Dunlop Tortex
Dunlop Ultex Picks
Dunlop Primetone Sculpted Plectra
THE SEARING HEAT OF molten lead. Wintertime ditch digging with frigid blasts from Arctic Artie. All SOP. Decades of plumberly fun have shaped my hands. The finger tips, they are hardened sheets of callus.
Lately, my biggest worry has been picks slipping out of my fingers when playing for popes and presidents. These frequent occasions were marred by callused fingers which can’t seem to get decent pick grip. Grumpy Biker customized a few .88mm Dunlop Tortex picks, but while working out the kinks, I discovered a new product – the Dunlop Primetone pick with raised grip surface.
Primetones are large, textured, and sculpted. Yes, they sometimes rotate in my fingers like other picks, but with three picking surfaces, I’m good. Dunlop’s Tortex is still a great choice. But this larger pick with a grip surface? Until a sticky pick comes out, I’m adding Ultex to my pocket full of Dunlop.
Dunlop Tortex® Instrument Pick
Within guitar shops across America, you will find small plastic cases by the register. Stacked, arranged, jumbled. Maybe one large case instead with over a hundred choices. Pick selections may seem dizzying. Tortoise shell, multi-colored, plastic, carbon fiber, bone . . . where to start?
American Toolbox recommends Dunlop. After decades of picking, our staff still carry and use Dunlop daily. Usually two or three for a buck, you can afford to carry half a dozen to the Bluegrass Circle. Share, experiment, learn, enjoy.
Moving over to mandolin, I’ve settled on a thicker .88 pick. Swapping mid-song into a lighter .60 sometimes. My mandolin mentor smiled yesterday when he heard my new choice. A harder pick is quieter is on the strings? This choice developed because I carry a pick variety and experiment with different thicknesses.
Look for the Dunlop name. Select a dozen in different colors / gauges. At a few cents a piece, there will not be any teeth gnashing as they disappear, as picks seem to do.
Sure, a $50 carbon fiber pick produces a softer, more expressive sound. It took decades to appreciate the nuance in tone. An expensive pick for a novice. Would you teach your kid to drive in the Porsche?
American Toolbox 