Home › Forums › Guitar Techniques and General Discussions › Gel Nails with Steel String
- This topic has 10 replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 1 year, 5 months ago by Liz.
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October 28, 2022 at 6:56 pm #323647
I’m a beginner, and would appreciate any feedback on learning to play guitar with artificial nails. Does it help at all, or is it better to just use fleshy fingertips and no nail at all. My natural nails are very thin and won’t hold up to guitar. I used to use and love gel nails, but I can’t use acrylic (wish I could). Anyone else wear gel nails successfully with guitar?
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October 28, 2022 at 10:54 pm #323651
Hey Elizabeth
Great question and one that you’ll a myriad of answers on. Bottom line you will need to experiment and find what works best for you
What I’ve found is that without some kind of coating on the nail, you will likely end up with very damaged nails – dependent on how hard you attack the strings. Get into some heavy Delta blues and things gets really intense and your nails will take a beating.
It will also depend on the gauge of strings as well, if you use 10’s on your acoustic, it won’t be as tough on them but with the way that I play, I end up with the strings slapping the fingerboard if you use anything other that 11s or 12sPersonally, I don’t have the money or time to run to a nail salon. I’ve been using the method that James Taylor describes in the 1st video below only I embellish it with a nail resin called RC Strings NR45 Resin Powder, purchased from Strings By Mail
I don’t go quite as elaborate as the 2nd video shows but I’ve figured out what works best for meFor glue, Super Glue by Loc-Tite or Gorilla is better than most other glues
Notes ring out loud and clear with this method
https://www.stringsbymail.com/rc-strings-nr45-resin-powder-17213.html
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October 29, 2022 at 12:04 pm #323669
Thanks for the resources, GnLguy. I’ll check it out.
Liz
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October 29, 2022 at 4:09 am #323658
Hi Elizabeth,
The recommendation above is certainly one way to go. If it works for James Taylor, it will probably work for you too. I personally don’t like the idea of putting that stuff on my nails, particularly the glue which does have side effects on your nails in the long run. I have done it only once to “repair” a broken nail two days before a gig.
Another option you may want to explore is that of fingerpicks, either metal or plastic. Dunlop makes several models.
But before going that route I would first make sure that you can’t grow nails. Contrary to what most people think, you don’t have to grow very long nails. Half a millimetre is actually enough. I personally never exceed a millimetre. The length of the nails will impact the sound you can or cannot produce, but it is very subtle and as a beginner you certainly don’t want to worry about that yet. Also, make sure you file your nails instead of cutting them. I don’t know why, but I know for a fact that filing the nails make them stronger and cutting them makes them weaker.
String gauge is also important. Custom light gauge is probably the way to go for you, possibly even extra light. Additionally, they will be gentler on your fretting fingers.I don’t recommend using fleshy fingertips only because you will severely lack volume. But that too is ultimately a matter of preference.
Hope this helps.
Regards,
JM-
October 29, 2022 at 1:51 pm #323679
Thanks so much for the insights, JM!
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October 29, 2022 at 12:41 pm #323672
Hi Elizabeth,
The recommendation above is certainly one way to go. If it works for James Taylor, it will probably work for you too. I personally don’t like the idea of putting that stuff on my nails, particularly the glue which does have side effects on your nails in the long run. I have done it only once to “repair” a broken nail two days before a gig.
In response to what Jean-Michael stated, it is very important to not cover the entire nail to avoid the damage mentioned.
I only cover about a third of the nail and I always use alcohol on the nail before applying the mesh; this ensure that no moisture would be trapped that could lead to nail fungus
As Jean-Michael also mentioned, you only need about a miliimeter so I keep a good metal file handyI’ve tried many thing to make my nails stronger but nothing worked; I love playing fingerstyle and I had to find what worked for me. However having played as long as I have, I’ve never been able to acclimate to fingerpicks – that might be an option for you since you are beginner. It’s worth a try
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October 29, 2022 at 1:52 pm #323680
Thanks again, GnLguy. I appreciate your thoughts. Liz
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November 1, 2022 at 3:03 pm #323806
Brian has pointed out several times that you don’t need long fingernails to play fingerstyle. I cut mine so that my fngernail is only slightly longer than my finger tip. In slow motion, the fleshy end of my finger hits the string first, then the nail acts like a kind of backing to firm up my finger tip. Eventually, your fingertips get a little tougher, but nothing like your left hand fingertips (assuming you are right-handed). Have a look at Skyla Burrell’s left-hand fingertips:
Sunjamr Steve
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November 10, 2022 at 12:29 pm #325265
Oh, wow! Just seeing this. Sorry, I missed your earlier visual, Sunjamr. Those are some well earned callouses. Trying to get basics and figure out if having longer nails will help with my ability to land cleanly on the notes. I keep mine pretty short because they don’t hold up well, unless I reinforce them with gel. It gets timely and expensive. Thanks for the illustration!
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November 10, 2022 at 5:00 pm #325293
Hey Liz, I’ve played fingerstyle guitar for some while now and never felt the need to grow or use my nails to get a clear sound. The nails on my picking hand are admittedly slightly longer than the actual finger tips but more importantly it’s about fretting cleanly and then striking the string with the fingertip flesh confidently at the right angle to achieve your tone.
If you check some of my postings you’ll hopefully see what I mean.Richard
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November 11, 2022 at 9:47 am #325323
Hi Richard! Thanks for the reply. I will check out your postings. Thanks again! Liz
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