Yamaha DTXpress/DTXplorer/DTXtreme

I have a birthday coming up and I was thinking of asking for a pair of 
drumming gloves. I don't have a problem with my grip of the sticks but 
I do get blisters on both hands if I play for more that 30 mins or so. 
When I am playing with my band for the night I end up with half a box 
of plasters on my hands and then I do start to have a problem with my 
grip!

Would the gloves help or do I just have to toughen up my hands?

Thanks
Roger

--- In DTXpress@yahoogroups.com, "ozteevan" <ozteevan@y...> wrote:
> I have a birthday coming up and I was thinking of asking for a pair 
of 
> drumming gloves. I don't have a problem with my grip of the sticks 
but 
> I do get blisters on both hands if I play for more that 30 mins or 
so. 
> When I am playing with my band for the night I end up with half a 
box 
> of plasters on my hands and then I do start to have a problem with 
my 
> grip!
> 
> Would the gloves help or do I just have to toughen up my hands?

Hey Roger,

Maybe both. After layoffs, my hands blister, too, but eventually I 
grow callouses in the right places when I start playing again. I have 
a pair of Ahead gloves to protect me during the transitional phases, 
but if I rely on them for too long, my fingers never toughen up. It 
always takes me some time to get acclimated to the gloves; I consider 
them a necessary, temporary evil at best. 

Ed

> > Would the gloves help or do I just have to toughen up my hands?
>
> Hey Roger,
>
> Maybe both. After layoffs, my hands blister, too, but eventually I
> grow callouses in the right places when I start playing again. I have
> a pair of Ahead gloves to protect me during the transitional phases,
> but if I rely on them for too long, my fingers never toughen up. It
> always takes me some time to get acclimated to the gloves; I consider
> them a necessary, temporary evil at best.

I think part of the problems lies in holding the sticks incorrectly or too 
tightly.  I had layovers of several years, several times over an 18-year  
period, and I never did develop blisters at all since I rededicated myself to 
music about a year ago, and I practice about 1-2 hours a day and more on the 
weekends, work permitting.

That said, I will say that I had a problem with correct gripping in both 
hands, with different problems in each hand.  It took me months to break the 
grip habits and hold them in a way that makes the sticks work for me, not the 
other way around.

Stephanie