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The purpose of
these instructions is to be thorough. Although they may
seem a bit lengthy, it’s a fast and relatively simple
process. We wanted to
cover as much detail as possible. You are customizing
each nail you apply.
If you've never had experience using artificial nails,
there's a bit of a learning
curve, but once you get it
down, you can have great sounding durable nails
anytime you want, in less than 10 minutes.
Here are step by step instructions
of how to apply Instant Nails.
Also be sure to check out the real time video
at the bottom of this page.
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(1)
(a) (b)

Instant
Nails have a (a) lightly textured side, and a (b) non textured side.
You want to
apply the Instant Nail with the textured side down.
That's the
side that will be glued to your nail plate. |
(2) (a)
(b)

The first
step is to cut yourself a piece of the Instant Nail material a bit
longer than needed, and a bit wider than your nail. Since Instant
nails
are applied to only half your nail, the length will be determined by
measuring
from approximately the middle of your nail plate. |
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(3)
(a)
(b)
(a) Measure the Instant Nail
against your nail. Be sure to bend the Instant Nail a bit to the
contour of your nail while doing so. (b) Cut off any excess
material a little bit at a time until it's the
same
width as your nail. If you cut
off a bit too much, that's
fine. Just make sure the short side is on the right
side of your nail plate.
(Right handed guitarists).
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(4)
(a) (b)

Next you want to put a curve in the Instant Nail that will match the
contour
of your nail. To do this,
press the textured side of the Instant Nail against
the manicure stick, and then roll it back and forth to create the curve.
Get the curve to match the shape of your natural nail as close as
possible.
Don't over do the curve. At
this point, just curve it enough to match the middle of your nail plate
without any gaps. |
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(5)
(a) (b)

If needed,
you can use some nail clippers to lightly hold the Instant Nail,
then
slightly bend
down the sides to match the contour of your nail plate.
Just a
slight adjustment is needed. Don't over bend.
(b) Do any final
adjusting with your fingers to match the shape of your nail
as close as
possible. (As a note here, good toenail clippers are stronger
and work
better than fingernail clippers for use with Instant Nails).
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(6)
(a) (b)

(a) Next, you'll want to get some glue into the pipette. To do this,
dispense a good size drop of thin super glue on a non-porous surface,
(b) then squeeze the pipette to siphon in the glue.
You can also cut the tip of the glue bottle just a bit bigger than the
pipette,
insert the pipette, then carefully tip the glue bottle a bit and
siphon in the
glue. Make sure you squeeze the pipette before inserting it into the
bottle.
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(7)
(a) (b)

(a) Next,
dry fit the Instant Nail. You're going to apply it to the front
half of your nail plate only. You want to apply the nail so that it
follows
the natural
plane of your fingernail, in contact with as much surface area as
possible. (b) Next,
add a thin layer of super glue to the front half of the
nail. Don't
apply too much glue. You will be adding a bit more glue by
"back
filling" a little later, (step 10 a). You can use the pipette to evenly
spread the glue.
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(8)
(a) (b)

(a) Lightly apply the Instant Nail covering about 1/2 of your nail plate.
Make sure
that it's following the contour of your natural nail, covering as much surface area of
the nail plate as possible. Hold for several seconds.
(b) Then hold the sides of the
nail down. If you used too much glue and the Instant Nail
is adhering to
your finger tip, separate immediately, then go back to holding
down the nail. If you do glue
a bit of
your finger tip to the nail, quickly and carefully peel it off. If it's
already set, you can use soap and warm water or acetone if needed.
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(9) (a)
(b)

(a) At this
point
you can do a rough trim of the nail tip. (b) Then do a
rough trim if any excess material is up off the back of the nail.
You don't need to trim the back of the nail "flush" at this point, you'll be
doing
that
at the end of 10b.
You may find there's a bit more nail material to remove in the middle
than the sides. That's O.K. Clip
off as much
nail material along the seam as you need.
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(10) (a)
(b)

(a) Then add
a small amount of thin super glue behind the seam line, it
will fill
in where it's needed. Go easy, don't use too much. You'll be able to see the glue as it is applied.
Stop when the glue has filled in behind the nail. (b) Then you can spray
some mild nail glue dryer to quickly seal and dry the glue. (Or you can
let it dry on its own). When applying nail glue dryer, hold the nail
level. Next, with nail clippers, trim the nail as flush
as you can to the nail plate. (Same as 9b only flush). |
(11) (a)
(b)

Next, you're going to taper the Instant Nail into your natural nail
plate.
(a) A course or medium grit, emery board type file works well to start
with. Then
you can finish with lighter grits. (Our 4 way file works well for this).
(b) However, the fastest and best results will be obtained using an
automatic rotary nail file with a good bit. Flat barrel Swiss carbide bits
work great for tapering. They're very easy to use, accurate, fast and
safe.
Swiss Carbide bits generate the least amount of heat, and cut smoother
than any other bit. They're great for use with any artificial nail or
coating.
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(12)
(a) (b)

