Hello again,

I've been learning the guitar for a little over a month now. Each day I spend about 30 minutes on the disks and maybe another 30 to 45 minutes a day picking up the guitar and doing 15 minutes or so here and there.

Doing this has built up calluses on my fingers and there seems to be a direct correlation between building up calluses and being able to play a perfect G7 chord something that has given me grief from the beginning. I've also noted that most all notes are ringing cleaner and clearer and I attribute it to the calluses on my fingers!

I'm sure that just playing more has been a help, there is no question about that because even I can get bretter. There may not be a single person who agrees with my position on calluses but I offer this as proof. Even my wife has said i've become more callus since playing the guitar!

Harry

But yeah getting a nice callous going is a guitarists pride and joy!

Also on a side note, how good are G7 chords.

And if you want to build them up faster use a little rubbing alcohol a couple of times a day.

Ronnie Wood uses scotch but rubbing alcohol works fine, just don't drink the rubbing alcohol.

or start working in construction

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No doubt practicing more help both ways. strings make a difference too. I'm primarily a bass player and the regular wound strings have given my tremendous callousses on the fingers of both hands.

Wait till they start peeling. lol. Get some sandpaper and smooth the edges down. I have broken strings before from the edges catching on the 1st string.

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Gary

Im an acoustic player and recently a wanna-be electric..I have teflon fingers imagine my surprise when I thought that would be the one gravy part about learning electric..only to discover after hours and hours..and more hours of scales and learning power chords etc that its a slightly different place of blisters..personally doesnt seem quite fair to me..haha!

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Mona
"Music is What Feelings Sound like"

The thing with callouses, is you can also lose them. I remember this flashy headline on a magazine many years back, that Zappa had lost his callouses due to not playing enough.
Ah, yes the fans were worried, and also they bought the magazine.

If you are in pain, just watch some Stevie to perk you up!

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FIGHT!

I imagine Ronnie Wood prolly considers Scotch a universal rememdy for anything and everything. Kinda like Windex in Fat Greek Wedding.

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Just think of how awesome a guitar player you could have been by now if you had only spent the last 10 years practicing instead of obsessing over pickups and roasted maple necks.

My thanks to all,

Thank you for all the great information it is most appreciated... One point of curiosity is, although it may be different for different people, how long does it take to lose the calluses and how long to get them back?

And you are right that its a real point of honor once you've built up the calluses. Not only is it because you've played enough to get them. But you also know you've learned more and play better... Yea me! And Yea you too!!!

Harry

I've been playing for over 32 years and have never developed calluses. However, I'm self-taught with poor technique. I guess that my fingertips don't make contact with the strings exactly like everyone else. Actually, I'm surprised that I don't have calluses because I'm always tense and play with a kung-fu death grip.