What’s your plectrum of choice?

For guitars of the straight waisted variety (or reverse offset).
User avatar
shadowplay
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 25930
Joined: Thu Sep 27, 2007 4:30 am
Location: Glasgow. Scotland
Contact:

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by shadowplay » Tue May 21, 2019 12:25 am

Usually mainly fingers but...

Orange Gretsch Nashville which are long discontinued but I've a big jar of them. I also use the bass ones.

I've also got a tin of Clayton pearl celluloid plectrums with hulagirl pinups on them that I use now and then.

I hardly need them but if I am after a fluttery acoustic sound I have some Landstrom Sharkfin plectrums that must be 30 years old that are perfect for this.

Clearly I'm not much of a plectrum sniffer.

D
Are you loathsome tonight?

User avatar
601210
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 1021
Joined: Mon Sep 08, 2008 3:55 am

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by 601210 » Tue May 21, 2019 12:56 am

I just use the green turtles.

Funny thing is I'm fairly certain Dunlop changed the formula at some point, because the turtles don't wear out anymore, and the pick itself fades much less and doesn't "smooth out" as much, but I have nobody to nerd out about this with.

User avatar
Pacafeliz
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 18518
Joined: Sun Jul 29, 2007 6:34 pm
Location: Cococologne, Germany

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by Pacafeliz » Tue May 21, 2019 1:43 am

MOP Fender Medium.
i love delay SO much ...that i procrastinate all the time.

User avatar
valley_parade
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 4408
Joined: Fri Oct 31, 2008 7:09 am
Location: The 315
Contact:

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by valley_parade » Tue May 21, 2019 4:21 am

Tortex .73, usually regular shape, but I have a few triangle ones kicking around. Sometimes I get the black ones instead of the normal yellow.

User avatar
Kinx
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 389
Joined: Wed Aug 30, 2017 6:27 am
Location: Czech Republic

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by Kinx » Tue May 21, 2019 5:04 am

Dunlop Teckpick Brass Standard. They don't bend (which is my main requirement for a pick), have the right size, last longer than any plastic made pick (I'm usually going through two to three nylon/delrin/whatever picks in one gig) and have very pronounced and sharp attack (which is needed not so much with my offsets, but it's a godsend with my all mahagony Flying V).

Other than that, I've been using 1.60 Janicek Picks GRIP forever (awesome czech company, check them out).
Check out my band, The Atavists ! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eG-HZtrljMg

User avatar
ThePearDream
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 2072
Joined: Sun Jun 25, 2017 6:18 am
Location: Detroit
Contact:

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by ThePearDream » Tue May 21, 2019 7:02 am

I used Gator Grip 1.14mm for a long time, and still have a bunch of those. These days I really like Ultex Sharp 1.4mm, but I find them really easy to lose as they blend in with my wood floors. The Dunlop James Hetfield Black Fang picks in 1.14mm are really great (once you sand off the goofy metal graphics), they're basically a black ultex with a grippier surface I just wish they came in a 1.4mm gauge. I recently bought a pack of 1.5mm Jumbo Jazz picks from StringJoy that I'm really liking and could see being my main pick going forward.
Doug
@dpcannafax

User avatar
Larry Mal
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 19673
Joined: Mon Nov 29, 2010 4:25 pm
Location: Saint Louis, MO

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by Larry Mal » Tue May 21, 2019 10:16 am

Fender Thin.
Back in those days, everyone knew that if you were talking about Destiny's Child, you were talking about Beyonce, LaTavia, LeToya, and Larry.

User avatar
Maggieo
Expat
Expat
Posts: 13446
Joined: Mon Oct 02, 2006 10:36 am
Location: Nebraska, USA
Contact:

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by Maggieo » Tue May 21, 2019 11:32 am

valley_parade wrote:
Tue May 21, 2019 4:21 am
Tortex .73, usually regular shape, but I have a few triangle ones kicking around. Sometimes I get the black ones instead of the normal yellow.
Same here, and some of the good ol' Fender medium torts.
“Now I am quietly waiting for/ the catastrophe of my personality/ to seem beautiful again.”- Frank O'Hara
I am not an attorney and this post is for entertainment purposes only. Please consult a licensed attorney in your state for legal advice.

eggwheat
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 5151
Joined: Sat Mar 03, 2007 8:30 am

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by eggwheat » Tue May 21, 2019 11:39 am

I'm a fan of Polyoxymethylene.

