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It's been mentioned twice already, but hasn't been given any specific love. I've been using the small teardrop Pro Plec for ages now. Here are some considerations for a pick purchaser, applied to my pick of choice.
1. Shape- Teardrop is my preferred shape, it might not necessarily be yours. If the pick shape is too large, I have to adjust. Too small (ei. dawg-type) and I can sort of lose track of where the "tip" is.
2. Sharpness- This refers to the shape of the tip from an overheard view. For instance, one could say that Stubbies and Jazz III's are pointy, and Dawgs are flat, and the Pro Plec is in between. This influences the sound of notes and the feeling of the pick coming off the string.
3. Bevel- This refers to the profile shape of the tip, or rather, the edge. One could say Jazz III's and the Clayton Ultem picks have a rounded square bevel. Round, almost semicircular bevels are fairly common. Pro Plecs have a unique bevel, like an oval that has a slight point on the end. I've seen bevels on picks like those of a blade-edge. Again, the bevel impacts the sound and feel of the pick.
Other things factor in too, like material, surface texture, thickness, grippy-ness, etc., but I don't have the stamina for such a long post. The big takeaway is that there are many variables, and it's all personal preference. Wow, that doesn't sound too helpful at all.
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08-07-2013 01:15 PM
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Great post=DK=!
Looking forward to the sequel ("Other things factor in too, like material, surface texture, thickness, grippy-ness, etc.")
Did you really mean that the Dawg is small?
Originally Posted by =DK=
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I have some very old genuine t-shell picks in different thicknesses. While I'd love to share, I won't be doing so. I think y'all understand.
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pro plecs are cool for a kind of dark sound without plinky trebles. they are a bit stiff for chord strumming.
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I love my Dunlop Gator Grips 2.0 picks. The only issue I have with them is they eventually start to warp due and then i have to be sure I have the pick turned right were my thumb is on a specific side.
I am going to try the Dunlop Primetone Large-Round-Tip. Gonna try the 3mm. Just to see. Hoping the more Stubby-like design will keep the warping down. The material and rounded tip I am hoping will have a performance similar to the Gator Grips.
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Yeah, I don't know what it is about celluloid, but I never drop them and they feel comfortable in my hand. Originally Posted by Moonray
You're right, the Dunlops are the 351 shape, and no, I haven't fully adjusted. Gibson made a pick that was shaped like a 358, but is slightly smaller. That works better for me than the 358, but I only have one of those and I don't think they make those anymore either. Does anybody know?
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Fender 358's are still available, if that's what you're asking.
I just got a couple of clamshell packs a couple of weeks ago from Just Strings.
I don't know if that means they are still being made.
BTW I found the size of the 358 is almost precisely the same as the Gibson teardrops.
I've got quite a few of the Gibbies.
The new 358 heavies are very slightly lighter than the older stock I have.
If you'd like to try some, or have them all,shoot me a PM
Some may joke around about the pick freaks and pick threads.
Well, for me I'd rather play my pick with any old guitar than my guitar with any old pick.
I'm not alone there...some of our past masters had similar strength of feeling for "their" pick
For example: Howard Roberts played with a particular pick and on one occasion held up a recording session
because he didn't have "his"pick and the band waited while his wife brought the right pick from home.
Of course the guys in the band razzed him...but they knew he was not kidding.
[Wouldn't be a good career move
in the present environment]
Joe Pass was well known for his habit of breaking a pick in half.
I've tried that too; take a Fender heavy 351 and just cut the fat bit off the top....feels great to me.
You can really feel your thumb against index finger...the pick does not move and you feel really close to the
strings.
Very practical man our Joe Pass.
Fun thing to try.....I have a couple on my desk in front of me......only down side is you don't get to use
the butt of the pick for the fatter sound it offers.
My interest in all matters of the pick and picking grew out of a 30 or so years of professional classical
guitar playing concerts and teaching and that would explain my obsession with any aspect of tone production
that I can control.
I've heard some jazz guitar students complain that they graduated from this or that prestigious music
school and were never given instruction in tone production whereas their sax,trumpet,piano,bass
colleagues were trained extensively on it.
As any of their classical guitar would have received.
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There's slightly different styles of "358" that are floating around. The original D'Andrea ones that both Gibson (likely) and Fender (definitely) used have a straighter, sharper point (I prefer these):
Whereas the newer Fenders and some others have varying degrees of a curve and wider point:
But, celluloid wears fast so I now get 351's and sharpen the points and keep on doing it as it wears till they get to be about 358 size and then I burn them (they blaze out nicely).
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Speaking of teardrops (though larger than 358's), I got some Wegen 1.8mm BigCity picks last week - I really like the feel of them, but was surprised at how they sounded - I didn't like the sound at all, very nasal and 'pinched' sounding when they strike the string - nothing like the sound of my Trimus 140 for example. I got a 4 pack of the BigCity's and they all sounded the same, so it wasn't like I just got a dud. Anyone else with these picks feel the same way?
