I have now been exploring the world of steel for five months or so, and I'm starting to find my feet (at least I am aware of their existence... ). I have tried a number of finger and thumbpicks, looking for what feels the most natural and comfortable.

For my electric (National New Yorker, C6th tuning) my set-up is:

2 Dunlop brass .0225 fingerpicks
1 no-name vintage mosaic celluloid thumbpick, quite light and sticking to the thumb very well. (I had another no-name vintage thumbpick that was great that I lost - I will have to be careful with this one!)

For acoustic slide (1930s Oahu, open C), which I play much harder, I use:

2 Dunlop brass .0225 fingerpicks
1 Golden Gate extra heavy thumbpick

The Golden Gate is great! I think the design is very clever in the way the pick stays in place so much better than most thumbpicks, and therefore can be used for much heavier picking.

What do you seasoned players out there think of thumbpicks that stay in place? Is the Golden Gate the ultimate pick for heavy acoustic/dobro style playing?

I have seen (but not tried) some old thumbpicks with leather or fabric lining on the inside - is this common?

And regarding the fingerpicks, would Dunlop .0250 make any noticable difference from the .0225 ones? If so, in what way?

Cheers,

Fred

[This message was edited by Fred Kinbom on 23 January 2006 at 02:58 AM.]

I got mine online from Elderly Instruments.

Cheers,

I play and practice electric steel about 90% of the time. At least 6 days a week. I try to minimize variation so I use the same finger and thumb picks all the time. When I play acoustic steel, like with a Praise Band, I always start with my same picks.

When I get into extended periods of louder play, I like the Zookies Medium 10. I don't like to pick very hard for fear of screwing my electric steel technique.

Yes, you will notice some difference b/w the Dunlop o225 and the 025. I use Dunlop steel picks and went to the o225 strictly for comfort. I can bend them a little easier and they flex a little more and have a nice snap. They just feel better to me.

hope this helps

Ron

[This message was edited by Ron Randall on 23 January 2006 at 09:29 PM.]

National thumbpicks fit my fingers the best and stay in place better than anything else but they break after a couple of hours of serious use (there are actually two kinds of National thumb picks available that I know of: the ones that don't break and don't fit, and the ones that fit great and break easily).

I don't hear a big difference between the different guages of fingerpick unless I compare a really thin one with a really heavy one--and then I wonder if it's more to do with feel than tone. The light ones feel better to me right now, although I used to like the heavier ones. (Actually, right now I use a Dunlop on my index finger, a Propik on my middle, and a Dunlop on the ring finger. This is because of the way they fit and angle towards the strings, not because of the sound.)

All subjective, of course!

For pedal steel and Dobro I really like the Kyser takeoff on the old National design. They're a lot stiffer than the .025 Dunlops and therefore more trouble to shape, but they hold their shape better and have small punch marks on the inside surface to help hold them in place. I twist the tips slighty to hit the string more squarely also.

For more "warm and sensitive" lap steel playing, my absolute favorite fingerpick is the brass ProPik reso-L with the perforated wraparounds. They're fairly easy to shape (brass is softer), stay in place, and produce a warmer tone than german silver.

Since I am an 'aggressive' on pedal steel and dobro, I have always used the Dobro (Dunlop makes this style also) clear plastic thumbpick. It does NOT affect the tone of the string, and it stays put on my thumb. For finger picks, I use Dunlop .225, and keep the picking surfaces mirror polished with Simichrome.

Thanx,
Jim

Since I am an 'aggressive' on pedal steel and dobro, I have always used the Dobro (Dunlop makes this style also) clear plastic thumbpick. It does NOT affect the tone of the string, and it stays put on my thumb. For finger picks, I use Dunlop .0225, and keep the picking surfaces mirror polished with Simichrome.

Thanx,
Jim

Since I am an 'aggressive' on pedal steel and dobro, I have always used the Dobro (Dunlop makes this style also) clear plastic thumbpick. It does NOT affect the tone of the string, and it stays put on my thumb. For finger picks, I use Dunlop .0225, and keep the picking surfaces mirror polished with Simichrome.

Thanx,
Jim