.amazon.com/Sided-Sanding.../dp/B07CGJ1YTK

[musicman1951]

The sandpaper works. A lot of players just use a nail file.

[dwasifar]

Originally Posted by Earl49

I have been playing for about 51 years now, and I need to sand my fretting hand callouses weekly to keep them smooth and avoid edges that could catch on a string. In extreme cases, you could even peel the whole callous off (ouch). I consider it part of normal fingernail maintenance. I play on average about 60 minutes a day.. Some days I miss entirely, and today I jammed with friends in the back yard for 2½ hours. My fingertips are fairly hard and do not work on touch screens very well. At this point the callouses are thick enough that I don't lose much if I miss a week of playing.

Yeah, this is me too.

When they start getting edgy, I wouldn't even call the peeling area a callus. It's more like a flake or a scale. Sometimes I trim them, sometimes I peel them, sometimes I sand them. It depends on what's handy. I can peel off a flake like that and not have any discomfort playing; the skin underneath is still hard and leathery.

The fact that both of us have trouble with touch screens leads me to wonder, are you partially ambidextrous like I am? Because I would expect most people to use their dominant hands on touch screens, whereas most players fret with their non-dominant hand. But you and I are both going for that touch screen with the non-dominant hand and its callused fingers. I'm nominally right-handed, but I use my left hand for a lot of things that most righties would do with the right.