Thumbpicks

TimmyO · November 2016

I presume there are as many thoughts on the best thumb picks and how to get used to using them as there are people, but I'll open the wormy can and peer in : let's hear your thoughts :-)

Tim

mgaw · November 2016

i have used quite a few different brands including the old Blue Chip ones (very good) i have however settled on the Kelly speed pick...find them easier to use. As for getting used to them i just stucl it on and kept it there everytime i played the guitar...doesn't take long.

I did try a primetone plectrum the other day which is almost identical to the £30 bluechip and costs £3 !!

Lewy · November 2016

I use a Blue Chip JD Crowe which is amazing but stupid money. If I lost it I doubt I'd replace it.

I find the plain old white Dunlop ones are perfectly usable, as are the tortoiseshell Planet Waves. I find the blades tend to be too long so I do some reshaping with a multi-sided nail file/buffer.

AliGorie · November 2016

hey Tim, as u can see in the vid I posted - I use a Dunlop 'Zookies M-20.
like this -

Image: https://58eca9fdf76150b92bfa-3586c28d09a33a8c605ed79290ca82aa.ssl.cf3.rackcdn.com/dunlop-zookies-angled-thumb-pick-12-pack-med-20-320420.jpg

M = Medium '20' is the angle of the picking surface (so it strikes the string flat on)
work well for me.

axisus · November 2016

I just don't get how people use thumb picks? I've tried a few times over the years and they just seem like a hinderance. I bought a few Doyle Dykes ones once at one of his clinics, inspired by his amazing playing, but they are REALLY hard to use!

Here's one:

TimmyO · November 2016

I had to walk through town today so picked up 2 Dunlop ones (a white-ish one and a tortoiseshell coloured one)

Both are in the Large size but make my thumb bulge and go a funny colour after a few minutes - I must have fat thumbs...

xSkarloey · November 2016

I could never get one to fit me either. I have tried playing with them, but I am very clumsy.

There are these hybrid types around too. I have one somewhere where you can move the plectrum part according to taste. Needless to say, I"m crap with that as well.

http://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/accessories-c2/picks-plectrums-c50/specialist-picks-c406/herco-herco-flat-thumb-guitar-pick-thin-p10851

It's either all pick or bare fingers for me.

axisus · November 2016

@TimmyO @Skarloey Re- the fitting thing - I'm sure I read somewhere this year (and I had never heard this before!) That you are supposed to drop them in very hot water for a bit to make them go soft, fit on your thumb, then stick it in cold water to 'reset' the size/shape. I'd try looking it up but I'm at work and very limited on time!

CHRISB50 · November 2016

Like axisus I cannot get used them no matter how much I try. I find them pretty difficult to use and a bit uncomfortable. I have a long thumb nail instead.

Although the way some people stare at my fingernails sometimes makes me wish I could get used to picks.

AliGorie · November 2016

I couldn't play without a TP and the ones I mention above particularly suite my way of playing - some pickin some strummin some thwakin - like this -

Image: http://img.youtube.com/vi/pXdGXIRSibo/0.jpg

when I play 'nylon' I use my thumb nail but it's akward turning the thumb 'inwards' after decades of the straight up/down thumb strokes u play with a TP.

Sassafras · November 2016

I've had to shorten and reshape the blades on every thumbpick I've owned till they're just short little stubs. The closer my thumb is to the strings, the easier they are to control.

TimmyO · November 2016

Sassafras said:

I've had to shorten and reshape the blades on every thumbpick I've owned till they're just short little stubs. The closer my thumb is to the strings, the easier they are to control.

That's my first reaction on trying it - that I'd prefer that, but will see how I go

TimmyO · November 2016

I did the whole hot-water-stretchy thing today - much more bearable - thumb end less blue ;-)

Sambostar · November 2016

TimmyO said:

I did the whole hot-water-stretchy thing today - much more bearable - thumb end less blue ;-)

Tried that with my Fred Kelly and my thumb still starts tingling after 8 minutes.

Agree with shortening the blade though, it's not natural to have that much sticking out if I had nails and I never have anywhere like that sticking out with a plectrum and the longer length means you have to rotate your thumb which isn't good.

BigLicks67 · November 2016

Sassafras said:

I've had to shorten and reshape the blades on every thumbpick I've owned till they're just short little stubs. The closer my thumb is to the strings, the easier they are to control.

I initially tried this but then found it was better if I kept the picks at the normal length, but angled them slightly so that they are not parallel with the string. I noticed a lot of good thumb pickers were doing this as well.

The problem with thumb picks is that if you were taught to play in the classical style using the thumbnail then it is a big adjustment to start using the side of the thumb, once I got used to this then thumb picks became a lot easier.

Jimbro66 · November 2016

I started using thumb picks in my mid teens because several of the players that influenced me at the time used them. They seemed clumsy at first but I persevered and I've continued using them over the years for electric and acoustic. The one thing I learned early on was, as others have mentioned here, virtually no thumb picks are ok straight from the packet. They need the blades trimmed to suit your preference and I usually also thin the blade down a bit with abrasive paper to make them less rigid. Some need the hot water treatment, it depends on the pick.

I've tried a lot of different thumb picks but over recent years have narrowed it down to a few: Zookies 10 deg for acoustic guitar give a warm/soft tone. If I want a sharper attack for Travis style muted playing I'll use a Dunlop shell plastic. I also use Zookies for square-neck resonator guitar but in that case I find 20 deg better and I keep the blade longer to dig in. For electric guitar I've used the Herco flat thumb picks for at least fifteen years and occasionally also use them for acoustic guitar if I want a brighter tone. I've always used the heavy Herco TPs because the light and medium move around too much but the heavies do need the blades trimmed and thinned down a bit. Herco have now introduced an extra heavy gauge which I've not tried and may be a little more stable, albeit with the blade thinnned.

Thumb picks take a bit of perseverence at first but it's worthwhile trying out a bunch of different types, remembering that they'll almost certainly need a bit of work on them.

They don't suit every style of playing but probably more than you'd think. When I need to use a plectrum I have trouble holding onto the little Bs, which have a habit of turning round or even falling into the soundhole of an acoustic

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