MelodyMaker1 Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Newbie question.....I can,t seem to keep my pick in proper playing position. I am lucky if I can keep it between my fingers at all. When I grip it tight enough to stabilize it, my strumming motion is not as smooth. If I hold it lightly to improve strumming, the pick ends up backwards. If, it stays in my hand at all. Need help guys. Opinions, musings or just plan reminiscing, not only welcome but are encouraged. Is this just a problem that I have, or is it more common. I've tried different gauges of picks. Same old, same old. Any pick recommendations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midiman56 Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I have a bit of the same problem ... especially the "flying out of your grip" part. There are a LOT of picks out there that attempt to solve that issue, so it must be fairly common. Picks with all kinds of grips and depressions and holes in them to improve grip.Why do you think you see guitarists with a dozen picks attached to their mic stands? It ain't all for tossing into the audience! :P I've just kind of moderated my grip a bit ... somewhere in between the "death-vise" and the "loosey-goosey" that comes more naturally to me. One brand of picks that seem to work for me particularly well are "Snarling Dogs Brain Picks". They have this neat sort of bumpy, diamond pistol grip design molded into them that helps quite a bit. They are pretty inexpensive and come in a nice tin as well. I use the .53's (VERY thin) for strumming and the .60's (medium) for lead. Believe me, with practice, this WILL become less and less of a problem. Hope this helps ... stick with it! MIDI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snookelputz Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Snarling Dogs Brain Picks - have stipples like velcro hooks (w/o hook) that just DO NOT slip in normal use. Available in a variety of thicknesses from your MF/M123 and maybe even GC. My local GC now carries them in stock. I took in a box and gave every manager on shift a pick, then watched the guitar guy put them on his next order. Plus, they come in this neat tin box with a sliding top. I can't remember what I used to get in sliding top tin boxes when I was a kid, but I remember having some of these boxes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midiman56 Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Wow! Two votes for Snarling Dogs already! I pick 'em up at my local GC as well here in Vegas. I considered them quite a pleasent find when they were recommended to me. I can't wait to hear what some of the other guys use here. MIDI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mugatu Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Someone just recently suggested sticking little circles of sandpaper onto the picks, I thought that was quite a cool idea! Apparently you can buy them pre-made and with sticky stuff pre-attached. Hopefully the original poster will come back and share his knowledge again! I'm usually okay for one song at a time if I'm playing rhythm , though I get a bit of slippage and I need to give my fingers a quick wipe and re-adjust grip between songs. I found that slippage used to occur a lot more a few years back, when I suspect my grip was too loose. I think practice has tightened my grip slightly to the point where it's about right. When I play lead I grip tighter, so it doesn't really happen. For what it's worth I use standard Jim Dunlop Tortex... Red (.50mm) for strumming only, and orange or green for lead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
28v6r Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Never mind, I used to work with a drummer that we nicknamed "Kebab" because every now and then he would skewer someone in the audience with a drum stick as he got into his groove.. It was a bit lethal at times if he was on a roll, maximum stick loss in one night was 4! I'll get his number for you and you can form a band if you want.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricochet Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Drill a hole in the middle. Or a couple of smaller ones. A Dremel works wonders for this. Buy a pick 1 notch heavier, and it will compensate for the added flex. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bender 4 Life Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I use regular old picks, Claytons, because thats what the local shop has on top of his check out table. I use .38's but take most of the pick between my fingers, this facilitates faster picking, and better precision with your pick hand. Haven't had 1 go flying in years........as to why, please see ^^^ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
layboomo Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 There is a product for everything...... http://www.zzounds.com/item--GRSGOSNOT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I posted the sandpaper oval that I bought at the local music shop. It's a small oval cut from the sticky sandpaper that you buy for palm sanders that is precut for guitar picks. I bought 10 for a dime apiece and installed some on my heavy 1.0 Dunlop Ultex picks for the same problem. You can go to Home Depot and buy a pack of this sticky back sandpaper and cut your own using a pair of scissors that you don't care about using for gritty sandpaper. The ones I have are cut just big enough to cover the top of the pick and conform to the edge shape so that, once applied, the top half of the pick is sandpaper, kind of like those rough top picks that you buy. When you first apply it, you will think it's too rough. After use, it will smooth out but still provide plenty of non-slip power. Another solution is a product called Gorilla Snot, commonly available in music stores. It's kind of like the Tacky Finger stuff that office workers use to