Nails catching on other strings when I bend

Good day!

I am learning a song at the moment which requires bending. Bending is a new skill I am learning. I am finding my nails catch on other strings, which is very annoying.

I know that diligent practice will eventually correct this, but for now while I study this song, if anyone has any tips on what you do to prevent nails from catching on other strings, I would be interested in hearing them. For instance, I do have success when I place the string on the [u]wick[/u] of my finger nail, but wow does this introduce a totally new pain sensation! Surely nobody does that. But maybe you do and have toughend up your fingers at that particular point. And to be clear, I am talking of placing the string between the nail itself and the finger. Litterally on the wick.

I have made a video clearly showing the aweful sound of nail on string

Vid

IME I suspect that a normal encounter learning to bend William MG.

IDK definitively how others nuance it, but watching vids from various sources, observation, thought and experimentation after similar frustrations some time ago learning my first bends of George's melodic solo lick from "You're Gonna Lose That Girl" as transcribed to tab for me by Christopher in another thread, here's the trial and error solution to get around a similar problem which worked, and unless or until I find a better way currently [u]works most effectively and comfortably[/u] for me. Caveat as always, OMMV.

Problem I encountered. Adjacent strings above those bent being touched and sounding inadvertantly by the tips &/or nails, exacerbated if high gain is involved.

Solution.

1. Use two fingers to bend large, protracted bends, or repeated bends. Second and third fingers recommended. See exceptions in 3 below.

2. I place the second consciously to support the third simultaneously extending it to mute the adjacent string above. The third does the actual bending but in concert with two. Concurrently, through observational awareness initially driving intentional placement, I position the second finger in particular at an angle A. so the nail can't catch, and B the tip doesn't really protrude far enough from the string it's muting to do so in the bend extension. I had to focus consciously to effect this initially, but it's since become subliminally instinctive through repetition over time. Whether it's a bad habit or 'wrong' technique like how I don't use the two finger death grip to hold my pick, after significant experimentation I found the technique I described above works consistently, reliably and most comfortably to land and manipulate bends to tone [u]for me[/u].

3. Single quarter note (?) bends as occur in that lick. I use a single finger, third and first respectively. I could and have used third and second for the last D flat quarter note bend, but through experimentation found first better facilitates it and the subsequent fingering of the B note [u]for me[/u].

Might be something in there for you to mull over and experiment with. I don't apply any discernible excessive pressure to the nailbed quick that I am painfully cognizant of. GL with it.

.

Originally Posted by: William MG

Good day!

I am learning a song at the moment which requires bending. Bending is a new skill I am learning. I am finding my nails catch on other strings, which is very annoying.

I know that diligent practice will eventually correct this, but for now while I study this song, if anyone has any tips on what you do to prevent nails from catching on other strings, I would be interested in hearing them. For instance, I do have success when I place the string on the [u]wick[/u] of my finger nail, but wow does this introduce a totally new pain sensation! Surely nobody does that. But maybe you do and have toughend up your fingers at that particular point. And to be clear, I am talking of placing the string between the nail itself and the finger. Litterally on the wick.

I have made a video clearly showing the aweful sound of nail on string

Vid

There's a few good tutorials about string bend techniques on here, try these to get started with

https://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=628

And

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson.php?input=21449&s_id=1721

Thank you very much for the responses manX and fuzzbox.

This morning's practice went much better after a review of your input

Better bends

William,

I cant see your video on my computer.  However I use both hands to mute strings when I bend.  With my strumming hand, I use the heel of my thumb, and the back side of my non picking fingers, to form a good mute on the strings all around the one I am bending.  The heel mutes the strings above (toward the ceiling)the strings/ strings I want to sound, and  the backside of my non picking fingers mutes the strings below (toward the floor).  I hope this makes sense. 

What I end up with is a mute that can allow as many strings as I want to sound, without the clatter of the ones I don't want making extraneous noise.  Also, I can easily roll on the rest of the heel of my strumming hand to completely mute the entire instrument. 

This in  conjunction with the fretting hand mutes, mentioned in the thread above, all help to keep those nonsounding strings in check.  I also find a lot of tone control (Ghost notes, harmonics, ect) in my strumming hand mutes , so this has been a very interesting technique for me to explore. Lots of varriable control to be had from this technique!

Hello William MG , I can't watch the video you shared. Anyway, congratulations on this nice improvement.

 Quick Draw

I am assuming this is a bot of some sort.

William,

I'm not so sure it was a bot. The non-functioning video link in question is one that you posted in a GT message in this thread over 4 years ago, apparently via YouTube. When I click on that link I get a YouTube error message stating that the video is no longer available.

Rest assured that this message is legit as I am no bot.... or am I? Perhaps I'm an advanced AI system on the verge of attaining self-awareness, like Cyberdyne's SkyNet in The Matrix. How am I supposed to know? Look, I apologize in advance if, at any time in the future, I send a Terminator (model T-1000) back in time to eliminate you.😮

hmm... hard to say lol. But whoever or whatever it, he, she, they, them or we are, boy they dug back in time for that one. I was a mere youth in my late 50s way back then!

Yeah, I hear ya, William. I'm no spring chick either.

I reread the thread because when you posted the original message, I too was having a hell of a time bending without nearly ripping my nails off. And now the technique seems quite natural. Yet, I  don't recall ever directly addressing whatever the original problem was. I apparently just kept doing it and got very lucky that it evolved into decent technique rather than another bad habit (as far as I can tell).

How's the bending going for you now?

Sascha

Well its a bit of a funny story. I take lessons from a local player and I asked him for tips on bending. "Practice" was his only reply. He was right. Just keep practicing and the sun will shine. I bend pretty easily now, even on my acoustic with 11s.

That post was made in March and I had just started in January of that year. I remember that post and how much trouble I was having with everything!  Wow. Nowadays my focus in on ear training. And my instructor, once again has some simple advice: put a song on, try and pick out the notes and jam to it without looking up tabs on the internet 😒. Old fashioned hands on stuff. It actually works...

Glad to hear you got bending licked as well.

"Glad to hear you got bending licked as well."

Great pun!

Interestingly, I've recently been spending quite a bit of time over the past few months doing something similar to what you describe: I listen to songs on Pandora and try to play along by adding improvised fills to those utilizing pentatonic scales over simple chord progressions. I've had mixed success but it's always challenging and fun, and I am making some headway with training my ear.

Serendipitously, only minutes after reading your last post, I came across a pertinent lesson on a GuitarTricks channel by Gary Heimbauer entitled "Tips for Older Beginners" that addresses the very musical practice that we're both dabbling in. His approach to learning and teaching guitar is different from anything else I've come across on the site. I think you might like it.

Sascha

Appreciate the link Sascha. A lot of very good information in this video.

Experiencing issues with my guitar, particularly when bending strings, as my nails catch on adjacent strings. It's affecting the smoothness of my play and overall sound quality. Seeking advice or tips from fellow musicians on how to address this problem and improve my playing experience. Any insights or recommendations would be greatly appreciated!Use the side of your picking hand's fingers to mute adjacent strings while bending. Press lightly, just enough to stop vibration without affecting the target string's tone. Start practicing bends slowly and deliberately, focusing on accurate finger placement and pick angle. Gradually increase speed as your control improves.

In addition to the fretting hand mutes discussed earlier in this thread, these techniques collectively ensure that non-sounding strings are kept in check. Personally, I've discovered significant tone control utilizing ghost notes, harmonics, etc. through the mutes in my strumming hand. Exploring this technique has proven to be fascinating, offering a wide range of variable control.