What do the Pros do, when this happens??

[docbennett]

And no, don't quote from the Tommy Iommi school of fingertip repair...this is not nearly as serious. Thank goodness.

I did this to my Pinky finger last week, while practicing and overlearning the opening intro to "Sweet Child O'Mine". I was sick of making mistakes on the intro, so I figured about a half hour of constant repitition would give me the necessary muscle memory. And it worked. And it also did this....

After about a week, it has healed to the extent that I can play some lead with that finger. I put some of that "Nu-skin" on it also, so you see some of the residue...It just LOOKS unsanitary. :laugh:

To paraphrase John Lennon from "Helter Skelter"...I DON'T have blisters on my fingers...I got a nice sliced pinky though.

What's the worst damage you've ever done to your playing hand(s)??

 

[Mikegarveyblues]

I was working on a solo for a project with someone and I had to get it done that day. I came up with a lick that required me to slide right up the neck to a certain fret and bend it in one go. Sounded pretty good but it left a nasty blister on my left ring finger. I put super-glue on it! Daft, but it worked long enough to get the solo finished. Looked gross afterwards with bits of fluff stuck to it!

Luckily, that's been it. The occasional blister.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

Superglue that digit Doc!

I had grown my nails out on my right hand trying to be all flamenco and s**t, and I had a old bathtub that had been resurfaced with a porcelain-like material that was chipping. I was cleaning the tub one day and got a huge chip of that porcelain wedged under/into four of my right hands fingernails, blood just started pouring and there were broken chips stuck deep underneath my nails.... brutal, it took months for the chips to get pushed out!

No damage to my playing hand but, after a gig one night I pinched some arm skin in the door of my car and LOCKED IT! Keys were in the opposite pocket of my free arm, I must have stood there crying for what seemed like an eternity trying to fish the keys out of my pocket.:bawling:

 

[docbennett]

.....No damage to my playing hand but, after a gig one night I pinched some arm skin in the door of my car and LOCKED IT! Keys were in the opposite pocket of my free arm, I must have stood there crying for what seemed like an eternity trying to fish the keys out of my pocket.:bawling:

Same here...no damage to my left hand...but last year, while in Aruba with some friends, I was getting out of the rental car from the back seat...I had my hand inside the door column to serve as leverage when the guy driving shut the front door on my hand...caught the front forefinger at the top joint...it was so painful I couldn't speak...all I could do was yell "Ow Ow Ow" until they figured out what had happend and opened the door. I still remember that all I could do was voice a gutteral "Ow"...couldn't even form words. Thankfully, it missed the point where it would have severed the tip of the finger...I didn't want to spend the night in an Aruba "hospital" and I use the quotes judiciously.

 

[Danerada]

Worst thing I have done in this arena is break my thumb on my fretting hand one day before a gig in Nashville, TN...that was a painful set...

 

[s.fitzsimmons]

The nuskin stuff is too soft to survive guitar playing or anything more than typing on a computer. If it's healed enough literally pour some super glue in the trench and go to town. I injure myself enough while being an amateur handyman to speak from experience that it works.

 

[wilerty]

Are we supposed to use our pinky?

 

[Boogie]

Nu-Skin is great for sealing the wound and allowing nature to take its course, but Mr. Fitzsimmons stated, it can't handle the riggers of wound strings.

A couple of months ago I was feeding my son's pet rabbit, who's very docile and friendly, when in the flurry and excitement that precedes his head diving into the feed sack, mistook my middle finger for food. He bit down from the bottom edge of the callous through to the middle of the finger tip (their teeth are pretty long) and nearly filleted the entire tip. Luckily it only chopped about a third of the callous and lifted it off the finger. For such a small wound, it bled well enough for Mrs. B to accuse me of field dressing a deer in the sink (that's where everyone does that, right? ). This happened on a Sunday...the next gig was the following Friday.

Nu-Skin did a good job of immediately sealing the wound after I disinfected the crap out of it. For 3 days I used a butterfly bandaid, refreshed the Nu-Skin and applied Neosporin. By Friday everything was pretty well sealed enough to do the gig. Honestly, I think the Neosporin accelerated the healing and the Nu-Skin helped the wound grow back right. Today I can't even tell I had an accident.

Are we supposed to use our pinky?

Only while finishing our Earl Gray at high tea.

 

[László]

When I've had a boo-boo on a finger, I've just put a band-aid on it and played the session. I know it's not the approved method, but...whatever works.

 

[Rosewoodsteel]

Back in my gigging days, Super Glue got me though many an evening. I had a number of double gigs- Four hours at one place; pack up and drive 30 miles; 4 hours at another place. Super glue was a real life saver in those situations.

 

[Rango]

The lead player in the band I used to be in lost all his callouses after using some of his wife's high end moisturizer.... He bough some of this and said it was outstanding:

http://rock-tips.com

May be repackaged super glue? Don't know but he swears by it... I work with the guy at our day jobs and he went on and on about how good it was....

 

[11top]

Rub some dirt on it.

 

[Shawn@PRS]

Moisturizer? Hmmmm....must have used a lot of it! :flute:

Hahahaha!

 

[sleary]

35 years of being a diabetic along with finger pricks 4-6 times a day have left my finger tips hard...no boo boo's lol

 

[Rango]

Moisturizer? Hmmmm....must have used a lot of it! :flute:

Hahahaha!

Really? I give the OP the ANSWER :top:

And you guys focus on moisturizer usage? :biggrin:
Sick puppys... :rofl:

 

[Rango]

You threw that one right over the plate!

So I did... LOL!!!

Didn't even occur to me.... at the time

 

[MykeWright]

Different issue but the same solution - Bass Players right hand. I play mainly finger style, so if the calluses go after a period of not playing I sometimes have to make a superglue pad on the tips of the 3 main plucking fingers to stop blisters appearing. I also nearly ripped a toe nail off in a swimming pool on holiday years ago. Superglue fixed that too.

 

[Jet Whitey]

Quit playing with a "Death Grip!" ie lighten up your touch. Take a look @ Howie's Crackle.......do you see any fret divots ? If has any you put them there as I marveled at how a guitar that was that well played had no fretwear when I played it.

 

[docbennett]

Thanks for all the advice. I couldn't believe how many people use superglue for this type of thing. I also found that product "Rock tips" to be kinda funny...but I guess it shows how common this sort of thing is.

It will be a few more days before this sucker heals completely. The worst is when I forget...and slide my pinky up a few frets...and catch the interior of the separation....YOW!!!