After 2 years of practicing/playing almost every day, my fingertips are always tender for hours afterward. And they're not pretty. Any suggestions?
Left hand, of course!
A lot of folks use a spray on product called Fingerease. My dad used on his guitars. Have not seen any negatives although i havent really done a lot of research on it either. Sprag on, wipe off. Supposed to clean strings and fretboard, lubircation supposedly speeds playing action and acts as a conditioner for your fingertips.
I don't understand why you're not getting callouses on the tips. Even if you're pressing too hard, they should be numb. I've only been playing for three months and I only had your problem for a few weeks.
Seems strange to me too!
No calluses building up? And do you have a pair of grooves (railroad tracks) on the tips of ypur fingers? How long do you play for each day?
My index and little finger are calloused and smooth. The middle 2 are rough and have tracks. After a manicure , which I rarely treat myself to, they all look really nice. I play an hour a day on average. Chording is hardest on my fingers.
Your description sounds a lot like my left hand fingertips. But they aren't tender or sore after practicing. Interesting.
Sherryc I have the same problem. Even practicing guitar will have my finger tips hurting within thirty minutes of practice. They're usually sore till the next day.Sometimes I just play till I can't fret at all from the pain.My fingers all four barely callous at all.Then snag one on a string and Ohhhh halleluYah,Glory to God, sweet mother Mary Jesus,as my Church Pastor would say whew that hurts! I just live with it now.I personally would rather hurt and learn to play this Mandolin for Messiah than to quit and walk away never Praising him with the sweet Music that it makes.Trust Me The Mandolin is the Hardest thing I have ever tried to learn to.Ohhhh,but One Day,One Day,I want to light up the heavens praising and worshipping Him with this lil box called Mandolin.
I have to confess my pinky has a minimal callus. It doesn't get the workout it should. I play mostly melodies with 8th notes. My pinky has a few tunes it gets involved with. That said, I use a fingernail file on my calluses most days. Just enough to keep them smooth. I also make sure to work the file into the tracks. I don't notice any tenderness or pain in the tips till I get to the 4 hour mark. However, pain and 'crunchyness' in the knuckles, most days. It doesn't help that I have a death grip on the steering wheel of 40 ton truck for 10 hours a day.
After 30 minutes of practicing. https://goo.gl/photos/g3AbWQbVArUVFNHA6
Oops! Did I post the wrong pic?
Trying this again. https://photos.app.goo.gl/sUhap80muZTUcgck2
Wow, Sherry, it even looks painful. I think mine look like that after a couple hours, maybe. I'm getting ready to practice now, I'll take a before and after 30 minutes or so. Have you had the action checked on your mandolin? The action may be too high. Also, I've recently begun to seriously heed all the advice about using the lightest touch to get a string fretted. When I first started, I was mashing everything down very hard, and it's taking a little concentrated effort to fret lightly, just as much as necessary for a clean sound and no more. Not sure if any of that helps you, but I'd make sure I have the action as low as possible with no buzzing, and make sure I'm fretting only as hard as necessary and no more.
Sherry, when I posted a picture of my fingers (looking very much like yours) in the main forum about a year ago, I was strongly advised that I was using too much pressure when fretting. Pete Martin has a video on left hand technique that includes an exercise that is supposed to help train ones fingers to use minimal pressure. I admit I tried it, but I still have ruts in my fingertips like yours and I don't think I relaxed my fretting pressure by much, if any. Here's the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_c...&v=Nmyx1NVTDPc
I just tried it, and after 30 minutes, my fingertips look about as battered as yours, sherry. I made an attempt to monitor the pressure I used, and I used a lighter pressure maybe about half the time. It's hard to condition myself to a light touch. Top photo is before practicing, I hadn't practiced since noon. Lower photo is after a steady practice from 8:30 to 9:00 pm. The callouses on my fingertips are very tough and very thick, they represent about five years of non-stop daily playing guitar & mandloin (2 years mando). They still get sore after a few hours of playing.
So, what does everyone think about Spragster's suggestion?
I might also have my action checked, as Mark suggested. Will any good music store work for this?
