Originally Posted by: bunnahowenHow have you been getting on with this? I have always struggled with it. I can play a full F barre chord but I cannot play the version of F you describe. I can barre the two strings no problem but soon as I try to play the full chord I mute strings. I think my difficulty is the index won't work independently. When i apply the barre the other two fingers move and mute. Anyway Hope you have cracked it. best wishes

I too found it easier to do the F Barre chord. But unfortunately, it makes for a less smooth transition in changing to other chords (like C).

What I learned was that playing the F chord has a lot to with the muscle just below your thumb. Try playing the F chord and just feel the muscle just under the thumb...it will probably be rock hard...that is the muscle you need to build. To build this muscle I purchased a very inexpensive finger exerciser called a VARIGRIP. It cost about 10.00 and I think I got it at Best Buy in the guitar section of the store.

A couple of simple exercises with this for just a few minutes a day will have you playing the F chord in a couple of weeks. It helped me a lot and really changed my whole attitude towards the guitar and my ability.

Good luck!