Forum - Banjo Ben Clark

Those expensive picks!

#1

HI Folks,

trying to balance my music time with work. I have been working on the COVID vaccine for my job since March 23rd, almost 7 days a week. Havent had much time to play. I make Antibodies for the vaccine. I am worn out and miss my music time very much.

Anyway, I am wondering about the BLUE CHIP picks. Right now, cant afford one at 35-40 bucks, but are they really worth that money? how does it compare to a Dawg pick or one of Ben’s regular picks?
My instrument is mandolin but my son is letting me use his Guitar while he is at USMC Boot Camp Parris Island from Oct 27 through January. So for the time being I will have both to pick on.

I would love to hear reviews on that pick and I am not criticizing anyone for whatever pick they use, I just want a good overall review.

Thanks

Dean

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#2

Hey Dean thanks for all your hard work with all the covid stuff. In my opinion I think it kind of depends on where you’re at in your playing as far as experience level. For someone who is a beginner I’d say it won’t make much of a difference. I would consider myself to be an intermediate player and I’ve just gotten to the point where I have noticed a difference. Primarily with the sound I get. I’ve tried the td40, the ks40, the tp-1r, and I just started with the tp48. I’ve been playing around more with the different shapes and thicknesses and I think the tp48 will be the one for me. For now at least ha. Although I just got a Dunlop prime tone 1.4 and I really like it as well. My advice would be to find a style you really like, and once you have that invest in the bc in that style. I don’t think you’ll regret it a bit.

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#3

I agree that it depends on your skill level. A beginner player probably wouldn’t notice enough difference to be worth the price. I have a td40 and I absolutely love it! Before I had one I couldn’t imagine that a guitar pick could actually be worth $35 but after playing with one I’m totally sold. The tone, the slickness off the strings, and the gripiness are unbeatable IMHO. If (when) I buy another one I think I’d get a 50.

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#4

I will say this I am a beginner and I broke down just recently and purchased a Blue chip, for me it made a world of difference it completely changed the tone of my mandolin and also for me it seemed to make it easier to play and I am not just saying that to hype the blue chip picks I was on the fence about ordering one myself the first one impressed me so much that I placed a second order of three more but different ones just to see which one I would like or if I would like one more than the other it is really hard to explain just how it was using one for the first time, I do not know what it is about them but they just seem to be easier to hold onto and relax with it while playing and they just seem to glide through the strings so as a beginner Mandolin player they work at least for me they did.

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#5

Forgot to mention the first blue chip pick I ordered was the SR40 I also ordered a couple of other picks to try but different brands a Chris thile signature tortoise shell because it was casein i wanted to try one also a john pearse fast turtle none of them impressed me accept the blue chip SR40
and like I said it impressed me so much I went back into the general store site and ordered three more blue chip picks a CT55 and a Kenny smith 40 and 50

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#6

I love my Blue Chip J D Crow thumb pick on banjo and don’t want to go back, but as an intermediate player, must admit that as a beginner it might not be worth a sacrifice if it’s not affordable enough for you. A good alternative is a clown barf (Bridge confetti) sanded down a little to make it shorter is a great thumb pick from my limited experience.

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#7

Nothing like quoting myself again:

Just read a bit more and went online wow $35 for a pick . I have driven cheaper cars :wink:

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#8

As a beginner, I say “Disregard those comments that say a beginner won’t notice much.” Ha!
The first thing I noticed about my Blue Chip JD Crowe Thumb pick was how well it fit.
I know that doesn’t apply necessarily to a flat pick, but I’ll be you can tell which one feels better in your fingers.
The second thing I noticed is how quickly it pops off the strings when playing. I have heard others say that, and it made no sense to me. Surly we must be talking microseconds. I don’t know if it’s quickness or smoothness, but it simply plays better.
(I don’t, but the pick does!)

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#9

Sorry I do not quite agree with the majority here, bluechips are great and I use them but somehow I like my old U$1,00 plastic dunlop pick better. For me they sound similar and it is more about how they fit and feel that weights in to the preference

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#10

First , thank you for your long hours and dedication trying to find a vaccine! Also, thank you for you son’s service! How well I remember my boot camp (I was in the middle of it this time 38 years ago… seems like yesterday). God Bless him!

That really shouldn’t be the question. It’s what are you willing to pay for something really nice that will last and bring some more joy into your playing. And yes, a Blue Chip pick will do that! There’s no way that anyone will ever convince me that a less than one inch square piece of plasticky type material is worth that much money. And it’s not the labor either. I was literally at the Goins’ home (the fine folks who make them) some years ago and he made me one on the spot while I waited in less than 10 minutes… maybe even five, engraved and everything! So whether they’re worth it or not, I’ve never been able to find anything better… they are great picks and will make a difference. I say good for the Goins family for discovering something to make great picks out of! The picks were actually just a sideline in their business. It may have grown into their main product by now, I don’t know… Super nice people and I’m glad for them.

So, I say go for it! Treat yourself to something nice and don’t worry about where you are in your playing. I hope you are getting compensated for all the hours you’re putting in too btw.

Like Scott, I would start with a 48 or 50 thickness. That should work well for both guitar and mandolin. Anything thinner isn’t going to sound right on mandolin in my opinion.

