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Fingerpicks or Bare Fingers? - General Guitar - Guitar - ezFolk Forums
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 Posted: Sun May 11th, 2008 03:46 pm
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AmyDK
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Okay, since this thread was resurrected, I'll ask a question. I'm having a terrible time finding a thumb pick that'll stay on when I play. What brand do you all recommend? I've been using Dunlop mediums, but they're too big and often in the middle of a song I find it slipping and I've at times just had to throw it off to keep from interrupting the song. The smalls are too small and tend to cut off circulation :)... I do a lot of fingerpicking when I play, so besides a bit of comic relief, it's really annoying to have to flick the darn pick off in the middle of a set because it keeps slipping.

Any ideas? Someone gave me a ProPik small metal and plastic pick that was adjustable, but it made such a loud noise when hitting the strings that I didn't like it at all. But, it did stay on!

I appreciate your thoughts.
Peace -
Amy DK



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 Posted: Mon May 12th, 2008 02:09 am
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Will
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Instrument Interest: Ukulele, Clawhammer Banjo, Guitar, Harmonica, Dulcimer, Mandolin, Autoharp, Keyboards, Other
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AmyDK wrote: Okay, since this thread was resurrected, I'll ask a question. I'm having a terrible time finding a thumb pick that'll stay on when I play. What brand do you all recommend? I've been using Dunlop mediums, but they're too big and often in the middle of a song I find it slipping and I've at times just had to throw it off to keep from interrupting the song. The smalls are too small and tend to cut off circulation :)... I do a lot of fingerpicking when I play, so besides a bit of comic relief, it's really annoying to have to flick the darn pick off in the middle of a set because it keeps slipping.

Any ideas? Someone gave me a ProPik small metal and plastic pick that was adjustable, but it made such a loud noise when hitting the strings that I didn't like it at all. But, it did stay on!

I appreciate your thoughts.
Peace -
Amy DK

I use Dunlop thumbpicks almost exclusively for autoharp. Despite having small hands, I have a wide thumb, and I have to use a large size thumbpick. ;)

One trick I've heard is to soften the plastic Dunlop thumbpicks briefly in a bowl of boiling water, then allowing your thumb to stretch them to fit better.

For guitar, I'm more of a flatpicker, but I use Herco thumb-flatpicks, in either heavy or medium gauge. 



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 Posted: Mon May 12th, 2008 08:28 pm
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Philj200
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I use three metal finger picks and a plastic thumb pick for guitar and two metal figner picks and the same type of thumbpick for BG banjo.

That is when I need to produce the volume the picks add. When playing quietly with just one or two others, sometimes no picks are needed. Playing banjo without picks lets me go from clawhammer to picked patterns seamlessly.

Over the years my pick count has changed.

I started with just a thumb pick on guitar and played a version of Carter style: thumb/base note first two fingers brushing across the chordup-down-up. As I became intrested in blues, I learned that many of the early Delta bluesmen used a thumb pick and one metal finger pick. So I played that way for a while. Then I discovered Merle Travis and added a second metal pick. Along the way I started to pick banjo with T+FP2 equation. I met some ragtime pickers who  did almost piano complexities. They used three metal finger picks and I went in the direction. This is an odessey that took 20 years (I'm actually quite conservative in changing my music).

I've tried plastic finger picks but didn't like them. Hatd the raspy sound of a metal thumb pick (yes they exist).

Chet Atkins played (occassionally) with a flat pick and two metal finger picks(at the same time). So I experimented with that. Fun, but not where I wanted to concentrate.

And play tenor banjo and 63.4% of my guitar with a flat-pick (a Fender triangle medium).

I use Dunlop L thumbpicks becasue I can't find the ones I like and the small stash I had hoarded was finally used up. I prefer a bigger heavier thumb pick than the Dunlops. But can't find them.

Pick the picks you like. And that fit your music for now. Change you habits when you feel you want to. The Pick Police won't issue a citation.



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 Posted: Tue May 13th, 2008 09:10 am
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Dino
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Nylon acoustic guitar with bare-finger picking  flamenco style is what I do. Steel acoustic guitar is pick and three-finger picking. I've tried using thumb picks to be able to use four-fingered picking but like someone else posted they don't stay in place well.  

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 Posted: Tue May 13th, 2008 02:17 pm
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Philj200
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Dino reminds me, people have used finger picks on nylon strung instruments too. It's a give and take thing. You give up some of the untimate tone, but you gain volume. In the open-air environment of Washington Square, where  hundreds of people played and no amps were allowed, the extra volume was necessary.

I've tried it see what it's like and see the point. It's worth experimenting with experimenting with just to have in your bag of tricks.

I'm aware of that plays this way is Noel in Peter, Paul and Mary... a group without pretensions of ethnicity. 

Grover, the people who make the high end tuning machines used to make great thumb picks. They came in a range of sizes and thicknesses and even had left handed  versions. I used them for decades. But haven't seen them around for a long time. I have one left that's too small for me. Maybe that's why I still have it.



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