F chord

[JimQuiz]

You could try using the side (mostly) of your index finger to barre just those 2 strings, not the pad. Assumptions made on my part. Hope this helps.

Jim

[petelanger]

When I first produced a clear F chord my hand looked like this:

[petelanger]

It took months of trying and I still wasn’t able to transition to it, because I had adjust my fingers for at least 5 seconds before all the muting was cleared up. In the years since I can form the F mini in a much more relaxed manner (without the pretzely death grip). Over time you learn the best position of you index finger near the fret wire, how much pressure is required on each finger, how you have to bring your elbow close into your body. And your brain knows how to do all these things simultaneously much more quickly so you can do it during last weeks’ challenges (Old Man benchmark).

• This reply was modified 4 weeks ago by  petelanger.

[petelanger]

It’s going to be a journey for milestones such as this mini barre and many other barre chords. Most of us just aren’t going to be able to do this during an evening of trials. It’s going to in the order of many months, perhaps double digit months. But you can still play Old Man, just leave out the barre and fret the B string. Try not to strum the high E or mute the E if you can manage it. (If you strum the high E then you’re playing an F major7 which works at times but not always)

For the first 3 months in the TAC program, I used one of those 2 options. You may be able to rock your index finger so that the E string is muted, playing just 3 strings.

[gmhendersonme-com]

Keep practicing the mini F and it will come eventually. The full barre chord F will take a bit longer. If you really want to play songs with an F chord in it, you could switch out to an F maj7, which is just the mini F, but instead of barring the first fret of the B and E string, just finger the first fret of the B and leave the E open. Very similar sound. ( Sorry….didn’t see Pete’s reply !!! Same advice !)

• This reply was modified 4 weeks ago by  gmhendersonme-com. Reason: Repeating previous advice !

[jorgemac]

Like Bill Brown I find the full barre f easier than the Mini barre. The mini barre is much easier, for me, going 2 frets down the neck and make a G mini barre chord, Which I use a lot, especially in the key of D. If you find the mini barre easier further down the neck be sure to practice that position, which begins by barring the E and B strings on the 2nd fret.

This comes up all of the time and i did a full page breakdown of how to learn to do the mini barre chords.

[jorgemac]

yep, that is always a work in progress for most folks.

i suggest starting,5 minutes a day, with the 3 treble strings.

middle finger on E/1, index finger on B/1 and ringer finger on G/2.

Walk that finger position to the 3rd, 5th, 8th and 10th frets, G, A, C, D chords. get comfortable with moving the 3 fingers in those positions.

Do this for a week then

We start with the Index finger covering 2 strings. that is all you need to do for this week. just move the index finger down the neck in the same fretted positions you practice last week. Just the index finger for a whole week until you feel comfortable holding down the 2 treble strings. make sure your thumb stays behind the fret your index finger is holding down.

the following week, if you feel comfortable holding down the the E and B treble strings with index finger add the middle finger to the g string 1st fret up from the index finger position. Walk these 2 fingers down the neck to 10th fret D chord. Remember the thumb position behind the E and B strings position. This helps develop strength when barring chords.

After this becomes comfortable for you add the ring finger to the D string 3rd fret and practice this every day for a few minutes before practice. You will feel much more comfortable playing the 4 finger barre chord and will not avoid the dreaded F chord . The f chord is a very welcome part of my picking. Also the G, A and C chord using the 4 string form. All of these positions can be jumping off points for minor chords and the major 7th chord, that would be the the B flat M7th which is the IV Chord in the key of F.

I suggest using the 3 treble strings as a basic method to form all of the Major and Minor chords. and do practice both of these chord forms a few times a week.

[jorgemac]

I forgot about my thumb position on the back of the neck. For most of the exercises my thumb is located in the middle of the back of the neck. Also the angle of the guitar is about 25 to 39 degrees away from my stomach area. i have long arms and do find this position more natural and comfortable for me. My back is straight , not hunched over the guitar. If you are new you need to learn the finger positions without needing to hunch over to see the fret board.

[Skyman911]

Another tip that most people don’t mention or realize is, leveraging the guitar body against your body to essentially push the neck outward toward your fretting hand. I can make a full barre with my index finger using only the leverage from the guitar body pressing against my finger, and not using the thumb in any way. Now, add the thumb, and the barre chord just became easier, and you lose some of the death grip.

[jorgemac]

Good point Skyman.

[dwalter16hotmail-com]

Thank you everyone. these are very helpful and great suggestions!!!!!

[Braden]

Hi Diane these are all great tips and should be helpful. Rolling your pointer a bit so youre using the side of your finger helps and for me leaning my middle into the pointer adds more pressure on the strings and helps with that muting. I just want to add dont sweat that old f chord too much tho. Its a challenge for many players especially at the beginning and of all the open ‘country’ chords its probably the toughest becasue of of that mini barre. Ive been playing for many years, know a lot of songs, post regularly on play forum and last year started busking. My point….when Im playing a song rarely do a play a perfect f, either open or barred. Its usually that damn c note (first fret b string) that gets muted or muffled. Thing is…noone usually notices, and if they do, Im already on to the next chord,Im not sitting on that f for too long. And if its just one muted string, it still sounds like an F, it still works. So keep on working at it, as will I. Its in a lot of songs so need to have it. But dont sweat it if its not always as clear as youd like. Remember learning guitar is a long game…but will time and lots of repetition it gets better. In the meantime dont let perfect get in the way of good. Be easy on yourself and enjoy the journey. Rock on sister

[petelanger]

@Braden , what a perfect perspective! Thanks for that, you rock, Dude!

[Aservire]

This was a lot of what I was going to say… after many years playing I still have issues with the sound of the F sometimes and the other barres. But I think one thing that AC has taught me is to keep moving, keep your rhythm, play with confidence, and be consistent. My F has gotten a lot better since beginning AC and as I toss in a few practice songs with it, I’m learning more transitions from and to other chords. The key is to remember that mastery happens over time with consistency. Enjoy the journey!