That $35 Guitar Pick (Blue Chip) - A Comparison

[rmpmcdermott]

Thanks everyone for the defense and the great discussion. I've come to expect responses like that on this forum but it's still annoying.

I do enjoy the pick! But for that kind of money I think it'll stay on my desk for home use and hopefully my cat doesn't eat it

After hearing about the Dunlop Primetones I'm really interested in trying one. I went on their site and found the model I thought would work best (smooth, mini triangle) but the shipping is more than the picks are! Maybe I can find it from another dealer with reasonable shipping costs.

I dig the Primetones! I get the Jazz III XL and they are phenomenal. Here's a Reverb shop that has three-packs with cheap shipping.

Dunlop 520P1.4 Primetone Jazz III XL Guitar Picks - 3pk Grip | Reverb

Though those might not be the ones you were looking at, I've found that you can grab Primetones on Reverb from shops with pretty reasonable shipping.

[sgosnell]

The smoothness of BC can be achieved with any pick with some elbow grease. In the past I polished Dunlop jazztone picks with extra fine wet sandpaper and car polish compound to the level of smoothness of BC picks (even smoother). I don't like to tone the rough surface of jazztones impart on the guitar.

The best material I've found to polish picks is carpet, the shorter the nap the better. I just make firm strokes against the carpet several times, fairly fast, and that polishes most picks very quickly. It's quicker and easier for me than any type of sandpaper, or anything else. Just don't overdo it, because it's possible to partially melt some picks if you're very vigorous, and get some melted line on the edge of the pick. I just scrape it off and repolish with less vigor. I haven't needed to use anything on my Blue Chip picks, they still look like new after a couple of years of playing.

[entresz]

I'm still yet to try a Blue Chip, I have a couple friends who use them and really like them.
My pick of choice is the 3.5mm Wegen, I like the way it glides off the strings making playing very fast passages effortless.

The other pick I really like is the D'Andrea Pro Plec. Sometimes the Wegen can be a bit too dark sounding, using the Pro Plec I can get a slightly brighter sound.

[wintermoon]

a friend came over today and had one.
I liked the feel of the material but it was huge, way too big for me to handle and I have big hands [though that may not have anything to do w/ anything]
I think it was a model 60.

[Dedalus]

I thought carefully about adding my 2c to this thread, but here goes...

I'm also Jewish. I've written an honours thesis and PhD thesis that both explored aspects of racialism, partly in response to some of my own experiences growing up. I think the notion of anyone on this forum being a schmuck for spending money on gear that appeals to them is a little silly to say the least. Glass houses.
I doubt one could argue that a $10,000, $5,000, or even $1,000 guitar should be regarded as a necessity. A $35 pick is hardly perverse relative to the other equipment discussed everyday on these boards.

And as for schmuck. It has more than one meaning. We're all schmucks sometimes...

I wanted to elaborate on my post lest anyone was offended. I wasn't for a moment suggesting that anyone in this thread was being racially offensive. Rather, I was attempting to illustrate how terms such as schmuck are loaded with a complex of associations, and depending on context, can be construed in myriad ways--such as, in this case, the notion of Jews and their aversion to spending money (though I realise it wasn't meant in this way). Stereotypes of this nature can literally be traced back several centuries. And when we encounter these stereotypes today, it's worth noting that they've been thrust upon people by others.

I'm guessing we'd be hard-pressed to find a single member here who hasn't experienced something of the like. Anyway, I apologise for the hijack, I simply wanted to explain myself better. For the record, I've got my eye on a couple of BlueChip picks, and I'd have to pay shipping to NZ...

[Spook410]

I have a blue chip. More like $50 because I like large/thick triangles. It's a very good pick. Material makes for a great grip, it has the smoothest attack of anything I've tried, and I like the tone. Smooth and articulate. To my less than perfect ears, sort of sounds like a Dunlop Jazztone though the feel, attack, and configuration options for Blue Chips are better. I've had mine for years and it shows no wear at all. I'll get more at some point. Putting them on the Christmas list is a great idea.

[Spook410]

Are blue chip picks a reasonable value? Well, they are made from vespel though I'm not sure what grade or blend BC uses (believe SP-1 is the softest). A 1" X 9.5" rod costs $1272. If you can find it in small quantities. That, and the fact that it's a tough material to work probably accounts for why we don't see much in the way of competition. I've seen DIY threads on vespel picks and you can make your own of course. But in the quantity I need, I'll just buy vespel picks from Blue Chip and not worry about it.

[Stringswinger]

I have never tried this particular "boutique" pick, but I have tried others (Wegan, Dugain) and found them to not be as satisfactory to me, as the 75 cent Dunlop 1.5 mm picks I use (Delrin). Finally some beer taste as opposed to champagne taste (it would certainly be handy to like $500 guitars more than $5000 guitars). I'll stick with the Dunlops. If it ain't broke, don't fix it applies here.