help them shuffle papers, but lots more sticky. It only takes a tiny amount. Just touch a finger to the green stuff in the container and rub your fingers together until it dries. Believe me, you will get too much the first time and soon learn how little it takes. The heart of the problem is dry rough skin. If you have callouses on your pick fingers, the pick will slip. Using hand lotion to moisturize your fingers will help. My hands get so dry that I'm constantly reaching for something only to shoot it across the table when I grip it. Dry hands don't stick... Corn Huskers lotion is really good for this. I can't stand sticky, greasy hand lotion. Corn Huskers is glycerin based and absorbs quickly leaving your hands moist enough to hold a pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidg3333 Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 This is all so wrong! The obvious solution is to super glue the pick to your fingers. Never a lost pick! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricochet Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 This is all so wrong! The obvious solution is to super glue the pick to your fingers. Never a lost pick! Yeah' date= but how do you pick your nose? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stan 58 Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I like this kind of pick because you can brace it against your hand. And it has three sides for longer life. Stan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pohatu771 Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 For $3, try this. I'm hoping to find one in my stocking, just to experiment. http://accessories.musiciansfriend.com/product/ZeroGravity-Orbit-Pick?sku=110100 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron G Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Hey, maybe Knopfler had the same problem and just gave up on picks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennis G Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Snarling Dogs Brain Picks - have stipples like velcro hooks (w/o hook) that just DO NOT slip in normal use. I've been using these for a few months now. They definitely stay put. My second favorite is Star picks with the hole in the middle but the SD's are better in my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
altair Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I saw a great tip in another forum about this. It's an inexpensive method. You buy your regular picks, and then you take a hot needle and carefully melt/carve a # where you hold the pick. The guy said it works great! I haven't tried it myself. Also I saw a technique where you hold the pick in such a way that it doesn't hit the string "flat on" but more on its side. Here's the youtube vid: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-NOMn3P9AE Paul Gilbert has a LOT of guitar tips on there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardLionhart Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I've only been playing for around 6 weeks and have been taking private lessons. I too have had some pick trouble. I really wanted to hold the pick way too far back. My teacher handed me a Dunlop Jazz 3 pick and made me use it. It was so little that I really had to choke up on it and hold it firmer to keep it in my grasp. Once I was able to fully wrap my brain around the concept so that holding it right became automatic, I "graduated" to something more of my liking. I like using a Dunlop 1mm nylon pick. It isn't slippery, it's pretty firm, and it has ridges/grooves in it to keep it in place in my fingers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ef_in_fla Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I like these cool picks, especially the "utlra cool". http://www.elderly.com/brand/COOL%20PICKS.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MelodyMaker1 Posted December 2, 2008 Author Share Posted December 2, 2008 Hey Fellas, Thanks. This is just what I was looking for. Now that I know that I am not terminally spastic, or just plain butter fingers. I will put some of your suggestions into practice. Except davidg3333's. I've had enough super glue and finger accidents, to not look forward to doing it on purpose. Thanks Guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JefferySmith Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Since I have weak fingers, I have used a "tethered" pick made by Orbit. Simply having it tethered to your finger gives you some confidence that you won't lose it mid-strum, and the round region in the middle of the pick is rubber, which increases the grippiness of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Strum Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 I found the less pressure I used to squeeze the pick, the less problem I have. I use Stubby's and have no issues. I do have a bunch of snarling dogs stuck around here, but I don't use them anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Strum Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Since I have weak fingers' date=' I have used a "tethered" pick made by Orbit. [img']http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/regular/3/9/9/367399.jpg[/img] Simply having it tethered to your finger gives you some confidence that you won't lose it mid-strum, and the round region in the middle of the pick is rubber, which increases the grippiness of it. Does it open beer bottles? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron G Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Does it open beer bottles? Also great for bubble blowing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JefferySmith Posted December 2, 2008 Share Posted December 2, 2008 Does it open beer bottles? No. If it did that, I wouldn't be able to hold on to my pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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