Do you ever strum using just your finger nails?

[Jafo]

Yep, although it's just the edge of a thumbnail.

[AnX]

down with the fingers, up with the thumb sometimes, if it's a slow song, but otherwise always a plec

[Henry Jimdrix]

I like to grow them, then cut them, stick all the bits together, and use it as a plectrum.

Plectrums are fairly cheap you know, I wouldn't go to all that trouble mate, you need to stop watching Blue Peter, they lost me with paper mache.

[Henry Jimdrix]

Yep, although it's just the edge of a thumbnail.

I strike the strings with my fingers.

[Henry Jimdrix]

down with the fingers, up with the thumb sometimes, if it's a slow song, but otherwise always a plec

Never tried up with the thumb only down with the fingers, I'll have to try that.

[Hewitt Huntwork]

I use the back of my index fingernail. On both electric and acoustic, I find it gives me a tone I can't get with a pick. I'm not a tone snob, I just think I have slightly more control than with a pick for the kind of playing I do.

[vurt]

down with the fingers, up with the thumb sometimes, if it's a slow song, but otherwise always a plec

Never tried up with the thumb only down with the fingers, I'll have to try that.

dirty old town, great track for that!

[Daimonicon]

Nope. The only thing I grove my nails a bit for is to strum my exhaust pipe.

[Erisian]

I often do. I feel I have more control of the sound and expression when I leave my pick in the case and use my finger nails.

[tapper mike]

All the time.

In the pre-internet age I lived miles away from guitar stores and I was always dirt cheap broke. Back then I'd fold up match books into triangle shapes and when I ran out of them the only way I was going to play guitar was with my fingers. Thinking of myself as mainly a rhythm guitarist to accompany vocalists I just did. I didn't study how to I just figured it out on my electric guitar as that was my only option.

[Henry Jimdrix]

I use the back of my index fingernail. On both electric and acoustic, I find it gives me a tone I can't get with a pick. I'm not a tone snob, I just think I have slightly more control than with a pick for the kind of playing I do.

Yes you do get a unique sound that you can't get with a pick, I think i want to say it''s a brighter sound.

[Henry Jimdrix]

All the time.

In the pre-internet age I lived miles away from guitar stores and I was always dirt cheap broke. Back then I'd fold up match books into triangle shapes and when I ran out of them the only way I was going to play guitar was with my fingers. Thinking of myself as mainly a rhythm guitarist to accompany vocalists I just did. I didn't study how to I just figured it out on my electric guitar as that was my only option.

Wow,. times must have been tough.

[melomood]

Well I can never find any of the picks I bought when I do pick up the guitar so

Yes

[kvotchin]

Sometimes. More often by far for acoustic or bass though. I prefer to use a pick for electrics.

edit: Oh, fingernails? Nope. Fingers, yes.

[tapper mike]

I've had this obsession with fingernail playing like a classical guitarist for years. The tone has more focus and clarity, as well one can fingerpick with nails considerably faster than without. I just couldn't grow them due to my manual labor jobs. Last year that ended and I could grow a decent set of nails. It has pluses and minuses. I could no longer tap and pick like I'm used to because my nails would get beat up buy the strings. I play overhand chords with my picking hand. So I decided to give tapping a break for awhile. I actually went back to using flesh on strings as opposed to nails on strings for a number of reasons. Mostly scratch tone no matter how well my nails were filed and the inability to tap like I used to.