Dunlop Delrin 500 .96mm
Image

User avatar
cestlamort
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 5175
Joined: Wed Jan 09, 2008 12:01 am
Location: Seattle
Contact:

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by cestlamort » Tue May 21, 2019 12:58 pm

krib wrote:
Mon May 20, 2019 8:55 am
Image

These since -95


I’ve used these since the 90s too. I like that the letters keep it from slipping. Mrs Ceslamort uses these for bass so it makes pick shopping easy.
I’ll sometimes use the next level thinner on a 12 string.

User avatar
Shadoweclipse13
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 12435
Joined: Fri Feb 07, 2014 9:22 pm
Location: Stuck in the dimension of imagination

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by Shadoweclipse13 » Tue May 21, 2019 1:55 pm

I kinda collect different styles, shapes, materials, and thicknesses of picks in case, you know, I'm ever in the studio recording an instant classic with Brian May and James Jamerson ;)

But seriously, I do have tons of styles and types just to do different things. Most often, I use the Dunlop Tortex orange (not sure the thickness). I can pretty easily get down with Fender mediums as well.

I bought a giant bag of the orange Tortex picks when I was 17 and I've still got most. The bags were the stock bags for the store (maybe like 200 picks), and the dude wasn't sure he could sell the bag, but he really didn't care and I got it for like $10 ;D
Pickup Switching Mad Scientist
http://www.offsetguitars.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=104282&p=1438384#p1438384

User avatar
Ursa Minor
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 5892
Joined: Sun Mar 14, 2010 8:26 am
Location: Chicago

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by Ursa Minor » Tue May 21, 2019 6:48 pm

Regular Tortex have been my most consistent pick since the mid-90s. I mostly use a yellow .73 but sometimes the green .88, occasionally the orange .60 if I need a thinner pick. The gauge depends on the type of guitar and the attack and feel I want.

I started out with some medium and heavy Fender celluloid which I still have. I'll use those from time to time. I like the way they sound but prefer the feel of tortex - especially after they get smooth and broken in.

I wasn't aware that they don't wear down anymore?? I guess I haven't bought picks in over a decade. I've been using the same yellow pick for a very long time. Also using my fingers a lot more in recent years.
The artist formerly known as kosmonautmayhem.

User avatar
SadFuzz
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 468
Joined: Sun Oct 22, 2017 12:12 pm
Location: Scotland

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by SadFuzz » Wed May 22, 2019 1:55 pm

Dunlop Nylon .73mm
These are perfect with the 11s I'm using.
The letters help with grip, tortex ones are too slippery for me.
I've been considering getting some copper picks, just when I want to be Steve Albini, and I like some sharpness to the sound.
icerinkband.bandcamp.com

User avatar
F15hface
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 513
Joined: Thu Sep 11, 2014 7:41 am
Location: UK

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by F15hface » Thu May 23, 2019 10:57 am

Fender celluloid heavies. Preferably purple ones.

User avatar
simonhpieman
PAT. # 2.972.923
PAT. # 2.972.923
Posts: 626
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 3:27 am

Re: What’s your plectrum of choice?

Post by simonhpieman » Thu May 23, 2019 2:32 pm

I used the yellow tortex for a long time but have since seen the light. I now find tortex way too dull on both acoustic and electric.

The rehearsal studio I used to use had run out of yellows so I picked up a planet waves d'addario dooley in the same .73 thickness. It was a Cortex pick (marketing mumbo-jumbo has this as some kind of synthetic tortoise-shell substitute). They're a kind of 7-beers-last-night-piss beige colour. So much brighter, sturdier, lovelier sounding than the tortex. Slightly matte so grip is decent. Occasionally the odd one snaps after a few gigs but I usually blunt them and chuck them (or give them to slothenly students who can't remember their own picks) before that point. Generally they last a good 10-12 hours of heavy gig playing but I'm quite fussy about how much I'll accept them rounding off.

Weirdly, I've found there's a variation between what I assume are an old style (black writing) and newer style (white/silver writing) in that one is slightly better than the other. I've bought my last few batches off ebay so I don't actually know which version is oldest but it's interesting that there's a difference within the same "model". Maybe they switched up the recipe when they rebranded?

I used to like the Ibanez Paul Gilberts as they had a cool doodle on them and they felt pretty good but I wasn't playing anywhere near as much then. Not sure if you can still get them and not used them for 10+ years.

For acoustic strumming or recording, Dunlop(?) used to make a grippy glow in the dark nylon pick, around 70mm or so. Big fan of those. Visible if you drop them on a dark stage. Clever. They disappeared for a while then I bought a ton of them when they came back, though I've since gravitated to the sturdier end of the pick spectrum. But something flappy always records nicely for that stereo panned, double tracked acoustic.

While I don't wish to further the torture of tortoises, I'd love to try a proper tort pick sometime.

Post Reply