Forum - Banjo Ben Clark

Discuss the Banjo lesson: All About Fingerpicks

#22

Hi @Elizabeth welcome to @BanjoBen 's Forum.

Great question. The reason that banjo players wear banjo picks I guess is down to the fact that Earl Scruggs who made the 5 string banjo so popular, wore picks. Plus you get more clarity and volume wearing picks.

That said I know what your going through. When I was a beginner I was addicted to study & practiced so much so that my fingers would be aching after 12 hours. Also the picks I bought from my music store were poorly made and had sharp metal fragments that tore my skin and left me with bleeding finger tips.

Fingerpicks are like shoes some you buy fit snugly and are comfortable others can be a real pain to wear. Shop around find some that fit snugly on your fingers. Once you get used to wearing picks you’ll miss not wearing them. Difficult as it might seem right now Persevere. In time you’ll be glad you did.

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#23

Which ones are you using, @Elizabeth? Which brand and which gauge?

#24

Dunlop 13. I have skinny little fingers and sort of permanent hangnails, and they dig into the sensitive flesh at the sides of my nails.

PS sorry I didn’t see this sooner. Is there a notification somewhere at the top of the page, that will let me know I have an answer to a question? Otherwise, I am likely to forget I asked a question in a forum topic. (Edit, I just now “enabled” notifications.)

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#25

I’ve heard Ben say before ‘God made us all a little different’ but here’s my experience. I’ve purchased a few of the popular brands from the General Store, and I have found the Propik to be the most comfortable fit for me. The little curve on the edge really helps (see pic). Sammy Shelor comes in a close second, the metal feels very smooth on those. I wore my picks even when I wasn’t playing just to get used to them. You will 100% get there, just may take a little trial and error.

Propik_fingerpick
Propik_fingerpick.jpg1991×1638 372 KB

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#26

I have had problems keeping finger picks on. If I adjusted them tight enough to to stay on they were extremely uncomfortable. I saw a post somewhere about using electrical tape so I tried that and that helped, but eventually the tape would need replaced and it would leave my fingers feeling sticky. I just found Greg Allen fingerpicks which have a rubberized coating on them. These are the first picks I have found that stay on and are comfortable. They come in .025 thickness or stainless steel. They are a little more expensive, but for me, it has been worth it.

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#27

Gorillasnot used to be recommended a lot over on the Banjo Hangout, never used it myself. I just lick my fingers and that seems to hold my picks in place. But a nice plug for Greg Allen fingerpicks all the same.

#28

Hey @terry.adcock1158, don’t forget that it’s not just the tightness of the bands, but the angle of the bands. I like to create an angle so that the leading edge of the band is canted inward…it’s the same principle as a Chinese Finger Trap.

#29

@BanjoBen, thanks for the reminder. The rubberized coating on these picks seems to help hold them in place when I adjust the angle as you mentioned.