What thumb picks are you using?

[JazzGuitarGimp]

Hi All,

Curious question here; What thumb picks are you using? Brand / material?

Over the years, my right hand technique has been a'changin'. Started with a flat pick, held between thumb and index finger - very normal, standard stuff. Several years later, I noticed one day that I had started using my middle finger to occasionally pick an extra note. Apparently, I was doing this subconsciously and it kind of took me by surprise when I realized I was doing it. From there, I started making a conscious effort to get my ring and pinky fingers into the fold, in addition to my pick and middle finger. I went for a period of several years where I was concentrating on jazz repertoire, and a lot of the time, my pick sat on my music stand while I used all five digits to pluck out the notes. I should say that 30-ish years ago, I switched over to bass for a about a year to play in a T40 band, and I had started to develop the two-finger approach, and so I think this may have been the precursor to my middle finger developing a mind of its own. I've been trying to get the pick out of my life completely for nearly a decade and I keep running into a brick wall, especially when playing rock - and that is, I just can't seem to increase my single-note-lines picking speed to the point where I can let go of the pick. Today, playing without a pick, I noticed that any notes I play with my thumb come out at lower volume and sound duller. This is because I am keeping my thumb almost parallel to the strings, which makes it impossible to get my thumb nail onto the strings. Bringing my thumb 'round so that it approaches the strings in more of a right angle feels extremely unnatural to me - to the point of mild pain, so I think that technique is not in my future. It occurred to me, if I had a thumb pick, I might just have the best of both worlds. I could have full use of all five digits with similar volume and brightness, plus, when I want to rip into single-note territory, I could just bring my index finger up to meet my thumb as if I am holding a flat pick. I live in the sticks, so just popping over to the local music store and trying a bunch of picks really isn't an option for me. I know thumb picks are available in both metal and plastic: Are there any other materials available? My thumb is pretty big around - are there companies that make extra large thumb picks?

Many thanks for any advice.
Lou

[ER]

I could never get a thumb pick to work for me, I had the same line of thinking and tried different types especially for steel guitar.

The plastic ones are too long and need to be cut down, the metal ones are more flexible to dial in the angle that it hits the string, but they all rotate out of position unless you pinch with your index finger so you can't use your thumb independently unless you use a real light touch. The metal ones can sound a little harsh and they all made my thumb sweat. I could never get them to be balanced between upstroke and downstroke, and some times they would get hung up on the up stroke as the pick rotated around the thumb. If I wore them tight enough not to rotate, they were uncomfortable and didn't feel natural.

I ended up holding it pinched to keep it from slipping so I just ended up going back to a flat pick for rock, and use my fingers for everything else. Sometimes I cheat and hold my index and thumb together like I'm holding a pick, but pick using just my index finger nail. Sort of like how you talk about using your thumb, but the index finger is already 90 degrees to the string. A good cheat for solo string runs. For rock chord work I use the same technique and use all down strokes so you're hitting on the nail and it stays tight and choppy. You can even do it kind of open handed with just the index finger and even throw in a little flamenco type stuff or do some "bowing" type flickage with the side of your ring finger near the bridge.

Worth picking one up to try, you'll know pretty quick if you like it or not. The plain old fender ones are as good as anything and you can customize them with a heat gun and cut em down easier than the dunlop style. I gave up on the metal ones for steel guitar and just use my fingers.

[LeftyStrat]

It's a little harder for a lefty, but even though I've found left-handed thumb picks, I've never found anything that feels natural, which sucks, finger picks feel good. It seems the angle is off or something.

[Deric]

Who uses thumb picks?!?!?!?!

FWIW - a lot of people who struggle with regular thumb picks like the....

http://fredkellypicks.com/speed/delrin- ... 4-pcs.html

or...for a more traditional vibe....

http://www.jimdunlop.com/product/herco-flatthumbpicks

[JazzGuitarGimp]

Thanks for the replies, guys! Deric, the Herco picks look interesting. I think I'll give them a try.

[vibratoking]

I have been trying to get away from the pick completely as well, but it is very hard for me. There are certain types of playing that really require a pick, at least for me...fast and clean single note runs as well as funk type 16th note strumming are the two that come immediately to mind.

I can go pretty fast with alternate thumb and index finger on single note lines, but it gets a little blurry for Eric Johnson type quintuplets and sextuplets.

Pinching the thumb and index together and pretending to hold a pick while using the index finger nail works to some extent...that's Jeff Beck's idea as far as I know. But my finger nail doesn't hold up well for much of that. I've been down the thumbpick path and I couldn't make it work for me.

I use the Robben Ford trick, I call it that, where I 'store' the pick between the big knuckles of my right hand index and middle fingers when I don't need it. This allows me to use all 5 right hand fingers for piano like chording and single note runs. When I need to go fast and clean or funk strum, I just slip the pick between thumb and index finger. Takes a little practice to 'slip' it back and forth at first, kinda like a magician's coin trick, but you'll quickly be able to do it without any thought. That's been my approach.

