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Post new topic One more gosh-darned finger pick thread.
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Author Topic:  One more gosh-darned finger pick thread.
Brian Hunter


From:
Indianapolis
Post  Posted 6 Feb 2011 7:28 pm    
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I was hating them. And after reading a bunch of older threads about them here, I decided that I was going to stick it out with them and try to get more comfortable playing with the things. I also took some advice I found here and sat down with needle nose pliers and fitted them. I am still a bit clumsy with them but they feel better and sound great. Thanks for all of the posts here on the subject.
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Mike Neer


From:
NJ
Post  Posted 6 Feb 2011 8:07 pm    
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If you really work them well enough with the pliers and contour them to your fingers (especially near the back nearest your knuckle), you can get them snug enough that they'll be secure and you won't even know they are there.

What gauge are your picks?
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Steve Ahola


From:
Concord, California
Post  Posted 6 Feb 2011 10:37 pm    
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I have a pair of small bent needle nose pliers which are perfect for shaping fingerpicks. Regular needle nose pliers don't work as well and can leave imprints on the metal.

I do have a problem with the metal digging into my cuticles and the only solution I found was the coated fingerpicks that Andy Hinton used to sell here.

It took awhile to get used to playing with the metal fingerpicks, and I found that they really are necessary for certain sounds. (There are some great sounds that you can get with just your fingers, but to me they don't have that classic steel guitar sound. There is something special about a steel bar and steel fingerpicks. Winking )

I think it is good to have callouses built up so that you can play with or without them.

Steve Ahola
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Last edited by Steve Ahola on 7 Feb 2011 5:53 pm; edited 1 time in total
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David Matzenik


From:
Cairns, on the Coral Sea
Post  Posted 6 Feb 2011 11:12 pm    
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First time I used finger picks they were Nationals. Funny thing is they felt comfortable right away. It was back in the 60s, man! I was a walking harpsichord trying to do a Dave Van Ronk St James Infirmary. A teenager singing about death and woe. Embarassed Anyway I got over that and now I use Dunlops which are a little improvement on an old theme.
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Last edited by David Matzenik on 7 Feb 2011 4:27 am; edited 1 time in total
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Brian Hunter


From:
Indianapolis
Post  Posted 7 Feb 2011 4:06 am    
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Mike Neer wrote:


What gauge are your picks?



18's. Brass Dunlops. Since I worked them with the pliers they are a lot more comfortable.
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