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^ yeah the BigCity pick I got recently had a wide point, beveled knife thin and I didn't like the sound at all. So I sharpened the point, reworked the bevel to fatten up the edge and smoothed out some roughness. After that, it sounded nice and full with balanced overtones.
I also had to rework the other hand made picks I got recently because they originally sounded wretched... might have passed them along in a pick exchange or something like that
Here's some hand made picks that I reworked:
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I use a Golden Gate mandolin pick:
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I use the John Pearce and Wegen picks with my Gypsy guitar, the Blue Chip Jazz 100, D'Andrea, Dunlop and Fender with my Archtop and the Blue Chip TDs with my flat top.
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No, I apologize. I've never actually held a Dawg pick. I was trying to remember the name of a certain pick, and the Dawg looked similar in shape, so I substituted it. However, it was not similar in size, apparently. You'll notice I referred to it as "dawg-type". The pick I was referring to is actually the Dunlop Jazztone 204, which is, actually a small pick. Originally Posted by Eddie Lang
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I see what you mean, DK. Kind of similar as both are sort of "roundish".
If you go back to post #13 on the first page of this thread, you'll see a Dawg next to other picks you may be familiar with.
Also, a note about the Dawg: they may be the darkest (tonewise) picks I've ever tried.
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Yeah the Dawg's sound to me like a pro plec on steroids, in terms of warmth.
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I love ProPlecs but I tried all the shapes and just can't find a size I like.
I did trim down some of the large Fender shape ones to about Jazz III size without modifying the tip.
A conversation at The Gear Page renewed my interest in PickBoy picks.
I found they have a couple of their Jazz Models in celluloid that are Jazz III size so
I've got a couple sample packs on the way.
Looking forward to trying them.
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Originally Posted by Eddie Lang
I like the Wegen Big City and Twin a lot. For a while, I was using the Clayton Ultem Gold small teardrop 1.20 mm most of the time. Then I stumbled upon Traynor Tortex Jazz 1.5 mm at Long & McQuade. I still use other picks (I seem to prefer one pick or another depending on the song!), but they're by far the ones I use the most at the moment.
1. Wegen TF 140 1.4 mm
2. Wegen Bigcity 1.8 mm
3. Wegen Twin 3.5 mm
4. Wegen Fatone 5.0 mm
5. Blue Chip 40 1.0 mm
6. Red Bear TT-XH 1.75 mm
7. Red Bear Style A Heavy 1.5 mm
8. Golden Gate 1.4 mm
9. Dawg 1.6 mm
10. Traynor Tortex Jazz 1.5 mm
11. Dunlop Big Stubby 2.0 mm
12. Dunlop Tortex Jazz H1 1.14 mm
13. Dunlop Gator Grip 1.5 mm
14. Dunlop Jazz III XL Nylon 1.38 mm
15. Dunlop Jazz III 1.38 mm
16. Hand-made rawhide pick
17. Horn pick
18. Horn pick
19. Clayton Ultem Gold small teardrop 1.20 mm
20. Clayton Ultem Gold large triangle 1.20 mm
21. Dunlop Felt pick - Standard (harder) 3.2 mm
22. Dunlop Felt pick - Nick Lucas (softer) 3.2 mm
23. Dunlop Felt pick - Nick Lucas (worn)
24. Wedgie rubber pick 5.0 mm (ok on ukulele, not so much on guitar IMHO)
25. Ebony (sarod pick)
Next time I am at L&McQ, I might look these up.
Dunlop John Petrucci Jazz III Ultex 1.5 (6 Pack) - Long & McQuade Musical Instruments
If you watch Kenny Burrell whenever we see him in the first few minutes, he looks like he's testing a bunch of different pics!
Recently I traveled to Vancouver to visit a relative and went to Long and Maq to buy dunlop jazz III picks, I could only find the similar Traynor Jazz 1.5mm (a measure I never tried before) and I loved them, I had a blast until I ran out of them! I searched the web hoping to buy traynor jazz picks in bulk only to find no results (Damn you traynor!)
I believe the Dunlop Tortex Pitch Black Jazz III (1.5mm) is the most similar, and they sell them in packs of 72 picks per pack! (I'm currently ordering 4 packs, I don´t want to ever run out of them, never felt so at home with these)
I like to play lots of stuff on guitar, fuzzed out stoner epics, pristine clean and reverby passages, and all out rock n roll.
Using picks is a very personal matter depends on your particular style, if you still haven't found one you prefer I recommend you try them all until something sticks. Then you're condemned to find enough quantities on that specific pick for your lifetime, HUEHUEHUE.
Welp that's my experience so far, hope it helps.
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