Choctaw, I hope you found some things to try. There's no need to suffer if you don't have to.
I haven't tried Fingerease. Nor any of the many remedies that are often mentioned. But they might work.
I just looked at your link, Hank. I'll try that, but I can't imagine touching the strings lightly.
Sherry, My fingers look much like yours after playing. They used to feel sore after 30 minutes. Now there is little or no discomfort after 2 hours of playing. I use an emory board on the callusses, (callusi?), whenever I feel a bump or a layer is threatening to peel off. I also keep my nails short. Wearing a groove in my nail can sneak up on me and it sucks. I think of it like walking or lifting weights. A little soreness isn't a problem. Pain that lasts an unreasonable length of time means you're doing something wrong. BJ
The Emory board was a great suggestion - unless you file down too far. (Ouch!)
Something else occurred to me: are you sensitive to metals? Does cheap jewelry irritate your skin? If so, there's a chance the strings do also. Along the same lines, next time you change strings, maybe consider trying flat-wound strings. Smoother and easier on the fingertips.
Louise, I'm not sensitive to metal, but will consider the strings you suggested. I spoke to a guy today about checking the action. I'll try to get that done next week.
Sherry, if you get your action checked, make sure the luthier knows how to work on a mandolin. I had the luthier at Murphy's Music reset the neck on my 30 yo Gibson guitar, and he did a great job. Lowered the action and made me want to play it again (though not as much as the mandolin). He said he has worked on mandolins, too. I bought my mandolin already set up (very well, I might add) so I have not need his services for that. Might want to check them out since we're in the same area.
Thanks, Fred. I actually went to Murphy's yesterday and spoke with Don. Is that who worked on your guitar?
Yes, Don's the luthier there and I was happy with his work on my guitar. Are you going to use him or did you find someone else? It's slim pickin's in the DFW area.
Yes, I'm using Don. Thanks for the endorsement.
I FINALLY got my mandolin to the luthier this afternoon. He shaved 3/32 off the bridge and said it should be much easier to play. Thanks to those who suggested I have my setup checked. Right now my fingers are sore from jamming at the senior center, so I'll check it out tomorrow.
3/32". Wow. That's significant.
Agreed - Wow. Don took a lot off the bridge. It'll be interesting to hear what you think about playing now.
Fred, I had a lesson today and didn't play much, but once I got used to the different feel, playing did seem easier. Hopefully, I can get in a good practice session tomorrow to thoroughly test the new setup.
Wow, Sherry. 3/32's is pretty significant. That should make it much easier on your finger tips (at least I hope so).
I'm resurrecting this thread because I have a similar, but different, left hand finger issue. Tips of 1 and 4 fingers are smooth; however, 2 and 3 are not. There are ugly callouses, that sort of peel back, like a flap. I'm always picking at and chewing on them, although I try not to. If I actually peel one back, it's really tender underneath. Sometimes I use an emory board on them and that's helpful. I had my action checked and changed a while back. Then, after developing a buzz in a couple of strings, the bridge was replaced. Louise had suggested flat wound strings. I still haven't ordered new strings, so I can try those. I'm wondering, though, do you think this is more of an issue with a cheap instrument than it would be with a better one? Light fretting doesn't work for me, as I just can't get a clear tone. My teacher is constantly after me about releasing pressure when I shouldn't be. Maybe that's a whole different issue, but I feel it is related.
I don't know, Sherry. My 2 and 3 fingers' calluses seem thicker and firmer than 1 and 4, but they don't peel off. I remember when I started with the mandolin, my calluses did tend to peel off, especially when wet. And beneath was that soft, tender skin. So what you describe sounds familiar. But I don't know that I did anything to get those calluses to be actual live, thick skin instead of dead, peel-off 'attachments'. Maybe it just happened when I wasn't thinking about it? Not much help, I know.
