Hand problem: wet

Hi, ive been trying to learn guitar(taking lessons) for a couple of months, and it hasn't stopped me yet but its a problem of having sweaty hands. It causes me to slip, and the neck becomes wet,strings.. as well.. . Would I be able to become at least a decent player with this problem?, i really want to continue but its holding me back, thinking that with this problem i can't play...

Is anyone else in this situation that plays well with this condition? :confused:

I have sweaty hands too. I always wash them before playing, and wipe the strings down afterwards. I get by, but I do blacken strings faster than anyone else I know.

I grew out of my sweaty hands problem after a year or two of playing. I don't know if it was the playing experience that did it, or simply aging. I was about 16 years old back then.

It won't stop you from playing, maybe accept it as part of your style? When I was playing in a industrial/alt/rock band in the 90's, 3 or 4 nights a week, we'd all be dripping in sweat after 10 mins. (This is common - stages tend to be hot!) My whole guitar would go rusty in a couple of weeks (the metal bits obviously). If you sweat enough the neck goes from sticky back to slippery : )
As czgibson says, keep the instrument clean, sweat is pretty corrosive.

That is the norm for me as well. I tend to go through a lot of strings.

It won't stop you from playing, maybe accept it as part of your style? When I was playing in a industrial/alt/rock band in the 90's, 3 or 4 nights a week, we'd all be dripping in sweat after 10 mins. (This is common - stages tend to be hot!) My whole guitar would go rusty in a couple of weeks (the metal bits obviously). If you sweat enough the neck goes from sticky back to slippery : )
As czgibson says, keep the instrument clean, sweat is pretty corrosive.

Ah thanks guys im relieve im not the only one, thanks for the inputs.

I really thought this would be a barrier between my playing,ill take the advice of wiping the guitar after playing, thanks!

It won't stop you from playing, maybe accept it as part of your style? When I was playing in a industrial/alt/rock band in the 90's, 3 or 4 nights a week, we'd all be dripping in sweat after 10 mins. (This is common - stages tend to be hot!) My whole guitar would go rusty in a couple of weeks (the metal bits obviously). If you sweat enough the neck goes from sticky back to slippery : )
As czgibson says, keep the instrument clean, sweat is pretty corrosive.

fully agree ....and when you're sweating some more you need to take care of aquaplaning.
i.e. sliding up to the 12th fret but skidding past it to 13 or 14th. :lol:

good advice by a player from Bath, UK - you must know. :mrgreen:
it's been a long time but I have fond memories of visting the city of Bath. cheers

Frank Zappa usually had a tin of talcum powder somewhere close by.

Frank Zappa usually had a tin of talcum powder somewhere close by.

This!

I have found a great product on Amazon. It is advertised for use in pole dancing. It really works: http://www.amazon.com/Nelson-Sports-Products-Dry-Hands/dp/B00476MDU8/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1337807951&sr=8-4

Jeff Beck does the talcum thing too, I use fast fret spray, but it doesn't last very long.
I don't sweat excessively, but I do sweat. Fortunately my sweat isn't very corrosive like some. I sweat less as I get older. I think the younger you are the more of a grease bucket you are.

It won't be a problem. I've been playing for 38 years, super wet hands, very acidic as well. Won't hurt your playing, in fact it'll probably help, but you'll kill strings, hardware, pots and eventually a pickup or two if you're as bad as I am. And your friends won't let you play their guitars once you have a reputation as a string-killer :(

Some guys don't like it; both Zappa and Beck use talcum powder to combat the issue.

yup, talc for me when it get hot (like outside in the Texas summer)

But just a bit on my left hand only, and only in the palm and thumb, never on my fingers (I find they slip when I try to bend if I have talc on them)

Cheers,
Doug

Wash hands, use alcohol wipes, and keep a microfiber cloth for frequent use on hands and guitar neck works for me.

I have found a great product on Amazon. It is advertised for use in pole dancing. It really works: http://www.amazon.com/Nelson-Sports-...7807951&sr=8-4 (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00476MDU8/ref=nosim/telecasterdis-20)

I reckon you were pleasantly surprised to find another use for it around the house ;)

When your done playing wipe down your guitar and your strings. I use the Dunlop string conditioner and it does help extend the life of the strings. I use the Dunlop polish on the guitar and then finish with a micro fiber cloth. My chemistry is pretty corrosive, I can corrode a harmonica in weeks. If you play for an hour spend three minutes cleaning your guitar before you put it away.

Hey Guys, maybe this might help you out. I have always had the same problem. I used the talcum power for years too, but the strings seem to turn black fast, as well as my finger tips. Plus the strings tend to go dead faster too. I read somewhere a few years ago about putting an antipersperant called "Certian Dri" on your hands to stop the sweating. It works pretty good. I think the reason I quit using it was because it contains alluminum oxcide, or something like that, and they say it causes memory loss, but I can't remember.

I freind told me to try WD-40 a couple years ago, but I thought it contained too many chemicals and didn't want to use it, until I read that it is about 99% fish oil. So I've been using it the past 6 months or so, and it seems to work fine too. I haven't noticed any side affects...well, other than my hair seems to be thinning a little, but that could be be cause I'm getting old..err..older.

Anyway, I only use it when I absolutely have to, and only on the back of the neck, because, like anything else, it kills the tone of the strings. I'll spray a tiny bit on the palm of my hand and rub it on the neck, then wipe my finger on the neck so they get a little lubrication too. Then I take a rag and wipe off my hand as well. The stage I currently play on gets well over 100 degrees with all the lights, and this helps. Hope it help you too.

Quote: "Would I be able to become at least a decent player with this problem?, i really want to continue but its holding me back, thinking that with this problem i can't play..."

There's only one thing that anyone needs to become a good guitar player - Desire. If you have it, you will never fail, and if you don't, you will never succeed. That's all there is to it.

Jerry Garcia learned to play fingerstyle missing half a finger, and he became not only a legendary guitar player, but could smoke on the banjo too. After being horrifically burned, doctors told Django Reinhardt that he would never play the guitar again, as his third and fourth left hand fingers were rendered useless. He fooled 'em though, and relearned to play using only two fingers for single note leads, and using his two bad fingers for double stops or chords. There are also several guitarists who overcame blindness.

Sweaty hands? Me too. I just wipe 'em on my jeans, and when the neck gets sweaty, I just wipe it on my shirt sleeve. End of problem. :lol: