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Author
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Topic: thumb picks
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Scott Appleton
Member From: Half Moon Bay, California, USA
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posted 29 February 2004 09:01 PM
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Just wondering what everyone's fav thumb pick is and why? I love those little blue ones .. they are light
and stay put. the Nationals seem to grab the string too hard causing a raspy tone. the Jeff Newman pick
breaks so fast I cant keep enough of them around.
what are your thoughts.
Scott Appleton------------------
Mullen S12
Acoustic 165 100W tube
71 Tele, Regal 45, Gretch
Lap, Columbia Lap, Line 6 |
Bob Mainwaring
Member From: Qualicum Beach Vancouver Island B.C. Canada
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posted 29 February 2004 09:10 PM
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Scott, I'll probably get my head kicked in but for the last three years - I've been using metal "Jim Dunlop" picks and have found them - for me - the best. I swing from steel to Banjo and "still" they're sounding good.
With most of the plastic picks I've used, they seem to get a build up of crud which just dosn't happen with the metal type, plus they go on and on........Just my pennies worth. Bob Mainwaring. Z.B's and other sweet things.
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Eric West
Member From: Portland, Oregon, USA
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posted 29 February 2004 09:29 PM
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Ill post pics when I get a chance, but I was in a REAL panic when the blue hercs started to get weaker and wimpier. I havce rather large thumbs but always found others to be too bulky, like Nats and Duns.UNTIL.. I decided to make some myself. Since I liked the shape of the blue hercs, but not the length ( too short) or the "grip" (in the later runs" I found the semi tortoise looking Dunlops to be nearly perfect. What I did was puit a blue herc inside of one, and trim the bulkiness of the dunlop down with a dremel with a little extra length. THEN I plopped it in a ( an empty) cat food can with boiling water till it uncurled. After that I took it out and bent it PERFECTLY to fit my thumb. Flat part on a table top. Once more to make it a tad smaller for spring, and VIOLA. Let them cool SLOWLY. No cold water, and DON't heat them with a lighter. That's how they get brittle. It takes very little effort to make two or three EXACT copies. COnsidering they last a couple years, there's not much worry over not getting another one. I should have done it YEARS ago. They are every bit as fitting and light as the hercs but with that extra 1/8 inch in blade length and MORE grab. Try it. I should have YEARS ago. EJL Considering how nice people have been to me here, I'd be GLAD to make up a couple of the same dinensions as the hercs with more blade length and grip. Free. email me if you wish. Other wise, get adventurous and boil some water! Dunlop tortoise looking ones are excellent to start with.[This message was edited by Eric West on 29 February 2004 at 09:31 PM.] |
Jerry Hayes
Member From: Virginia Beach, Va.
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posted 01 March 2004 04:40 AM
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I used the blue Herco's for twenty some years until I found the red ones they make. I use them now but still have some of the blue ones around. I've tried Nationals and some other plastic picks but at some point they always seem to break and the Herco's never do, they just keep on truckin... I use them for both steel and lead guitar. I like the short shaft and always file them to a point to get a sharper tone on the bass strings. Have a good 'un..JH------------------
Livin' in the Past and the Future with a 12 string Mooney Universal tuning.
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Jerry Van Hoose
Member From:
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posted 01 March 2004 06:08 AM
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D'Andrea |
Erv Niehaus
Member From: Litchfield, MN, USA
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posted 01 March 2004 10:15 AM
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My grandson broke my favorite thumb pick some time ago. I needed to replace it and opted for a white thumb pick very similiar to the National but with a piece of tortoise shell adhered to the picking area. I bought the pick from Frenchy's in Belen, New Mexico and really like it a lot. Has a real solid feel to it.
Erv |
Nathan Delacretaz
Member From: Austin, Texas, USA
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posted 01 March 2004 10:29 AM
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Stumbled onto these by accident, but I've ended up using them full time. Nice and snug, good attack, narrow picking surface suits me...
http://www.fredkellyspicks.com/speed.htm |
Fred Shannon
Member From: Rocking "S" Ranch, Comancheria, Texas
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posted 01 March 2004 10:49 AM
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I've been using Fred Kelley's speed picks for over 4 years and I love 'em. You won't break them easily and the little "pick" portion can be heated in hot water and bent to assure you keep the "flat portion" squarely against the strings. A super pick in my opinion and they fit tightly also.fred ------------------
The spirit be with you!
