Artificial Nails

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Artificial Nails

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rojarosguitar

Posts: 243
Joined: Dec. 8 2010

Artificial Nails

I do use artificial nails. Depending on the state of affairs I have either i, m and a equipped with acrylic nails glued on with glue dots, sometimes, if it hits my thumb, also the thumb.

It's more difficult to get good material for the thumb. I ordered one specifically for guitarists, but this one breaks easily. The others I got in a set from Amazon.de (they are what was called ABS quality) and they are absolutely superb, in durability and sound. For the first time in my life I can play with the (almost) sound I envision. Well, I would prefer the sound of natural nails, it's more sparkling, but with my frail nails I don't get anything, so I'm glad having a workable solution...

I should add that the best glue dots are contrary to what I believed not the super thin ones. At the moment I use some that even have a kind of a foam-like carrier material and are actually quite thick. When they came I didn't believe I could even use them,but I tried and they advanced to my favored ones because they stick well to my nails and almost too well to the artificial ones. The little gap that results from their thickness is something I had to adjust to, but now I enjoy to be able to play 2-4 days without having to redo them.

And I absolutely favor glue dots over super glue. Why? Because with the super glue, when an artificial nail went off, it took a thin layer of my own nail with it, and the result was that my nails became paper thin within short period of time. As long as they stay they feel better when fixated wit super glue, but the overall result was disastrous. I'm still recovering my nails from this experiment...

The downside of the thing is that it looks a bit strange. I had to explain to my students in the school that my nails are not a sign of any perverted sexual orientation but of my being a guitar player. That cooled their interest out totally ...:D

And that's how it looks ... today (no thumb this time),. The white color comes mainly from the glue dots; the nails by themselves are whitish bunt quite as strongly.

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Music is a big continent with different lascapes and corners. Some of them I do visit frequently, some from time to time and some I know from hearsay only ...

A good musical instrument is one that inspires one to express as free as possible

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Nov. 26 2014 12:43:08

Ricardo

Posts: 14825
Joined: Dec. 14 2004
From: Washington DC

RE: Artificial Nails (in reply to rojarosguitar)

Glad they work for you (somehow, though hard to imagine the tone being ideal). When you are ready to get on the right track, I recomend leaving youself a good month without that junk on there to grow a decent nail out, protecting only with cyanoacrilate glue. Once they grow you can work on shaping. I promise it will be fine forever after. Just about all my colleagues that have done what you are doing, after years, finally came around and see the light.

Meantime, happy playing and carefull not to rip your entire nail off with rasgueado when you get the strings caught up behind that gap! yikes! (yes it happens often and it's gross)

Ricardo

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Nov. 26 2014 15:40:42

Sr. Martins

Posts: 3079
Joined: Apr. 4 2011

RE: Artificial Nails (in reply to rojarosguitar)

That looks halloween-ish.. looks like empty fingers with floating nails

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Nov. 26 2014 16:12:36

Blondie#2

Posts: 530
Joined: Sep. 14 2010

RE: Artificial Nails (in reply to Ricardo)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Ricardo
Meantime, happy playing and carefull not to rip your entire nail off with rasgueado when you get the strings caught up behind that gap! yikes! (yes it happens often and it's gross)

Yeah I cannot see how this is viable for flamenco really - classical maybe.

Years ago I experimented with plastic stick on nails and remember one gig with one flying off whilst I was on stage.

These days i just use Opi nail envy to protect but then I am not accompanying regularly. If I was I'd probably do the glue thing too.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Nov. 26 2014 17:42:51

Morante

Posts: 2182
Joined: Nov. 21 2010

RE: Artificial Nails (in reply to rojarosguitar)

Unless you play for dance, there is no need for nail protection. Many years ago, Román Vicenti told to keep them short and file them every day with a very fine file, eliminating the slightest nick. I follow his advice.

I play steel strings every day, acoustic and electric and have no problems with my nails, which are not naturally strong.

When I used to play for dance, many years ago, I constantly broke my second nail, reinforced or not. I studied the problem, changed my technique and stopped breaking nails.

Listen to Ricardo: people with vast experience in the real world know what works. No sense in reinventing the wheel.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Nov. 26 2014 18:16:02

rojarosguitar

Posts: 243
Joined: Dec. 8 2010

RE: Artificial Nails (in reply to rojarosguitar)

Many thanks everybody ... I see these nails only as a passage until my nails recover from being almost paper thin ... I'm not 100% happy with the tone and I noticed the danger of getting stuck in the gap behind ...

I try to play carefully and hope to get rid of the plastic as soon as possible. But I'm happy I can play at all for the time being. Thanks again, especially to Ricardo.

_____________________________

Music is a big continent with different lascapes and corners. Some of them I do visit frequently, some from time to time and some I know from hearsay only ...

A good musical instrument is one that inspires one to express as free as possible

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Nov. 26 2014 21:33:17