The Steel Guitar Forum

My fingers are skinny enough that the National metal finger picks I use don't fit very well. The ends of the metal bands overlap where they meet, even on my middle finger. Is there a different brand that might work better for me? I see that Scotty's carries Dunlop "Mini" finger picks "for our young players". Do any of you adults use them?

John

Here you go, John. These are made by ProPik and they are a size small. There are several online sources that carry them, but I usually get mine from First Quality Music.

Small ProPik

Thanks for the question and the link. I should probably get a set of these as well. The picks I got at the local Guitar Center overlap right over my cuticles and actually are kind of uncomfortable. Maybe these will provide a smoother grip around my fingers.

Thanks, Cameron! I'll give 'em a try.

John

http://www.elderly.com/accessories/items/PK44SP.htm

These are another option. The split wrap provides for some versatility in custom fitting.

Disclosure: I've got a couple of these around and don't use them so I'm not necesaarily endorsing these as the greatestpicks I've ever seen or anything. Nothing wrong with them--I just prefer standard picks.
Also--I'm particular about how my picks, finger and thumb, fit so I actually do some bending and some grinding with a dremel to get them just right. I grind the band in the cuticle area, removing some width and rounding/smoothing the edge.

....or you can take a dremel tool (or a pair of tin-snips/dykes) and cut-off the excess tangs on the nationals. Don't forget to sand & buff the newly cut edges.

Actually, that's part of my alteration too which is why I mentioned it (although I guess I failed to mention it).

I have relatively small fingers and the Nationals work OK even with the overlap. Although you can cut and reform (smooth) the ends if needed.

I have problems finding thumb picks at times too. I'm currently using medium Golden Gate thumb picks.

I have one of the old (original) Herco blue nylon thumb pick that sort of fits. These can't be reformed like the plastic thumb picks. I went through all that Frenchie had at St Louis one year and found this one. I went through the stock that Scotty had and didn't find any.

Thanks for the ideas, folks. Jon, I suspect I wouldn't like the feel of those Split Wraps, but if nothing else works I'll give them a try. I may also drag out the Dremel and do surgery on my current National picks, but I'm still hoping to find something that'll work for me "out of the box".

John

John; I have three small size Dunlop .025 fingerpicks left,
out of 20 that were shipped by mistake in an order for 200. They are coated with my black rubberized plastic coating with a thin coat of polyeurethane out side. I think this might be just what you need. Email me your mailing address & I'll send you these free just to see if they'll fix your problem. Think I could order some more if I need them. The Coated Pick Man-- Andy H. See my add in Amps & accessories

I tried some of the Reso Pro Piks and they didn't fit or stay on any better than the Nationals or Dunops.

Jack; I can't recall sending you any of the coated picks. Have you tried them? I have 1 set of the small Dunlops left, coated in black. Let me know & they're yours. Andy H.

john,
i'm assuming by your post, that you are new to the fingerpick thing. i have just recently started using andy hintons plastic coated picks and i love them. i've been using fingerpicks for 24 years and after trying andy's, all i could say was...

"man, i wish i had these when i first started".

they are so much more comfortable than plain metal because you don't need to sqeeze them as tight to get them to stay on.

i hear the black ones sound better too...

Hey Connie: Left hand must be feelin' better. Thanks for the boost. I'm Mailing yours back today. Thumbpicks were a chalenge to coat but I got 'er done. One feels good as is the other is a little short. Mailing John & Jack Stoner's along with a few others also, Thanks again bud. Andy H.

Thanks, Andy for the picks. I'll post how well they work. Another forum vendor that is there for customer service.

Connie, when I was in my mid-20's I used metal finger picks (Nationals) all the time to play acoustic 6-string guitar. I had the same fitting problem back then, but I just overlapped the tabs and ignored the pain. 30 years later, I guess I care more about comfort than I did back then. Just like Gwyneth said, it's murder on the cuticles. (When I joined this forum, I somehow never expected I'd end up commiserating with the ladies about our nails ... )

Andy is generously sending me some of his coated picks, and I can't wait to try them out. And if the black ones will improve my tone ... well, I can use all the help I can get.

John

Just to follow up on this ... Andy Hinton, aka The Coated Pick Man, kindly sent me a set of small size Dunlop 0.025" picks with his special comfort coating. Problem solved! The picks fit me perfectly, and they're really comfortable on my bony fingers. Thank you, Andy!

John

Jeff said to put the rear of the pick even with the back of you finger nail. He had small fingers and his picks over laped, being over the nail he did not
have to cut them off, using the dreml sounds like a good way to go, cannot do without one.

My fingers are swollen so I have a different problem. Jeff Newman's picks are a copy of the old Nationals and that is all I use, right thickness to sound good, the thinner picks are to tinny for me.

ernie