What is your favorite pick?

[JoeT]

Good morning @markvguitar, try a product called “Pickers Grip” works great.

[dld2608gmail-com]

I use Dunlop Prime Tones in a 1.5 because I play similar style of music to you. I used to use the same picks you are using in a .8, but since switching exclusively to acoustic I find the heavier pick easier to grip and I get better tone.

[jumpinjeff]

Best all around pick for the money is Dunlop Ultex 2.0. On the exotic side….I love Snakewood as a pick material and thick 2.5. I mess around with other woods too, Amboyna, pink ivory wood, BRW. This was whittled down from ten types of wood to my faves. I like Blue Chips but not all the time. They slide on the strings almost too much and cost is a detractor. For fast strum training I worked the Jim Dunlop Nylon .60. This was a training pick, the dynamic range is narrow compared to the effort needed to produce the change. This is a loud pick: the pick itself makes sound as it strikes the string. I am not big on that sound which reinforces my use as training pick only. Great though for the purpose of working speed (another way of saying, “how much can you relax while playing”). I can see if you are having grip problems how the Primetones are useful. I used to have that issue until I figured flat picking was all about balance in the same way riding a bike was about balance. Once you get it you no longer fall off. Just know that balance is the key and you will get it. Just keep going. Lastly I have a little mother of pearl pick that I have been experimenting with for a few years. Mother of pearl is a hard material, the hardest of all of them and it is the fastest. This pick requires the most precision. It only takes the very tip of the pick to strike the string any more and it gets awkward feeling. It took me the most time to get a desired sound (precision seems to come to me exclusively through time), the rewards though are worth it. I even made picks out of turtle shell (it was road kill), not a fan. I have tried paper, various plastics including credit cards and any other material that makes a little ping sound when dropped and hits the ground. I put speed bevels on all my wood picks. Forgot to include that important developmental detail. The advantage of the wood picks is I can reduce the pick to string contact noise to almost nothing. I have been working many years to find a way to achieve this effect. Closer every day! Have fun. It is one of the least expensive ways to play around with your acoustic sound!

[markvguitar]

Thanks for the input. I’ve been using Dunlop prime tone 1.5s for my mandolin playing. Used them today for guitar and I think the problem is solved. They are a little pricer but still cheaper than blue chips.

[Lucky_one2]

I use Dunlop max grip .73 or .88 when strumming on the acoustic…Stringjoy 3.0 Acrylic when soloing. Personal preference.

[Skyman911]

Blue Chip pick hands down. I use a TD35 and TAD40. I can’t seem to play with any other pick now. I don’t tend to lose it when playing like every other pick I’ve tried. I don’t really like the grip picks either. Very pricey at $35 each. Based on watching the videos, it looks like Tony also uses a Blue Chip pick. Your results may vary.

[Philb]

I have tried a lot through the years, and have several I may use. My over all favorite is this one. Enough grip to help; but not so much it hinders. I have some thicker, like you use; and some thinner (that I find too flexible). This .88 and a 1.0 give me the best over all control, with some flexibility. At my level of playing, it fits me. I hope you find what works for you.

[Michael_TCTX]

Years ago, I always defaulted to Fender mediums. But, I had no technique (a result of having no practice discipline or routine, either) and was an on-again/off-again player for many years turned decades. In retrospect, I liked the Fender mediums because they were flexible and I was strumming and striking the strings too hard. I even liked the clackity-clack rhythm sounds they made as a result. There were many reasons why I was a mediocre guitar player.

Around the turn of the century, I picked up the bass in earnest and found success, strictly finger-style. When I revisited the acoustic ten years later, I kept using fingers only. I learned songs to lead in worship, but nothing else. So, I did what I did, typically in prisons and missional settings, where my primitive style worked well, but I was limited to a severely narrow range of playing. When I stopped leading (pre-COVID), my guitar began to serve its own sentence in solitary confinement to its case.

This spring I began to notice the urge to play guitar. I saw a young teacher on FB yelling at me saying, “Use a pick!” and I decided that if I was going to commit to playing the guitar again, it would in fact be a commitment and would indeed include flatpicking. My wife went on a retreat in March, and I decided to decide my guitar-playing future that weekend. Part of me simply did not want to finish life with such poor guitar skills, and the other recognized that to improve I would need to commit. My evaluation first included a pick-selection showdown and afterwards a final on-line course selection review that resulted in me joining TAC.

