Curious...does anyone else trim off callouses?

Every once in a while, I trim them off...my usual method is to use a pair of scissors...using one "blade" and carefully slice away until the area no longer has the callous.

I do this because I tend to get a blister under them when they get too big, and it's easier to do it this way and tape up the next few sessions until I get another callous built up.

Usually I only have to deal with this on my left hand due to rimshots and the vibrations they cause to the skin...

Thoughts?

Articulate the wrists and elbows so your hands move with the sticks instead of against them?

And let the PA do the pounding for you.

Don't give a {censored} about that crap (you can't give technique advice over the internet...and even then, I didn't ask for technique bull{censored}), this topic is asking if anyone trims their callouses or not.

Your answer, apparently, would be "no, I have lady hands and am afraid to hit my drums"

I already said that I get callouses/blisters from...

1) High humidity, high temp, high volume, high intensity situations. If you play in a temperature controlled room all day and and tap on them for 10 minutes at a time while listening to a CD, you'll never come close to what I do.

2) Most of my snare hits are rimshots because they sound the best for the application.

Sorry if this is over-the-top...but I am pretty sick of this forum when it comes to blaming technique for everything - it's a cop-out excuse.

Swing a hammer for a while and you'll get blisters and callouses. Fact of life, and technique has NOTHING to do with it.

One of the things that bugs me most on ANY forum is when people don't answer a direct question. I have done it myself in the past and since I started noticing how much it happens I try hard not to do that.

However I do think your response is over-the-top because you only do yourself a favor by absorbing ANY helpful information, even if it's not the info you asked for in the first place. If you think that technique doesn't matter because you play harder/more intense than that, you're mistaken.

Direct answer to your question: I do not trim callouses from drumming -- I don't get them. Not because I "play 10 minutes a day to a CD" (that's just rude man) but because the style of music I play IS much different from yours, and there's a lot more subtlety and less raw strength involved.

I do trim my guitar callouses because they crack on the edges if I don't.

Says thoughts up there.

Don't give a {censored} about that crap (you can't give technique advice over the internet...and even then, I didn't ask for technique bull{censored}), this topic is asking if anyone trims their callouses or not. Your answer, apparently, would be "no, I have lady hands and am afraid to hit my drums" I already said that I get callouses/blisters from... 1) High humidity, high temp, high volume, high intensity situations. If you play in a temperature controlled room all day and and tap on them for 10 minutes at a time while listening to a CD, you'll never come close to what I do. 2) Most of my snare hits are rimshots because they sound the best for the application. Sorry if this is over-the-top...but I am pretty sick of this forum when it comes to blaming technique for everything - it's a cop-out excuse. Swing a hammer for a while and you'll get blisters and callouses. Fact of life, and technique has NOTHING to do with it.

Here, have a unicorn. They fart rainbows and marshmallows.

Don't forget the chocolate sauce.

no I don't trim them.

jenks, don't be such a twat.

Trim them if you want, if not just leave them and stop complaining about your blisters. What you do with your hands is your business. Seems like any advice we give will be ignored. You should try this You can find similar items much cheaper at the dollar store or at walmart

I have huge callouses on my fingers, but I don't trim them.

I develope HUGE callouses on my big toes between drumming, mountain biking, and running due to the friction. Those get trimmed with my very sharp hunting knife when they get too big.

No. Mine just remain the same size.

No.

Fact is, I only have issues when it gets hot and humid out. The rest of the time, no problem.

It's not a technique issue, unless we're supposed to carry around a midget -meteorologist in our pocket, and consult with him/her before we start playing so we can use some other obscure technique.

Play drums in a 106F heat index for 3 hours, in a rock band, and see if you don't end up with something whack...

no.

First, yes I did trim them off when I got callusses, usually with a straight razor blade (do they still even make those?) and then put medical tape on that area for the next time I played. It hasn't happened in 40 years, but I do remember it happening in marching band at band camp, 8 hours, 95 degrees, yes they happen! The sticks were huge, because we though we needed huge sticks for a big sound.

Second, I spent many years playing hard, sometimes 6-8 hours a day and never got a callus again. Technique and stick choice does make a difference.

Just because someone doesn't get callusses doesn't mean they don't like to play hard.

I would definitely now be considered a light hitter.

On further review of your question, I have a couple of questions. Where are they appearing? On the fatty part of your skin between your left thumb and first finger, or on your first finger below the first knuckle?

I don't understand what you mean by the vibration you feel when hitting a rimshot. Is the vibration truly noticeably different than a regular stroke?

+1

Nope.

No.

No

hold your left hand palm up...index finger, outside, 45deg angle, damn near exactly halfway between the tip and base of the finger.

This is generally my pivot point for my left hand.

The other is on the ring finger, about 5mm from the knuckle closest to the nail. This is generally my control point - more pressure makes the stick more responsive, looser makes it less "controlled"...think in terms of doing drum rolls - more pressure will make it a tighter roll, looser will make it more "sloppy".

A 3rd callous that I have, but it's not really a callous...is my thumb opposite my index finger, where I press my thumb into the stick to act as the other side of the pivot point. When I say press however, I'm not squeezing the crap out it. If I used less pressure, I would absolutely drop the stick...in fact I tend to drop that stick pretty often if I hit something the wrong way.

A 4th minor callous is on my middle finger, again where it rubs against the stick, also used as a control point, but to a lesser extent than my ring finger.

I have callouses on hands from lifting weights and they randomly start to peel, so I pick at them. It's a VERY sexy habit.

So yes, I do reduce the size of callouses on hands. If they get too big, they are intrusive.

OMG WRONG T3CHNEEK!

Hell no.