Hufschmid Guitars/Picks

[sixstringsamurai]

I can't find any better materials than the Ultex, acetal/delrin/tortex, and hardened nylon

I don't mean to sound like a broken record here, but have any of you ever tried a Red Bear? All the materials I've heard mentioned here are plastic based, as are 95% of guitar picks on the market. Red Bear uses some kind of black magic fermented animal protein that's designed to be extremely similar to tortoise shell in feel and tone. I used to use Ultex picks myself, and I thought they sounded fantastic. Then I got my RB. I'm not gonna tell you it was love at first sight, but after I was used to my RB, I tried my old V-picks, Ultex, etc. - they all sounded horribly thin and plastic-y. And they all seemed much floppier than I had remembered too. RB are the only picks I've ever tried that sounded warm and full, a note so natural that I never realized it could sound

-Rory

Red Bear MUST have something going on Cause they are most always sold out.

 

[rorycosgrove]

Exactly. I've been trying to get a new one for like a month actually lol. They're always sold out when I get to the site. But part of the problem there is they only have 2 people hand making the picks, so they can only produce them so fast

-Rory

 

[stubhead]

Casein IS a plastic, with stiffness, hardness, wear and brittleness characteristics that can be compared to other plastics. I mean, I understand - there's another company with an even more magic plastic:
http://www.bluechippick.net/index.php/reviews/109-downbeat-magazine

And it's even more expensive, so it sounds even better! The problem is the foo-foo genes extends measurable tendrils from your wallet to your inner ears, and we can prove it with statements like this (from Blue Chip):

Although quite slick on the strings, the composite material is very easy to grip with no slippage at all.

The material itself - is it more slippery than delrin, nylon, casein etc? Or is it less?

In addition, the Blue Chips produce no pick noise

This is a toughie, because I depend on picks to produce noise. $35 for a pick that can't play notes? No thanks. Or maybe what he meant to say was it didn't click - which is a direct function of weight applied to to the strings and surface hardness. It IS established that these are hard - so are stainless steel picks, which  i also like.

Here is Blue Chip Pick's warranty:

TO THE FULL EXTENT PERMISSIBLE BY APPLICABLE LAW, BlueChip Picks DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.

Here is the closest thing I can find to Bed Bear's "warranty":

Red Bear Original Flat Picks are almost identical to real turtle shell and must be treated as such. The material is hygroscopic (absorbs water) so the longevity of your pick depends on how much moisture it absorbs while playing.

If you play for very long periods, flip the pick over from time to time to keep it flat. As with real turtle shell, this material can become dynamic and mold to your fingers from the heat. (Some people desire this which is just fine too.) This is much more apt to happen with light and medium gauges.

DO NOT carry your pick in your pocket, especially with metal objects, it can get scratched and may break. Carry your pick in your guitar case, or at least in a dedicated container.

For maintenance you can purchase one of our Pick Maintenance Kits, which include all the tools necessary to keep your Red Bear Original pick in top shape.

As with real turtle shell, these picks are consumable - they are NOT meant to last forever.

Out of all these guys, I think Wegen in the least snake-oily:
http://www.wegenpicks.com/#gypsy

But if you can make a guitar, you can surely make a pick:
http://www.onlinemetals.com/plasticguide.cfm

Because Dunlop and Clayton start out so very close to what I want, I let them do most of the heavy lifting. Did I mention, real tortoiseshell picks really suck for electric guitar? With roundwound strings, you end up with a half a pick and some smelly powder in a half hour.I sure hope Red Bear & Blue Chip are lying about being "as good" as tortoise! :toothy12:

 

[bagman67]

Wegen's may be the least snake-oily, but that Comic Sans on the beige brick background image was enough to convince me I am not interested in straining my eyes rigorously enough to imbibe the hype, attenuated as it may be. 


They told me if I didn't stop I'd go blind... maybe it's finally coming true!

 

[rorycosgrove]

Hey we can look at disclaimers and technical stuff all day but Red Bears sound and feel great to me. Don't count em out until you try them!

-Rory

 

[Cagey]

Wegen's may be the least snake-oily, but that Comic Sans on the beige brick background image was enough to convince me I am not interested in straining my eyes rigorously enough to imbibe the hype, attenuated as it may be. 

They told me if I didn't stop I'd go blind... maybe it's finally coming true!

Holy mackerel! That is one disturbing site! Whoever came up with that scheme ought to be punished. I'm with you - 15-20 seconds was all I could take. I hope there's nothing good there that I'll miss out on. But, if all they're talking about is picks, I'm pretty sure I'm not missing anything. Nearly every day of my life forces me to add to the pile of miscellaneous bullshit guitarists are eager to argue about. You'd think if they were so concerned about their sound that they'd practice more, but no.

 

[bagman67]

Hey we can look at disclaimers and technical stuff all day but Red Bears sound and feel great to me. Don't count em out until you try them!

-Rory

Three plugs so far in this rather short thread  make me a little dubious.  If you're merely an enthusisast, I'm glad you have found something that works for your needs.  If you're a shill, go ahead and disclose it.  No hard feelings.

 

[TonyFlyingSquirrel]

The ones that Tusq sent me are pretty nice, but I mainly use them on my acoustic.  It'd be interesting to see what they could pull off if they made one in the Jazz size.

I'm still favoring my Dunlop Black/Gold Tortex Jazz 1.14mm's for the electric.

 

[stubhead]

If you're merely an enthusiast, I'm glad you have found something that works for your needs.  If you're a shill, go ahead and disclose it.  No hard feelings.

I don't think there's overt evil lurking, there's just a little cluster of psychological traits associated with buying $25 and $35 and $50 picks. While most of us barbarians will peek over the fence and say "Whoa! $35 for a pick?"- what you will usually see among the True Believers is more along the lines of "My first Blue Chip is so fantastic I'm going to get another one!" Met with "Yeah, I got thre=eee!"

What you will never, ever, ever, ever, ever ever hear is "I prefer to use a Blue Chip for ballads, a Red Bear for speedmetal, a Wegan for Portuguese belly-dancing and a gold peso when I want to suck." The top of the mountain is very, very small and pointy.                     

 

[bagman67]

If you're merely an enthusiast, I'm glad you have found something that works for your needs.  If you're a shill, go ahead and disclose it.  No hard feelings.

I don't think there's overt evil lurking, there's just a little cluster of psychological traits associated with buying $25 and $35 and $50 picks. While most of us barbarians will peek over the fence and say "Whoa! $35 for a pick?"- what you will usually see among the True Believers is more along the lines of "My first Blue Chip is so fantastic I'm going to get another one!" Met with "Yeah, I got thre=eee!"

What you will never, ever, ever, ever, ever ever hear is "I prefer to use a Blue Chip for ballads, a Red Bear for speedmetal, a Wegan for Portuguese belly-dancing and a gold peso when I want to suck." The top of the mountain is very, very small and pointy.                   

Everyone knows you are supposed to use a beaver felt mandolin pick for Portuguese belly dancing.  But I take your point - better not to attribute to malice that which can be as easily explained by human frailty.

 

[rorycosgrove]

Haha I have no reason to promote them other than my own satisfaction, I'm merely restating my claims as I perceived them somewhat ignored, but perhaps I misinterpreted. Just want people to keep open minds, cuz I too doubted the difference between standard plastic picks and glorified 'special' ones, but I'm glad I gave em a chance

-Rory