[Cliff Schecht]

I've pretty much given up on thumbpicks. They don't ever work for me. They're either too tight and cut into my thumb or too loose and slip around. I always have to cut them down also, I've never found a stock one that works for me.

The best one I've found are the National thumbpicks. They have a curved end that doesn't cut into my fingers like other picks do and I only have to cut/file them a little bit. They seem a bit wider than the Dunlop guys (my second choice, they don't move around but they cut into the flesh badly) and don't hurt to wear for long periods of time. They're still awkward for me though and I can't use them reliably.

For playing acoustics now, I tend to just pick up a classical guitar. I keep a few around the house to plunk around on and they sound good for most of the fingerpicking I do (Jerry Reed, Chet Atkins, Merle Travis; the first two played classicals as well). I can also pick up any of my Tele's and play fingerstyle comfortably all day.

FWIW I string my steel string acoustics with D'addario lights and they sound great and are comfortable. I'm not a fan of heavy strings anyways and the lighter sets are easier on my hands during gigs. It's harder for me to play with a light touch when I have to strain my hands so much to get any volume out of the guitar.

[JazzGuitarGimp]

I see a common thread running through most of your replies. Years ago, I tried on a few thumb picks. I was standing at the counter of a music store, waiting for a salesman, and they had some thumb picks on the counter. I didn't attemp to play with them as there wasn't a guitar handy. But I remember thinking "man these things are tight, painfully tight!" And this is why I came to the conclusion I have big thumbs. But after reading your replies, it became obvious that it's either tight, or it slips around your thumb when in use....

[kkregsg]

I've used both the Herco and Nationals to good effect, but I still prefer bare fingers all around. I play predominantly steel string acoustic, but recently have been ditching my flat pick on electric, too. Works for me, but your experiments may yield different results. Still haven't bonded with the Kevlar-boron-graphite-anchovy oil-and-aluminum foil-composite picks yet.

[LeftyStrat]

I've been wanting to move away from picks and use fingers. For those that play electric with fingers, what do you with the fingernails? I know the classical dudes put nail files on the strings to file their nails to shape.

Are the nails kept short and you're only using flesh, or are you using your nails to pick.

Of course the person I'd really like to ask this question is Jeff Beck.

[kkregsg]

You can go either way. Bare skin will give a rounder sound, while a nail will give a crisper, more percussive attack. You'll have to adjust volume to fit your choice. I mostly play with bare skin, as my fingernails flat can't survive multiple sessions per week. On the other hand, I've used acrylics and love them, but quit due to the possible health risks and ongoing cost.

You can see a video by James Taylor on his fingernail regimen on his website. If you search, there are several others by fingerstyle and classical players.

[skyboltone]

A good friend of mine, a pro musician who's equipment I maintain, goes to the local Viet Cong manicurist and has acrylic nails glued on and then painted natural. Nothing flashy or stupid looking but he's an awesome right hand player and it works for him. He's also completely blind so fooling around with thumb and finger picks is a bigger pain in the ass than just glueing them on.

[Cliff Schecht]

Lefty this is an interesting question and was said already, it depends on the sound you want. If I'm using my fingers to get a pick type attack then yes, I want a big beefy nail. Especially on my forefinger because that would be doing a majority of the downpicking and takes the most abuse. When your fingernail is short you'll hit your fingertip and deaden the notes (not to mention irritating the part where your nail and finger meet).

For the country/bluegrass/folky stuff I play (alternating bass lines with the thumb, fingers doing melody/chording) I tend to only keep my nails at a moderate length. Up to about an 1/8 of an inch is all I need or want really. What this does is supports the fingertips enough so that they don't have any give (making it harder to play predictably and without pain) and also allows me to downstroke comfortably without having to worry about my nails breaking. My thumbnail is the same deal, long enough to add some support to where my thumb hits the bass strings. All of the spots where skin meets string have big callouses that give me a strong note without sounding too snappy (i.e. plucked with a pick).

Also bear in mind that not all guitars are meant to be played fingerstyle. A prime example of a not so great fingerstyle guitar is a Martin D-28. Yes, many many people have played fingerstyle on this type of guitar, but they are designed and built to project nice and even with a pick. They tend to sound boomy (too much bass) and lacking in high end detail when played with the fingers (especially the flesh!). The single, double and triple ought Martin guitars sound much better when played fingerstyle (especially the O and OO models) but sound weak with a pick because they lack some bass. Hopefully the diehard D-28 fans don't shit on me for this, I love a good herringbone as much as the next acoustic nut, but it's definitely not my go to guitar for fingerstyle. My parlor and gut string guitars handle that duty.