I went to GC and bought two packs of picks, both Dunlops. One was a variety pack that included a wide range of picks, some that were of standard shape that reminded me of the Fender mediums. It also included a Jazz III that caught my eye, having read many players citing that as their pick of choice. I bought a second pack of standard purple 1.14 mm tortex picks, thinking that, from what I had been reading, I probably needed a thicker pick that what I had used in the past. I went through most of the picks in the variety pack, and quickly dismissed all of the thinner picks and the alternate shapes (triangles, etc.), focusing on the Jazz III and the thicker standard picks. I gravitated toward the purple (1.14) and black (which I thought were a bit thicker, but a check as I am writing this shows they are same, 1.14, although a bit worn and I am not certain). That led me to the purple standard, because the Jazz III just felt a bit too small, and I felt like my hand was cramping a bit holding it. Ironically, the standard pick shape felt a bit too wide, and as I was searching online to see what others gravitated toward, I noticed an article that shared SRV’s habit of rotating the pick to strike with the rounder side. So, I tried that, and spent an evening using the pick in that manner, seeing if I wanted to continue. In the process, I managed to find a short power chord sequence to the Stones’ “Heartbreaker” and found a strumming pattern that for perhaps the first time felt natural and sounded musical. I crossed the line, deciding that I would indeed return to the guitar. It was then that I started the online lesson evaluation and found TAC.

Ironically, I was literally packing up all the miscellaneous picks from the variety pack when one that I had somehow missed fell onto my desk. It was a purple Jazz III XL, a little bigger than the Jazz III and a bit smaller than the standard pick. I tried it, holding it in proper position (and went through the flatpicking basics video here as well) and found that I really felt comfortable holding it. I had already become more comfortable with the slightly thicker pick, and noticed that I was being more deliberate and more deliberately gentile in my string attack as a result. Another day or two of back-and-forth evaluation and the final results were in—it was the purple (1.14 mm) Jazz III XL for the win. Another trip to GC found that they do not carry them in stock at that store (although I did get a well-needed setup on my guitar), so I had to order online from Sweetwater.

I shared all that because it was a recent experience and, at least for me, pick selection is an important part of the equation. If I had not found a pick that I was comfortable with, I very likely would have decided against committing to play the guitar. Instead, I am very grateful that I took the time to find one that I am comfortable with, and the time to find the right instruction, which I believe I have found here at TAC. The challenges have reinforced my thought that my picking technique needed attention The heavier 1.14 weight helps me be more deliberate and yet simultaneously gentle, and the Jazz III XL shape is very comfortable for me. I guess I learned today that I could have selected either black or purple, and that has always been a tough call, anyway but it was purple for the win, As for sweat, I figure there have been many people rocking and sweating their way around the world without too much problem, so I have three picks on my desk and one on the bookshelf for when I stand up. Once I get back out, I’ll get a holder for the micstand and have reinforcements handy.

Thanks for reading. Peace and many blessings to you all.

[DiscostewLA]

I really like the Dunlop Primetone with the raised bumps. I keep one in my pocket and I like the tactile texture. I’ve tried a few different weights and I seem to like the .96 thickness the most.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JB4WDMY?ref_=ppx_hzod_title_dt_b_fed_asin_title_0_0&th=1

[jorgemac]

Primetone for me also. But I use the heaver 1.5 and the cork grips. I’m more of a Hybrid picker than anything else.

[markvguitar]

I’ve settled on prime tone 1.5 vs Blue Chip TP 50. Not sure I can justify $35 per pick for the subtle difference in tone.

[jorgemac]

I have the Blue Chip also but like the tone of the Dunlop better. just another example of excessive spending on this nasty guitar habit that I can’t seem to break…

[DiscostewLA]

I also invested in a $35 BlueChip pick based on some YouTube videos and it sounded ok but it sits on the shelf while I use the Primetone. 🙂

[TomJabz1973]

I use a “thinner” Dunlop Tortex (.50 or .60 mm). I’m fairly new at guitar. Some more experienced musicians have said that a thinner pick is better for acoustic guitar playing in general, and that a thinner pick makes it easier for beginners to strum. You might want to buy a packet of picks that have a variety of thicknesses and try them out to see which feels best for you.

[TomJabz1973]

I forgot to mention that Dunlop picks are very reasonably priced. At my limited experience level, I’m not certain I can justify a $35 pick. I seem to be doing just fine with my Dunlops ($5.49 for a pack of 12).

[jorgemac]

Today I dropped down from 1.5 Primetone to 1.3 Primetone. It seems to give me more control for softer voicing while still able to bang out firmer notes as needed. Just part of the never ending guitar journey.