I guess it's a good thing you don't play with your feet. That must have been a new adventure in pain.

I am have a bone spur that comes back from time to time, right below the right hand on my rist. I always have to "pop" it, but I still play no matter what. If it starts giving me any more trouble, I will probably have to have it removed. It is giving me trouble this week. I have problems every now and again with my left hand cramping. Not too often, but it does hurt as well. I don't think that it's arthritis, but I feel for anyone who has to deal with these types of pain. Especiall musicians. It sucks.

This past week seemed to be a bit worse than usual for me. I hear bone spurs can really suck! People usually get them in the feet I believe, but to have one near your hand..sheesh.
I've been practicing more than usual, so that could be it. A buddy of mine at work, who also plays, says he can hear my thumb pop from across the room. It happens so much now I'm not even aware of it unless I play, or type something. At least it's not painful, and it's not in my left hand which is very lucky for me, but it is slowing me down.

Man oh man, I was playing last night, and I am doing these exercises to strengthen bar chord fingerings. It's an exercise that starts from the open playing EADGC, and then back again. Then you take the same chord fingerings and go all the way up the fret board barring the fret behind. it is not easy for me. It never has been because I have such short fingers. I have always had to almost fake a lot of chords, because of this, but now I am thinking that if I start stretching my damn fingers, and doing these exercises everyday I will be able to play these chords without cramping.

i sliced the side of my thumb off on a meat slicer when i was a cook. its a real bitch to get pinch harmonics now, used to be able to do em no problem at will, but now i gotta concentrate on it, all my knuckles pop, so it's only a matter of time before i won't be able to play anymore and my hands look like rooster feet. LOL

I hear that. Damn... that don't sound too good. But I once saw this 99 year old man, with a glass eye, old school black man from way back, hobble up to the stage at the Center for Southern Folklore, in Memphis, and start playing like he was 18. He was riddled with arthritis, hell, rigamortis had already started to settle in, and he played for 2 hours straight without stopping, and the 18 year old cellist that was playing alongside, was haveing difficulty keeping up. About a month ago I went to go see The Moody Blues play with my father in law, and they had two drummers going. When the show started he leans over and says to me, " I think that they have the younger guy up there to make up for the 60 year old drummer. Well, I giot to looking and I leaned back over and said, "I don't think so the younger guy is doing his best to keep up. The older guy had broken his hip about three months prior to the show, and he was phenomenal. So maybe all these things that we feel when we play will eventually give us our own way of playing and we will be better for it...

Years ago I had some issues, due to injury, with my index and middle fingers on my left hand. It hurt so much I couldn't play. I was unable to put any real pressure on the fretborad without intense, stabbing, pain. I actually gave up playing for several years. Then, I got pushed to go out solo again. I spent a month playing through the pain and damned if it just didn't go away. Hasn't bothered me since.

Now I realize it's pretty different for you. The closest I've been to a problem with my right hand was when I got my right index finger caught in a Sawzall. My solution was to tape the pick between my finger and thumb. It still hurt to play, but I didn't drop the pick!

frumsapap,

What size neck do you use? You might do better with a neck that has a smaller radius. This wouldn't be hard to do if you have a Fender, or some other guitar that utilizes a bolt on neck. After listening to everybody on here, I'm thinking I got the better end of the deal. Wire through the toe, bone spurs, meat slicers, sawzalls, and of course, everybody's favorite, Arthritis.

B.B. King looking at his hands, "Man, these babies are all I got!"

I have no clue as to what the size of the neck is. I play an SZ320 Ibanez if that helps. I know I need a smaller radius, but this guitar has, so far been my favorite. The tone I push out is definitely what I have always wanted. The only problem is the guitar is all one piece. It is the only guitar I believe that is set up like this. It is going to just have to do. I am eventually either buying a Joe Satriani model, or something with the smaller Ibanez neck. At the moment though I have to stick with what I got, and I love this damn guitar so much. She's kind of pretentious every now and again, but I like my women (guitars)with some kick every now and again!!! But the real problem is my Exotic wood dreadnought. That girl got a big Ole neck on her. But alas she is one I am working on improving with as well.

All one piece? I never heard of that before. Gibson glues their necks to the bodies. To change a glue-on neck would be more costly, and may not even be worth the trouble. You'd probably be better off buying the Satch model. The dreadnought? I'm sure somebody could do it, but again $$$, and it comes down to what it's worth to you. I just bought a Warmouth neck, (Ebony Fingerboard), for a 62' strat that I'm building. You don't even want to know what that set me back for.

It isn't all one piece, my bad, it's a three piece neck thru. I don't know why I said one piece. I guess because it does look to be one piece. But I don't know if I want to be messing with anything on it. I might just buy the prestige model SZ/ It has a smaller radis neck, but I'd hav