Blister on playing hand

[Hank74]

I wanted to ask any of you if you've had an experience whereby you had some kind of blister on your playing hand. I had a simiar thing last night when a bee stung my right thumb. Fortunately, the thumb doesn't do too much when it comes to tuba playing, except be placed in that big ring. But have you had something like a blister on your other fingers, particularly the big playing three? Were you able to play or not?

Hank74

[Chuck(G)]

The guy who plays first trumpet in our quintet was cleaning up after a job and picked up a chop saw from which he'd removed the blade guard. Unfortunately it was still plugged in and he did a number on his index finger (cut right to the bone, but not off, fortunately). No tendons were severed, but it wasn't pretty.

He took a week off playing while he was getting a skin graft, and had a huge bandage on his hand, but it didn't seem to slow him down too much.

[corbasse]

Because I'm quite clumsy I've had plenty of blisters or cuts on my playing hand(s), but never serious enough to seriously affect my playing.
I did get stung by a wasp on top of my right hand between the thumb and index finger though. Unfortunately for me that's the place where the main weight of my french horn rested. Ouch.
I had to adopt a weird and unique right hand technique for the concert that night, and I'm very glad it wasn't natural horn I had to play.

[BopEuph]

I play a good deal of jazz bass, and if you know anyone like that, you know that we can't take off playing for more than a day or two unless we want to get blisters. It can also happen if you end up playing a gig a lot longer than you have your callouses built up for. So, like all bass players, I got used to having to play my bass with blistered fingers. I've had to play through bloody fingers as well. It can get painful, but the upside is as long as you keep playing, the pain won't yet show up. When I get a blister, I usually pop it with a needle and drain the fluid. That way, air gets into the holes and can form a callous. Some bass players will run thread through with the needle and leave the string in the blisters and tie it so it doesn't fall out. This is done to make sure the holes don't close up before you want them to. I used to do it this way, but I am a fast healer and the callouses form fast enough. If there is still pain when you play, you can wrap the finger with adhesive tape. It probably doesn't matter what kind you use as a tubist, but as a bass player, I prefer cloth adhesive because it has a lot more grip than paper and I can pluck the string more aggressively. If you are getting blisters from playing the tuba, then you must be crazy. But after a while, callouses will form and you wouldn't have to worry about it any more.

Nick