(a) With a rotary file you can monitor your filing as you're doing so.
You
can precisely taper the entire nail in a minute or two. If you don't have
a
rotary file, use a 4 way file starting with the coarse grit,
and end with
the finer grits.
It takes longer with a manual file, but with a little patience you can do a good job.
Then you can
use some 1500 grit sandpaper to finish. (b) End result is a perfectly
smooth, tapered nail, with no natural nail removed. Always make sure
from this
point on
to keep
the seam where the Instant nail meets the natural nail sealed so that
water or other foreign substances can’t get in under the nail. You
can add a thin layer of glue on fiberglass wrap along the seam line,
glue alone, or
use a brush on resin or commercial nail sealer.
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(13) (a)
(b)

(a) At this point, you can file and shape the Instant Nail to your
preference,
then taper
underneath if needed, (see17a) and you're done. Or (b) you can add some
fiberglass wrap. This can increase strength and add some highs
to the tone
of the nail. You can either use nail resin or super glue with the wrap.
A matter of preference really. Remember whenever you use any nail glue or resin,
there is a bit of a trade off between strength and brittleness.
A little
experience and experimentation and you'll have it down.
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(14)
(a) (b)

(a) When
using wrap, leave the Instant Nail a
little long, then cut yourself a
piece just a
bit longer and wider than the Instant nail. Our wrap is self adhering.
Simply peel
off, then adhere it to the top of the Instant Nail. (b) Next trim the
fiberglass wrap all around so that it's the same shape as the nail. You
don't have
to be
perfect, get as close as you can. We carry fiberglass instead of silk or
linen wrap because it's stronger, and seems to result in a better
overall tone. If using nail resin, start with only a thin coat.
That will add strength with minimal brittleness.
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(15)
(a) (b)

(a) Next, apply some super glue to the fiberglass wrap. (b) Have some
Kleenex handy to lightly blot excess glue if needed. Blot quickly to remove excess
glue and avoid sticking the Kleenex to the nail. You can add more layers
if desired. It's better to add a thin layer of glue to the wrap (apply
glue
and blot the excess), rather
than to apply it too thick. Thin layers will
be
stronger and will be less brittle. If you decide not to use any wrap,
you can still use a small piece to overlap where the seam of the nail
and the natural nail meet. This will seal the nail and keep it from
coming up at the edges. You can also use nail resin to seal at the seam
if you wish. |
(16)
(a) (b)

(a) Next, you can spray a little mild nail glue dryer, or let it dry on
its own.
When using nail glue dryer on super glue, the more glue you use, the
more
heat is produced, so start with a thinner coat if you've never used it
before.
You can have a spray bottle of isopropyl alcohol to spray the nail if it
gets a
bit too hot. Next smooth and finish the top of the nail with a fine
rotary nail bit
or file, and some 1500 grit sandpaper. (b) After this, you can taper
the nail
from underneath. You may or may not need this step. Test nail on a
string first. You can use the end of an emery board type file,
but the
most efficient way is to use a rotary file with an "under the nail" bit.
There are different styles of under the nail bits to choose from. Swiss
carbide bits seem to work the best. Diamond bits also work well. They're also
good for removing any glue that can get under the
nail. |
(17)
(a) (b)

(a) If your natural nail was very short, you can do this step later,
after the
nail grows out a bit. When tapering underneath the nail, the idea is to taper
it smoothly into the Instant
Nail
above it. The
result will be a smooth nail
that will give you a
very pure
sound.
A little filing goes a long way. Try out your nail on a guitar string to
test. (b) Then you can also use the end of
a fine grit file and some 1500 grit sandpaper folded a couple of times
with
a curve, to finish underneath the nail.. |
(18)
(a) (b)

(a) The end result is a durable, great sounding nail that feels like
your own. It's also a nail you don't have to worry about. If something
happens to it, you can remove it and apply another one in a few
minutes. Always file the Instant Nail
off to remove it. Never peel or try to soak it off with chemicals.
Filing it
off only takes a minute or two. Because of our methods of
application, and because you're only applying the Instant Nail to the
front half of the nail plate, if you follow our instructions they're very safe to use on a regular
basis. (b) The same finished nail with a little commercial nail polish
applied. |
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Click
here
to see an Instant Nail applied in real
time from start to finish. It follows the above steps. |
If you have any questions, or if any
problems arise, don't hesitate to contact us!
We have lots of experience with any situations that might occur. If you
don't achieve the exact
tone and performance that you want from our nails, give us a call or
e-mail us.
We'll make sure you do.
916-687-0924
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