They used to say eat raw jelly (jelloid?) cubes, because of the concentrated gellotine in them. Good for nails but probably bad for the teeth.

Kenny Hall played the mandolin with his thick, horny nails - and swore that the quart of buttermilk he drank every day kept them tough.

I've used a regular metal finger pick upside down (metal guarding finger nail. Downside: strings sound different, takes some practice since striking surface is not exactly in same place as fingernail.
I rotate striking with forefinger and middle finger to increase playtime.
Let striking nails grow longer than usual, more mass to wear off.
Ask a fingernail salon what they recommend.
Hope this helps.

youtu.be/7BqISqpMRo8?is=xSv0MndvVgQNQK9c
James Taylor on his nail maintenance.

We always used to harden conkers by soaking in vinegar and baking in a low oven.

I’m always amazed when this subject comes up by the random snake oil/magic cures.

Logic: eat gelatin = strong nails. Eat brains = higher intelligence.

The gelatin myth was a marketing scam invented by Knox.

You would have better results by soaking in magic silver water.

Well, I've heard/read that judokas toughen their hands by plunging them into pails of sand .... and maybe even progressing to stuff that offers more resistance.  More logic .... if it works for hands, it'll work for nails.   Though I can't personally endorse it, plunging hands into a pail of gravel [I assume with fingers extended] should be a good (?) way to toughen the nails.  

[I'll be okay .... this too shall pass.]

Thanks for all your suggestions.
Anyone tried Ozark Banjo's stick-on nails?

Just to add that I keep my fingernails as short as I can cut and file them to ensure no inadvertent nail contact whatsoever when playing finger-style on gut and nylon strings.
You’d think that would affect my tone when playing clawhammer on steel strings. It doesn’t.

All I conclude from that is that it’s the angle of attack that is more relevant when playing clawhammer. A steeper angle of attack will not only improve accuracy and enable drive, but also deliver consistent nail to string contact and good tone even with the shortest nail.

Probably the reason that the old guys who were road contractors, farmers, carpenters etc played so beautifully with working men's hands and rough, unmanicured nails.

Perhaps try bashing the nail repeatedly with a clawhammer?

quote:

---

Originally posted by rkdjones

Thanks for all your suggestions.
Anyone tried Ozark Banjo's stick-on nails?

---

I know a bunch of people who love them. They're a bit fussy for me, since they use putty to keep them on. I prefer Joel Hooks' thimbles - especially the aluminum version. It's so light, you barely notice it. The only problem is I find it difficult to avoid thumping the skin when drop-thumbing. Easy enough to resolve by playing over the scoop.

Tom Collins has a video on YT about this. He uses (or used to use) a piece of scotch tape on the nail when he's in for long practice sessions. Again, a bit too fussy for me, but it preserves the sound of the nail pretty well.