If it aint got a steel, it aint real |
Ben Slaughter
Member From: Madera, California
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posted 01 March 2004 11:29 AM
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Another Fred Kelly user here. I'd tried quite a few previously, even modifying some, but settled on the "slick picks."------------------
Ben
Zum D10, NV400, POD, G&L Guitars, etc, etc. |
Ken Byng
Member From: Southampton, England
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posted 01 March 2004 11:42 AM
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Fred Kelly Slick Pick for me too (medium)KB |
Bob Tuttle
Member From: San Angelo, Tx, USA
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posted 01 March 2004 11:54 AM
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I've been using the Fred Kelly speed picks exclusively forthe past three or four years. I like the crisp tone they get, especially on the lower strings. I've tried several other thumb picks, but I always go back to the Kelly after two or three songs. |
Michael Haselman
Member From: St. Paul Park, Minnesota, USA
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posted 01 March 2004 12:54 PM
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I bought a box of 50 blue Hercos 20 years ago and have at least 30 left. Here's a tip to Eric, maybe. I saw Jimmie Crawford years ago, who has rather large thumbs, and he held a lighter under a blue Herco and then put it on. Seemed to work for him.------------------
Marrs D-10, Webb 6-14E |
Pat Burns
Member From: Branchville, N.J. USA
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posted 01 March 2004 01:22 PM
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....arrg...now you tell me!...I've been putting the pick on first!... |
Travis Bernhardt
Member From: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
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posted 01 March 2004 03:49 PM
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On thumb picks and boiling water--I bought a Zookie angled pick (a 30) which I only realized was too tight when I got home from the store. Boiled some water, dipped part of it in until it started to move, let it cool for a bit, then put it on my finger and let it cool all the way. Now it fits. Why I never did this before (my usual routine is trying on every stupid pick in the store until I find one that fits) is beyond me. -Travis |
Lincoln Goertzen
Member From: Rose Prairie, British Columbia, Canada
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posted 01 March 2004 04:30 PM
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I am another Fred Kelly Slick Pick user.I just love these picks for...well, anything that needs a thumpick!!! May have to try that speed pick one of these days. Lincoln |
David Doggett
Member From: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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posted 01 March 2004 09:31 PM
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Dunlop metal thumb pick. You can bend it to shape and it stays. They never break. I switch between 6-string, Dobro and pedal steel. Since I always used metal picks for guitar and Dobro, I stuck with them for pedal steel. Now if I can just learn to play my tenor sax with my picks on, I'll be set. |
Bob Hoffnar
Member From: Brooklyn, NY
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posted 01 March 2004 10:05 PM
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I bought the assortment bag of Fred Kelly picks and found I like the Regular Delrin picks of his the best.
They don't get loose on those long gigs under lights.Bob http://www.fredkellyspicks.com/ |
David Mason
Member From: Cambridge, MD, USA
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posted 02 March 2004 01:02 AM
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I like the John Pearse picks. I guess I'm the opposite of Eric - I like the pick tip short, so that I can use the side of my thumb to help mute strings, maybe a six-string flatpick holdover. I always shorten Herco or Dunlop picks. http://www.jpstrings.com/braccess.htm#VTpicks |
Carl West
Member From: La Habra, CA, USA
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posted 02 March 2004 08:13 AM
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I'm using,Dunlop Nylon (clear). Best one I've found. Ordered directly from dunlop.Carl West
Emmons LaGrande lll |
Bud Harger
Member From: Temple / Belton, Texas
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posted 02 March 2004 03:25 PM
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I was in Branson last week...while woodshedding I broke the only Jeff Newman thumb pick that I had brought with me. ( I had more at home). Panic set in.I went to a local music shop and found the "Johnson" thumb pick. I bought several and surprisingly they are really very nice. They are sort of 'striped, beige', firm and very comfortable. Great in a pinch, in other words. They must be made for reso. You really can't beat Jeff Newman's red & white custom thumb picks for tone and comfort. Jeff will have thousands of them in Dallas next week. I'm going to restock. bUd |
Tim Rowley
Member From: Pinconning, MI, USA
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posted 02 March 2004 04:16 PM
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I've used a Fred Kelly pick for years but am thinking about trying something with a little more "dig" to it. Maybe I'll try modifying a Golden Gate pick or whatever.Tim Rowley |
Paddy Long
Member From: Christchurch, New Zealand
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posted 02 March 2004 05:08 PM
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I'm a Zookie man myself, love that little angle on the blade - I used to wear picks out fairly quickly before (Jeff's ones) grinding the side out of them. The Zookies solve that problem because your hitting the string with the flat part of the blade - and they last forever.
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John Macy
Member From: Denver, CO USA
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posted 02 March 2004 05:47 PM
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Add me to the Fred Kelly user list. Love the Slick Pics... |
Buck Dilly
Member From: Branchville, NJ, USA
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posted 02 March 2004 06:12 PM
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Zookie- You may need to try different angles. I love the L-10. I shaved it down considerably, though. I find most thumb picks way too large. |
David Mullis
Member From: Rock Hill, SC
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posted 02 March 2004 08:34 PM
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Fred Kelly slick picks are my favorite. I've tried about everything out there from Dunlops to the clown puke Golden Gate picks, but the slick picks suit me better than anything else I've tried. |
Jim Smith
Member From: Plano, TX, USA
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posted 05 March 2004 07:30 AM
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This link http://www.buddyemmons.com/wayne1.htm shows Buddy using what looks to be a Fred Kelly speed pick.  |
Jack Klein
Member From: Alpena, MI, USA
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posted 05 March 2004 06:23 PM
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Tim, if you're thru with the Fred Kelly, I want it back. ha!. Jack |
Jim Smith
Member From: Plano, TX, USA
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posted 06 March 2004 11:23 AM
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The Fred Kelly picks sound like they're worth a try. Will any vendors have them at the Texas show? |
Jim Bates
Member From: Alvin, Texas, USA
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posted 09 March 2004 07:37 PM
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I have used the Dunlop clear plastic thumbpick (copy of the Dobro)for many, many years. It's pointed, and the material does not change the sound of the string whether it is picked with the metal finger pick or the thumb.Also, I am a 'heavy' picker and this Dunlop stays put. Order them from Elderly Instruments. Thanx,
Jim |
Greg Simmons
Member From: Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
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posted 09 March 2004 08:03 PM
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Jim;I'm pretty sure Frenchy will have some Fred Kelly picks as I've picked up some from him the last few years ------------------
Greg Simmons
Custodian of the Official Sho~Bud Pedal Steel Guitar Website
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Ken Fox
Member From: Ray City, GA USA
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posted 09 March 2004 08:27 PM
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Fred Kelley speed picks for me, been using them for the last 5 or 6 years! I ran them through the clothes dryer by accident and they still work great, never loosen up. They make three strengths, white, yellow and orange. I got them all. Like the yellow and orange for the Tele and the white for steel and Chet Style on the Tele.. |
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