singemonkey wrote:
Bob, it's amazing how quickly you can get used to a thumb-pick. And it really helps get that percussive, bass fiddle kind of sound when you're palm muting the three lowest strings. One of these days I must figure out this whole nail reinforcement malarkey. I'm sure it's a much bigger problem on the higher tension steel string acoustics you're playing.
You think? Am I playing much heavier strings than you? I use 13s on the Larry and the Morgan, 12s on the Smoothtalker. What's taking strain are the thumb and the index finger - the index finger having to deal with the wound 3rd string. I have little notches worn into the nails on those two digits.
There are various approaches. Bruce Cockburn coats his nails with superglue. Richard Thompson doesn't use nails at all. Keeps them short (so short they don't strike the strings) and uses a thumb pick when he's not hybrid picking. So clearly it is possible to even out the string volumes and clearly there is more than one way to skin this particular alligator.
Martin Carthy uses his left hand as much as possible when not playing the guitar so as to preserve his nails.
Dunno what strings most of these guys use though. Simpson plays with 13s but he uses the bionic finger nails. Most of them have long scale necks because those hold the slack-key tunings a little better. Carthy is the odd one out here, tuning his 6th string down to C on a relatively short scale Martin 000-18.
So no one way.
