How do you strengthen your fingers? Especially the last pinky finger, very big problem for most people.

I purchased a gripmaster, and it helped immensely. It also showed my pinky unable to press down the thingy until i tried it a few more times after a few weeks, i showed improvement. (after some numbing muscle tears on the fingers and tendons on the arm)

imo, my pinky finger has now gained much more strength and speed compared to if i were to rely on just the high action kapok alone which does squat on the muscles beyond the fingers (the wrist/tendons).

I think the gripmaster (medium tension) is an excellent device and helped speed up my fingers and solve issues that would've hindered me during scales practising etc.

I just practiced scales and chromatic exercises up and down the fretboard. Helped increase my strength, but it's still not as strong as i'd like it to be. Where did u get the gripmaster man? And how much is it?

ermmm...me noob here...how to practice scales? Can give tabs ar? Really apreciate it

i'm not a gripmaster fan. So for me i just use thicker gauge strings and set the action ridiculously high and then practice my runs, scales, appergios (although i've been neglecting apergios lately ). There's also this thing famous among the bassists called "buddha rope". Bill Dickens is the name of the guy who came up with it. Basically he slides a rope about half an inch thick between the fretboard and the strings to raise the action really really high. I think he usually puts it at the 12th fret. You won't get any sound out of your guitar, but judging by dickens speed (and he's really darn fast), it should work for building up speed and strength. Whether or not it's musical, that you have to judge for yourself.

According to dickens, it also works with toilet paper rolled up into a thick cylinder

This post has been edited by Bassix: Jun 25 2007, 09:44 PM

I find that doing trills (rapid hammer-pulloff) with the pinky help me lot.

One of the exercises I do is chromatic runs (up-down the neck) with the hammer-pulloff trill.

eg. finger: index & 2nd finger

e|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------1-2h-1p-2h-----3-2p-3h-2p------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B|---------------------------------------------------------------1-2h-1p-2h-------------------------------------3-2p-3h-2p--------------------------------------------------------------------
G|-----------------------------------------------1-2h-1p-2h----------------------------------------------------------------------3-2p-3h-2p---------------------------------------------------
D|--------------------------------1-2h-1p-2h-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3-2p-3h-2p-----------------------------------
A|-----------------1-2h-1p-2h-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3-2p-3h-2p-------------------
E|-1-2h-1p-2h----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3-2p-3h-2p--

accend to say fret 9 (or 12 or any fret) and then decend again to the nut.

Then repeat the above using the 2nd finger & 3rd, 3rd & pinky.

Can continue if wish using different finger combinations
eg.
1st (index) & 3rd,
2nd & pinky
3rd & pinky.

Hope that helps.

This post has been edited by Banzai_san: Jun 25 2007, 10:02 PM

no one here 2 help me out wit scales?

i think the gripmaster is too expensive, if not i wouldve bought it so i could still work on my fingers while lecturer is busy teaching. hehe.

copadelrey, u mean chromatics? chromatics just play all 11 notes (12 if u count the key 1 octave higher) ascending and descending.

be prepare for music modes haha
ionian-dorian-phrygian-lydian-mixolydian-locrian


banzai-san : u have a reli gud exercise there
billy sheehan promotes tat exercise...
by just using left hand to tap and pull off

index-middle thru out 5 and 6th fret
middle-ring thru out 6 and 7th fret
ring-pinky thru out 7-8fret....
which ring pinky is the more pain in the ass haha

basically a chromatic scale would look something like this:
e|------------------------------------------1-2-3-4-4-3-2-1------------------------------------------|
B|----------------------------------1-2-3-4-----------------4-3-2-1----------------------------------|
G|--------------------------1-2-3-4---------------------------------4-3-2-1--------------------------|
D|------------------1-2-3-4-------------------------------------------------4-3-2-1------------------|
A|----------1-2-3-4-----------------------------------------------------------------4-3-2-1----------|
E|--1-2-3-4---------------------------------------------------------------------------------4-3-2-1--|

then you move your first finger on the 2nd fret and repeat the same pattern up the fretboard

---

Added on June 25, 2007, 10:44 pmeach note is seperated evenly(the typing makes it look funny)

This post has been edited by SweetTooth: Jun 25 2007, 10:44 PM

Start with pentatonic scales copadelrey:

http://www.theorylessons.com/pentatonics.html

me noob...sorry...but I only know how to see tabs and chords...Really would like to start playing solos but I need to strenghten my fingers (esp pinky).

Are scales like this?
e--------------------------------------------------5-7-8--
B-----------------------------------------5-7-8----------
G-----------------------------4-5-7------------------------
D-------------------4-5-7-----------------------------------
A-----------3-5-7------------------------------------------
E---3-5-7-----------------------------------------------

and I'll also be very thankful if you could show me the tabs to play chromatics...(I don't know anything about octaves

Well its hard to explain my training based on John Myung's (Bassist of Dream Theater) video.

First you put your 1st finger on a fret and then hammer your 2nd finger repeatedly on the next fret


Then, you fret with your 2nd finger and hammer repeatedly with your 3rd finger


Lastly, use your 3rd finger to fret and hammer repeatedly with your 4th finger (This is tough in the beginning)

Not a guitar person, but I give massages occasionally, and you need lots of finger strength for that. I found that playing scales on a piano really does a lot for individual finger strength, flexibility and agility, so if any of you have access to a piano, could just try doing simple scales on the piano

I appreciate your help very much but it's kinda advance there... My IQ is something like a primary school kid or Ozzy but seriously, I can't understand that site...I think it's more suited for advance people like you all

sweetTooth already typed out a chromatic tab for you copadelrey. For example, you use your pointing finger on the 1st fret, mid finger for 2nd fret, ring finger for 3rd fret and pinky for 4th fret. Just repeat that exercise along the fretboard, going up 1 fret at a time.

Octave, to make it simple, is the same note but in a higher pitch. For example, the 6th string is a low E string. Play it open and you'll sound the E note, play it at the 12th fret and you'll get an E note also, but higher in pitch. So the 12th fret E note is 1 octave higher than the open string E note. Hope i'm not confusing you man. Look around UG.com, a lot of info there. I learnt everything i know from there.

And that isn't too advanced man, you gotta start from now. I learnt that scale in my first month. Helps a lot if you understand what you're actually playing.

This post has been edited by fatboythin: Jun 25 2007, 10:59 PM

then just to legatos! haha. jk jk
but thats pretty bad. alot of sloppy playing is actually not caused by not being able to play fast, but because of not being able to coordinate the left and right properly

Yea, i started out with my fretting hand lagging behind like a Datsun compared to my Ferrari picking hand. Now it's the other way around, i gotta slow down my fretting hand so that my picking hand can keep up. Haha.

ALRIGHT!!! I'll be practicing sweettooth's tab for this moment.. thanks a lot for your help man YOu didn't confuse me.... I kinda get what an octave is right now...just want to ask...the high e string (1st string) is an octave higher than the low E (6th string)?

Haha, just have a look at this site man. Take 1 step at a time, lol. :

http://guitarsecrets.com/all_notes.htm