Oh, one more thing… How much money do we waste on other things that aren’t worth it? Have you seen the price of new trucks!!! 60 or 70,000 for a nice heavy duty 4x4? Really!!! My 35.00 Blue Chip will outlast the truck (as long as I don’t lose it)!

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#11

I really should qualify on this thread that whatever makes you happy and if it works for you that’s great, but am with Frank here my picks are Alice 1.00 mm think I have found the size I need . I even accept it might be my own ear which is not that good.

But most of all happy picking. Oh and have driven cheaper cars LOL!

Nice and bright to hopefully avoid ending up in washing machine!

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#12

Hey Dean! What a cool job you must have. I hope you get some rest soon.

I have 3 BC picks and love them all. One of the first things I noticed, other than improved tone, was how fast the pick moves off the strings. There’s a glide there that I haven’t experienced with other picks.

The last one I got was the TAD-1R 60. What’s really cool about it is that it has 3 different tips and bevels on it to get different tones out of your instrument.

Yes, there are cheaper picks that do a fine job. Dollar wise, there’s definitely a point of diminishing returns. But if you can afford it, I highly recommend a BlueChip.

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#13

:+1:

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#14

They are worth the money! I think they’re worth every penny. Yes, they are more expensive than regular guitar picks, but once you play with one once, I can guarantee you wont want to use anything else. The tone you get from your instrument (even as a beginner) will be so much different, and it will inspire you to play more as well.

Luke

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#15

Mark…That’s exactly the firtst thing I noticed with mine.

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#16

I want to thank all of you who responded to my question with some great points and opinions. I see a pattern of picks some of you use and I might try that. First thing though is I have to get back behind the instrument.

I wish all of you the best in your travels to learn from Ben regardless of what you play.

Thanks

Dean

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#17

There’s some great input here, got me thinking about taking the plunge on a Blue Chip. I hope that @aliciabowman will have lots of different Blue Chips (and others) to “pick” from at camp this week!

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#18

I’ve been using BlueChips for a few years and I love them! They are the best picks and extremely smooth. They’re beveled perfectly which makes it easier for it to slide off of the strings as well. I’m using a TP60 currently.

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#19

I went to the Blue Chip website to find out more about their picks. They don’t explain what the names of the picks mean, or at least I couldn’t find a summary anywhere. In order to try to assess the picks’ characteristics and guess which one(s) I might like to try, I tried to figure out the rhyme/reason for their pick naming conventions, with some modest success. Please correct me if I’m wrong on some/all of these!

The number on the pick represents the thickness of the pick in thousandths of an inch. For example, a 40 means 40/1000 which is 1.00mm according to the website (it’s actually 1.016mm), a 55 is 55/1000 = 1.40mm according to the website (it’s actually 1.397mm), a 60 is 60/1000 = 1.50mm according to the website (it’s actually 1.524mm), etc.

As for the initials, I’m down to inferring from the descriptions:

CT = Chris Thile (designed to his specs)
KS = Kenny Smith (designed to his specs)
TP = Triangular Pick
TP1R = Triangular Pick with 1 rounded corner
TPR = Triangular Pick Rounded on all 3 corners
TAD = same shape at the TP but a “tad” larger than the TP??? Is this correct?
TAD1R = a TAD with 1 rounded corner
TAD3R = a TAD with all 3 rounded corners
STP = Small Triangular Pick
SR = Small Rounded (all 3 corners look rounded)?
TD = Tear Drop (2 rounded corners, 1 pointed playing corner)

Then the bevel comes in “Speed” or “Round”. I think I feel the need - the need for “Speed”, LOL!

I’m currently using a Primetone 1.5mm hand beveled pick of some sort that I like a lot. Based on all that, I may want to try the CT55 (Chris Thile 1.4mm), TP60 (Triangular Pick 1.5mm), and TAD60 (slightly larger Triangular Pick 1.5mm). Of course, I will buy them from Banjo Ben! Holy moly, that’s $105 worth of picks!

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#20

I’d say you pretty much nailed it Rich! I personally use an STP 50 WITHOUT the speed bevels (I hate the speed bevel)! But that’s just me. Most players love them and that’s great. I just can’t get a good tone out of the speed bevels. I went through about five Blue Chips before I finally settled on the one I have.

My suggestion (as Mark advised previously), is to order a triangle pick with all three Bevels (the speed bevel on one point, the rounded corner on another point and the round bevel on the third point). In my opinion, they need to change the name of the “round” bevel to “straight” bevel because that’s all it is. It’s just a smoothed out straight cut like any other pick you would buy. The rounded corner is similar to a mandolin point like a Dawg pick (very much rounded). It’s confusing calling one a rounded corner and one a rounded bevel. So if you just want a plain 'ol straight type pick… that would be a round bevel. To be safe, order one with all three (I don’t know why they just don’t offer that in the first place).

I would start with a TP size. The STP’s are pretty small and not real popular with most players and the TAD feels like picking with a dinner plate (huge and clumsy). But again, just my opinion!

Have fun picking out your picks!

If you end up having to buy a pick with all straight (round bevels) and don’t like it, I’ll buy it from you!.. (As long as it’s a .48 or thicker and you didn’t have your cat’s name engraved on the back)!

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