Spatula Fingers

[ginsambo]

I bit my nails, always have, compulsively can't stand nails, gross and full of crude, women hate it though. I don't fecking care though half the time most of the skin is missing or they are green or covered in oil, but it's not like I have any fungal diseases and my feet are in good shape and I heel quick. Sometimes I smash my first finger nail to bits at work and rip the top off it and it's bleeding everywhere, I curse myself that night as playing becomes so painful. But years of nail breakage and biting have taken their toll.

I have spatula fingers. I measured my index finger, it is 7/8" wide at the tip with a flat and board profile on the callous at the tip. I also have a rollling left hand technique, rather than a lifting and hammering on one, but I am doing my best to change this.

So my question is, are Jumbo frets really my best option?

See, problem I have been having is I play play like lightening on a Strat or my home built Stars with smaller gauge fretwire, but on the faster Pro Mod and Jackson necks I just cannot for the life of me get the position changes down as fast when doing fast picking and stuff as the higher frets are slowing me down and dragging.

I also suffered years of intonation problems, with my technique on Jumbo Frets, although I play lighter these days.

I love Jacksons and the Pro Mods though, the necks are great and I have a bunch of them, play them everyday, but the honest truth is that I am fastest, more comfortable and have less intonation problems on a straight 10" or 12" radius with traditional Fender Fretwire and a smaller Fender 2 3/16" heel. The width at the nut is OK, but I find it a stretch at the heel end of the neck. I don't like too low an action either as it ruins the tone and it's too much maintenance with the fret wear. I just find you get more MPG with a higher action.

Is my technique just all to feck or do I just have to accept reality that Perhaps Jackson are not built for me? Or am I getting old?

I would truely love one of those pre pro Charvel with a 2 3/16" heel and a flat radius. I truely would and I plan on building a few similar guitars to see how I get on with them.

It's not really an issue apart from long passages of speed. I heard Chris Holmes has similar problems, but I know if I mention him these days I will get a hounding. Has anyone else ever had any similar problems? Seriously? Or it it just a technque thing, or should I really try using Bitex or something to get a more ponted fingertip profile? I'm not about to sell my Jackson and Charvels, I just thought, maybe I should grow my nails a bit to be able play them at their full potential.

[ginsambo]

Sorry that post sounded gross. Just curious to know how other people get on with them, mainly if 'Normal' fingertips make a huge difference.

Not only in finding the frets fast, but really sliding down or up them. I just thing you have more chance of a correct location and less friction if your fingertips are narrower? Obviously the guitar is getting less pleasure but you know...

Soz, this post is gross too.

[RR2772]

If you can't play well on a certain guitar that is just the way it sometimes is.

Going back to about 1995 when I decide to sell my US Gibson '76 Explorer reproduction I got an offer for a trade for a homebuilt Fender Stratocaster. After some thinking I decided to go for it and went to bring it home.

It had a 1990 Eric Clapton Fender neck and a Schecter ash body ('80s I think) with homebuild pickups.

However even though it was an ok guitar as for playing it was kind of akward as I was used to be playing 2 hum guitars for the metal stuff I was into. I began to upgrade it and kind of settled on Fender '69 pickups by 2000 or so. Slowly though I got very used to be playing it and along with RR2772 I play the same stuff and it is quite natural I would say though I do not play a lot of metal style on my Strat.

I have tried other Clapton Strats and it was like the neck was a bit different for some reason.

If you stick with the guitar you will get used to it but it takes a lot of time.

I don't have nail problems though I keep them short and my fingers are mostly clean.

[leftykingv2]

Grab a USA KV2 and give it a shot they have medium frets. Also man I don't want to sound like a dick or preachy but you've really got to make an effort to take care of your hands. Your Fretting hand especially.

[ginsambo]

Grab a USA KV2 and give it a shot they have medium frets. Also man I don't want to sound like a dick or preachy but you've really got to make an effort to take care of your hands. Your Fretting hand especially.

Lefty you teach right? Yep this is what I figured. Never could grow my nails to play classical when I was learning as a just teenager, a quarter of a century ago. My teacher used to be pissed actually and I found it hard to keep up, simply because I couldn't replicate the tone or clarity with my spatula fingers. Took my Trinity Grade 3 exam and give it rest after that, switching to electric as the tone sucked and I was never gonna sound like my teacher due to my lack of nails.

Regarding the electric, I just kind of thought, it has to make a difference surely and obviously with non finger style it is not your picking hands so much as your fretting, especially with the fast stuff.

RR, I have my fingers elbow deep in other people's shit most days, lol, now it's maybe around 36F during the day and wet. Gloves are worse than nothing as they get wet through. In a few months in mid winter my whole right hand swells up wth chilblains and every knuckle joint is cracked open flesh and bleeding. I have favorites of all types really. My Warmoth neck Star is nice, it has small vintage frets but a 10-16 radius. My Japanese neck Strat is a 7.25" and the most easy to play but not so shreddable and my 10" radius mexi strat is a good all round guitar. I also love V neck contours with a 7.25" radius, but for speed, they are hardly brilliant. I do love the pro mods though and it's horses for courses, you can never get a one guitar fits all. Hence why one has so many guitars.

I'II pass by and check out a KV2, I know my model series and I think the SL3 have the jumboist jumbo frets and the pro mods slightly less jumbo sized jumbos.

[leftykingv2]

I do make my living teaching guitar. Classical is a way different animal than Metal or rock, blues. I actually Majored in Jazz in college and I have a masters. But that classical stuff is insane. I don't know what to say if you have to make a living working with your hands other than do the best you can to keep them safe. My friend who has been a guitar player for 50+ years has bad arthritis in his hands and he has a machine that heats up wax really hot. You dip you hands in it for a few minutes and then pull them out. You let the wax harden and then peel it off. This machine warms his hands to the bone and helps with healing and his joint pain. They're relatively cheap and easy to find. Maybe pick one up for yourself bro. Just a thought. Good luck man and take care of yourself. http://www.walmart.com/ip/11079872?w...613110&veh=sem