So does anyone out there use thumbpicks or just their thumb? I'm just getting started with some fingerstyle stuff and have been experimenting.

I had a Dunlop clear that was way to large at the picking point and I tried to shave that down but that never was a very comfortable pick for my bigger thumb. My thumb felt too confined, almost sweaty, not too pleasant.

I saw a Pete Huttlinger DVD and stopped and zoomed on what he was using, John Pearse thumbpick, I ordered some of those and I think I like them much better but then I saw some discussion on Red Bear pick on this board and of course I had order one of those but I found they also make something called Red Bear LB Custom Thumbpick; Oh baby! Nice open air thumbpick, the pick is just the right length for my liking and it's open air with a small metal bracket to hold it to my thumb so I don't feel like my thumb is sweating. Yeah, I'm probably kookier than most but I think so far I like the Red Bear best.

Pete Huttlinger has now switched to National thumb picks. Here is a quote from his site:

"By the way, the National is my new thumb pick of choice. I get a much better bass response because it has a larger and thicker tip."


For certain songs I do use a thumb pick, but not that often. For other tunes it just doesn't work. When I'm playing fingerstyle with aggressive slapping techniques, I find that end up banging the pick against the top. No need for dings.

I don't use picks when I practice which is about all I do these days. When I used to play for an audience I'd used a National thumb pick and National metal finger picks that I mold close to the shape of my fingers.

Lately I've liked the Fred Kelly Slick Pick, Delrin X- Heavy. IMHO they are more comfortable than the Nationals.
Alan

Thumb picks by their nature are going to vary for different individuals. You need a good fit so that the thumbpick is tight enough to not move/rotate, but not so tight as to cut off circulation. To some degree you can adjust fit by holding the pick briefly in boiling water and shaping the softened plastic. Different materials/thicknesses have a different attack and tendency to make a pronounced "click" on string contact. The good thing is that thumbpicks are cheap so you can try a lot of different ones. I like to get some skin in contact with the string, so I make string contact close to my thumb. Therefore, I almost always cut the length of the thumbpick down by using a belt sander to reduce size and reshape. I have tried and used thumbpicks from national, dunlop, propik, fred kelly, etc. At the present my favorite is the Herco flex 52 nylon thumbpick. I don't like the blue color, but it fits pretty well as received and I like the sound after I have reduced the size. Your mileage may vary.

Rich

Yep, there are many different thumbpicks. Fred Kelly has a large following among pro players. They are thinner than the Nationals or Dunlops (many players sand/file the traditional picks like National or Dunlop, which are fairly thick, to be thinner like the Fred Kelly come as new)

You can also shorten the blade so that you can slap the strings without the blade dinging the top.

I got some Fred Kelly's Speed Picks. At first I did not like them, but they have grown on me. Here is a link http://www.melbay.com/product.asp?productid=20047AX

Peace,
Rip

P.S. I have no economic interest in Fred Kelly's speed picks.

I have tried various brands and like the Slick pick (from Fred Kelly). They are plastic (which I prefer to metal) and the blade is shorter than most, they are comfortable (a bit of boiling water to adjust fit helps).
For me, too many have blades that are long and awkward.
Good luck.
On another note, I tried and gave up on finger picks. For me, I need to feel the strings to have any sense of what I am doing.

quote:

On another note, I tried and gave up on finger picks. For me, I need to feel the strings to have any sense of what I am doing.

NoSkilz Paul,
Try the ProPik Fingertones....you can feel the strings with the fleshy part of your finger with these. And the tone is absolutely terrific!!!!!!!

Here is a lind to the FINGERTONES

MRT

National thumb picks, the white thick ones, have been my choice for 25 years or so. Broke one after ten years or so, still on the second one more than a decade later. I use plastic (black) finger picks on three fingers, since my fingernails have the consistency of Saran Wrap. Performing solo, I often eschew picks for fingerstyle- I don't have to cut through bass and banjo and the horn section (I made that last part up). Depends on the song, too. If I'm playing In My Life, I use bare fingers. Hesitation Blues, gotta be picks. Nuance. Or something like that. tom

National Thumbpick, White, Large....since birth...MRT

Hey "Blue Chip" makes a nice lookin' one.

I use Dunlop medium thumbpicks myself. They are tighter that the large ones but the pick is the right size. A trip through some boiling water and a little adjustment makes them just right.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Tonewolfn:
Hey "Blue Chip" makes a nice lookin' one.

QUOTE]

Matt Goins told me that he spent a day with J.D. Crowe to design that Blue chip pick.


I don't use a thumbpick, but I might if I had a L-00. I like a heavy flatpick where I can use all of the major muscle groups and not just the
Abductor Pollicis Brevis and the Opponens Pollicis.