Musician Gear & Tech Discussion

i keep a bit of nail on my index, middle, and ring finger of my picking hand. just enough where i can get some nail into the stroke but not so much as to prevent me from using just the fleshy fingertip. i used to keep 'em longer but they'd often break when playing b-ball.

i've always gone au natural w my nails.

if you decide to keep your nails long enough to use them, it's important how you trim them. you really want to make sure to keep enough support at the SIDES and not go for too much of point.

for me, nails come in handy playing my GODIN Mulitiiac Duet nylon string but i also sometimes find them helpful when playing bass (elec...not upright).

I played electric guitar without a pick for almost 2 years, around the time I graduated from high school. I would trim the thumb nail especially to use as a pick for aggressive downstroke stuff. I would also trim the fingernails for picking, but they weren't as important. Also, around that time I started a job where I ran the meat slicer all day in a deli. I had the protein from the deli meat under my nails all day, then I would clean them out with a brush when I got home. My nails were indestructible at that time. I eventually gave up playing without the pick, because it wasn't loud or aggressive enough for the people I was playing with at the time.
I still play bass and classical guitar without a pick, though.

Also, around that time I started a job where I ran the meat slicer all day in a deli. I had the protein from the deli meat under my nails all day, then I would clean them out with a brush when I got home. My nails were indestructible at that time.

I'm gonna sleep with mittens stuffed with ground beef on my hands for now on.

I would have gotten to that, if I wasn't on my lunch break and my phone wasn't so tedious.

Job 1- pizza and wings shop. Handling grease and flour all day, moderate dishwashing - brittle nails

Job 2- deli meats (cooked, I mean cooked. You get it?). Very little dishwashing. Indestructible nails.

Job 3- butcher shop. Raw meat, everywhere. Lots of cleaning, with harsh chemicals. Dishwashing, all the time. Brittle nails, again.

I would highly recommend cleaning with a a nail brush, daily. That promotes a healthy environment for growth under there.

I know classical players tend to want fingernails... and I play bouree and a few others... but i'm more of a mark knopfler type finger picker. I have absolutely zero fingernails. literally less than zero. I'm sure there are advantages/disadvantages to either approach, but just pointing out that you def don't "need" them. I think the proof is in the puddin'... if you sound good you sound good. That said, I think (obvious alert) it's more rare to not have nails.

If you want better nails put a good pinch of Knox unflavored gelatin in your hot beverages a couple times per day.
Thickens and toughens weak nails. I had to stop that due to super thick nails now.

If you wear through a nail (like your index fingernail) a medium super-glue from a modelers shop placed exactly where you need it fixed, then dump a good pinch of baking soda onto it. It solidifies instantly, rock hard. Then quickly file it to shape. Quick fix if you've got a gig coming up.

I went through a thing with my nails years ago after I heard that Stanley Clark had a regimen for that. Didn't seem to to make much difference though.

Play bass about 75% with fingers, guitar about 25% (darn that Jeff Beck) and just keep my nails trimmed.

Talbot