Coconut !!!

Elliot

Craig Bumgarner wrote:

Not looking to go into competition with you Elliot, but if I wanted to try making one of my own, any guidelines on coconut material? Can I just buy a coconut at the grocery store, break it open, scrape out the soft part and start carving? Does the shell need to be dried first? Is there a particular part of the shell that works best?

Craig

What? Give away my trade secrets??? :shock: :shock: I'm kidding!

No preparation involved, just try to find the largest coconut you can. Any part other than the ends will work. A nice one will be just thick enough to give you a pick that will end up pretty flat except for a small curve for your thumb. You might need a sharper knife or razor blade to smooth the wedge a bit, maybe a half a drop of some kind of oil to rub into it, but that's it.

manoucheguitars

HI Elliot! Thanks I would really appreciate that! I was thinking I could load up a truck full of coconuts and drive across the border into Mexico... you know take them off shore to increase the profit margin... just a thought! Thanks again looking forward tp it...

Robert

badjazz

man, you are going to get sick of eating coconut.
this post made me think about what other hard, flat material that is readily abundant and easily available for low cost from the surrounding environment. then, after the suggestion of sticking together other picks to get the right thickness, the idea hit me--the giant Hawaiian cockroaches have shiny, hard, guitar-pick-shaped shells. If I glue some of their back shells together to the right thickness, I think I'd be in business. please IM so I can tell you where to mail your check and order form.

manoucheguitars

Hi Elliot... I received your pick today! It's really great thanks so much! I tried it out on my Manouche Jazz and it felt comfortable immediately! I love this thing!!!! It is now my favorite pick Elliot and I appreciate it a lot. In fact how bout I put them up on my site for $40.00 each? Seriously, everyone should try one of these. Should I occasionally oil it? Django never quit smoking Elliot... maybe you should reconsider?

Robert

mitch251

The only question I have is how long will they last?
t

Elliot

Robert:

It's getting difficult to type and laugh at the same time, but, wow, you got it already - I'm really happy that you're liking it! At this point I'm starting to think that if you could hand a plastic pick to Django, he'd probably thank you and hand it off to his monkey to chew on.

As for how long they last, well considering that the bottom edge usually needs some degree of roundness to perform to one's taste, the great part is once it gets a bit dull it only takes a few swipes of a small pocket knife along the bottom, maybe a pass over the wedge part to bring it back to its maximal performing condition. I should think at that rate it would be many months of use until it starts looking like the button-like shape of what is called Django's pick, the end result.

Oh yes, a little oil rubbed in; chicken or niglo works fine.