Those callouses, I think are a non-issue, Sherry. You need them. Just be glad you have them! I understand what you are saying about "ugly callouses, that sort of peel back, like a flap" - that's because if you are playing as much as you should be and/or practicing as much as you should be, your callouses get thicker and thicker. Callouses consist of dead skin cells. They will eventually get thick enough to be in the condition you describe. When you pick and pull at them, you are in danger of ripping away most or all of the callous material. I've done it too. My fingers do the same as yours. Eventually, your index finger will get around to doing it as well. For myself, although I use the pinky a lot on both guitar and mandolin, my pinky never gets that much on it. But, the other three are now very often in the stage you describe - rarely or never all at the same time. Sometimes I'll clip a bit of the "flap" from near the nail, then use an emory board. Clipping is not really necessary though, as a coarse emory board can smooth out hard, deadened skin in no time. And that is the type of care you should make habitual, IMO. Use an emory board to keep your callouses relatively smooth and under control.
I would be willing to show a picture of the "ugly callouses, that sort of peel back, like a flap" except for the fact that I just used the board on them last night. This happens regularly with my callouses, where they contact the fingernail. EDITED AGAIN to say that I was away from home, working in Dallas the past several days and some of my callouses were in that condition. It's hard to force myself not to pick at them a little, and wait til I get home to file them properly, but that's the key to maintenance. EDITED to say that in the ugly pics I posted above, in the after pic, on the index finger, you can sort of see the ridge just beginning near the nail.
so I played about 2 hours at the jam yesterday, my fingers are tender but I can't stop trying to work on songs that they played yesterday. Oh well pain is a sign I'm alive right?
A couple of thoughts, Sherry. First, hasn't Texas been cold enough this winter that you people have been having to try to figure out what to do with pilot lights, snow shovels, and hot chocolate? If you are using the indoor heat more than usual, your air is dryer and your skin, too. That alone could be the problem. Now, as to this: "I'm wondering, though, do you think this is more of an issue with a cheap instrument than it would be with a better one?" Hmmmmm, does MAS affect the hands? Yessiree, nothing wrong with those fingers a new instrument won't cure! More seriously, if your current instrument is making you fight with it to produce each note it could be a contributing factor. You had it looked at not so long ago, and if it is set up as well as it can be, that's as good as it gets. I'm so curious to see what you have to say after trying the Collings this week. I hope it is well set up, well strung, and ready to give you a fair trial. Will she let you take it for a few days?
Louise, I'm curious - and anxious! - also. I don't know if she'll offer to let me bring the MF home or not. I won't be surprised either way. I appreciate your Honda Accord analogy. It looks like the MF is the bottom of the line. Not particularly appealng. On the other hand, I wouldn't be at all embarrassed to drive an Accord.
You mentioned the cold. We've had no snow here, but it has been very cold for us - and dry.
One more thing - maybe! I realized last night I could go through my regular practice regimen comfortably - until I started working on 3rd position exercises. My fingertips did not like those at all. This pain has no connection with an earlier thread I started about 3rd position pain. My teacher pointed out I wasn't moving my thumb along with my index finger, which was causing the hand pain. The current issue is fingertip tenderness when playing 3rd position exercises.
As you move up the fingerboard, the strings are progressively higher, and need more oomph to fret. Probably why your fingers are unhappy. As to "bottom of the line," that doesnt mean "poorly made!" Remember that as you move up, a lot of the money goes for more highly figured woods, fancier tuners and tailpiece, more binding, elaborate flowerpots on the headstock, etc. While those things are lovely, they're not essential. Put them on the list for a custom-build someday.
I really think Sherry's only solution is to upgrade mandolins (we all give into MAS eventually)
Kevin, my husband may hunt you down! Consider this fair warning! ( I do like how you think.)
lol, he can get in line behind my wife who is still a "little" perturbed over my upgrade in december
Louise, I have videos of my playing both instruments today - the Collings MF and my Alvarez 100. When I find Henry's instructions for posting a video in a social group, I'll do it. Or maybe I'll post them in the Collings thread. Pretty sure I know how to do that - unless I have the two confused, of course.
So Sherry, at least tell us what you thought about it!
Remember what curiosity did to the cat, Louise! I'll do that in the Forum, though, where others may have an interest.
