Rounding off a Wegen

Shemi

Ah Buco, be thankful you're not a fingerstyle player. I'm so used to buying fake nails and shaping tools it doesn't even register anymore!lol

Jazzaferri

the nice thing about playing fingerstyle on electric is the nail thing is not necessary.

rgrice

I'm gonna try those @Buco after getting a manicure!

Jazzaferri

So much fun getting a manicure. My nails are so soft I gave up trying to paly with nails in my 20's and developed a finger only attack that worked.

Once all the home renos are done I am going to try the glue on fingernails

Bob Holo

Matteo wrote: »

I tried one of those tonight (I think it's the 2.2 mm; it feels slightly more thick than a Dunlop 2 mm) and my goodness, it's a good pick indeed! A funny thing is that I never thought I'd like it. I bought it years ago and found it impossible to handle.

Haha, yes - that's also exactly what happened to me. Initially I bought a whopping large number of picks and found it difficult to play with anything that had any edge (including the BigCity). Even when I found a pick that I liked, it would slip around in my fingers - and I launched picks across the bandstand at an alarming rate... Lol. But eventually my hands just figured out how to hold on to the darned things. Those Dunlops are handy though. They sound reasonably good and make great loaners because you don't have to worry if they come back.

pdg

Rather than round the end of a Big City pick with files, if you play it awhile, and do lots of tremolo, the pick will round itself to your picking technique and will probably sound better.

pdg

Forgot to mention -- "Djangojazz" picks, made by Jokko, have a "Stochelo" model, which has a pre-rounded or pre-flattened (not just speed-beveled) tip. Jokko said that Stochelo uses the 2.0 and 2.2 mm thicknesses.

Matteo

I'd characterize the Wegen Big Cities as "the best of two worlds". They offer the control and precision you get with a small plastic Dunlop pick coupled with the power and full sound of a big fat tortoiseshell substitute, like the Wegen gypsy picks. I'm still baffled, but glad I discovered them. It feels like I'm back on the right track again with my playing. But as you said, Bob, the Dunlops are good in some situations.

Buco

+1 for Jokko's picks. To me it's a much nicer pick, less click, warmer with plenty of volume and just more pleasant to hold, has a softer feel to it and I found it to be less sleepery than Wegen.
Wegen is a great pick though depending on your guitar, what you are looking for from the pick etc...
PS meant to add, to me rounded tip is just the best, for both rhythm and solo.

bohemewarbler

Be forewarned...I'm not presenting anything new, except I'd like to provide an analogy that might provide some comfort.

To me, the choice of picks, type of strings, gauge of strings, neck profile, long scale, short scale, cedar top, spruce top, etc. - all these things are personal matters. Their importance probably is over-rated. Players' preferences on these material objects are also open to change over time and subject to experimentation.

Regarding these tools of the trade, I have often drawn an analogy with tennis, having once been a recreational player (until I injured my back).

Some players prefer a racket that's going to give them a lot of power. Others choose a racket that will provide more finesse. Some prefer strings with a lot of tension, again for more power, whereas others prefer less tension so that they can "feel" the ball more and add more spin. Some prefer Penn, while others prefer Wilson balls. Then there's grip size and the type of tape on the grip. It's no fun when the racket keeps turning in your hand.

Yet, I would guess that tennis players will agree that there's no one racket, or type or gauge of string, or tension, or grip or ball that is preferred by everyone. What works for one just won't work for another. Everyone's body is different and we all come with a different set of physical and mental tools we can work with.

But for the most part, the fundamentals of technique hold steady in both Gyspy jazz playing and in tennis. But only for the most part. Jim McEnroe had some quirky techniques that are frowned upon, but he was nonetheless a champion player. Robin Nolan uses three fingers to hold his pick, not the way it's supposed to be, but one wouldn't know it by his effortless playing.

Just saying one shouldn't get hung up searching for the holy grail of picks. If you find a pick that doesn't slip, that's the key. At least that way you can stay focused on the fundamentals and improve your playing.

Note: The Wegen BigCity doesn't click or slip on me, but I subject it to alteration, as I would with any pick--reshaping it into a circular shape, because that works for me.