[Cunamara]

The smoothness of BC can be achieved with any pick with some elbow grease. In the past I polished Dunlop jazztone picks with extra fine wet sandpaper and car polish compound to the level of smoothness of BC picks (even smoother). I don't like to tone the rough surface of jazztones impart on the guitar.

Yes, that is precisely the thing about those pics I don't care for either. The size, the shape, the heft, the bevel are all good but the surface treatment just seems odd to me that it would be that rough where it contacts the string. I still have a few of those around here; I should try polishing one up and see if I like it any better. Otherwise my favorite pic remains the small ProPlec teardrop. I've also made some picks that I like from cutting down a slightly larger ProPlec to the size and shape of the Dunlop Jazz III. I like the shape of the latter but not the material, whereas the ProPlec material is my clear favorite.

I think that the reason I like small picks is that I can feel the edge of them between my fingers and that improves my sense of control over the pick. By comparison the standard Fender pick feels vague and difficult to manage.

[Jazzbill]

I really like the Blue Chip Jazz 50's. For some reason, to me anyways, they feel smoother on the strings, which make it a little easier to glide around. Perhaps it's placebo, but that's how it works for me anyhow. Their price is extremely high, but I haven't ran through one yet, so they seem to last a long time.

[sgosnell]

Tom Karol has the right idea. My kids and others always want a list of what I want for Christmas. I put the picks I want to try in my wish list on the BC site, send a link, and now I have almost all the picks, in the thicknesses I want to try. Still a couple or three to go, though, so I'll send links to those when the time comes.

[rpjazzguitar]

I put those little circular reinforcement labels on my Golden Gate mandolin picks, and they stay in one place on my fingers. Easier to find them on the floor, too.

I carry a sheet of sandpaper (very fine, but I don't recall the number/rating) and keep them smooth.

I used to get products sold for fingernails, but eventually switched to emery board for my nails and sandpaper for my picks.

I like the way the GG's sound, but I've never tried a BC pick.

I lose picks way too easily to feel comfortable with a pricey pick.

That said, I'd like to try one.

[jazzgtrl4]

I really like the Blue Chip Jazz 50's. For some reason, to me anyways, they feel smoother on the strings, which make it a little easier to glide around. Perhaps it's placebo, but that's how it works for me anyhow. Their price is extremely high, but I haven't ran through one yet, so they seem to last a long time.

I like the 40s. I have two, and on one i wore the tip down a little!!. i asked BC about it and they said..ya we don't guarantee that they wont wear down over time. Thats alot of playing to wear it down..guess i should rotate them!!

[zigzag]

Super clicky. Hated 'em.

The only picks I've found that are quiet and smooth like the blue chips are the Pro Plecs...
But the Pro Plec is the reason I wasn't impressed with the Blue Chip I tried--to me it was the same sound at 35 times the price.

That is interesting. I ordered some Pro Plecs based on your recommendation, and I found them to be clicky. I actually found the V-pick Small-Lite and the Euro II to be quieter.

[Tal_175]

I got a blue chip jazz pick, I liked it for a while then I realized I like Dunlop jazz III's more and never looked back.

[jazzgtrl4]

I got a blue chip jazz pick, I liked it for a while then I realized I like Dunlop jazz III's more and never looked back.

which one is it? want to sell it?

[Tal_175]

which one is it? want to sell it?

Sorry. It's not really worth for me to sell it overseas. My tastes change, who knows may be 10 years from now I like it on a particular guitar.

[jazzgtrl4]

I like the Prime Tones, with respect to free delivery - Amazon carries them.

oh i just ordered a three pack of these to try..the jazz III copies...i like them!

[lukmanohnz]

If you really want to become obsessive about picks take up the mandolin. I’m quite entertained by the discussions over here regarding Blue Chip picks, because they exactly mirror similar threads at mandolincafe.com (for example this one). All the greatest hits are there - “if you’re willing to spend $10,000 on your mandolin, what’s $35 on a pick;” and “I’ve been using the same Fender 351 medium for 74 years and it cost me 11 cents back in 1843,” etc. Please don’t get me wrong. I LOVE PICK THREADS ON THE FORUM. I love every post! I am a poster child for P.A.S. (pick acquisition syndrome). Until I started playing mando, my lifetime outlay for picks would probably fund a set of strings. (Ernie Balls, not TIs.) But now, over a decade since my fateful collision with a mandolin, I would be embarrassed to admit how much I’ve spent on all the little teardrop and triangular shaped pieces of plastic, wood, graphite and bone in my possession.

Carry on....

[ECmaj7]

I love the feel and tone of my STP50 however I happen to like just a little abrasion or scrape a pick has after it's worn in.

That little bit of bite is nice especially when you dig in.
Has anyone modified a pick with sandpaper to achieve this effect?
Or will the BlueChip pick eventually break in?
I hear they never wear out.
I hate to mess with a $35 pick!

Thanks,
Emilio

[sgosnell]

Picks I've used get smoother with use, not rougher.

[Alder Statesman]

I bought my first Blue Chip for playing old time fiddle music on my flattop at an acoustic jam. I like it so much I bought a jazz pick for my Tele.