How long do you use a pick?

I have 3 different picks sitting up on my dresser that I use when I practice. Two are the orange dunlops, and the other is the grey .73 nylon. For some reason, I prefer the .73 when I practice acoustic. I like the feel of the pick bending every so slightly, but I don't have the same feel on the Tele. So the Orange Dunlops for the Tele work better for me.

I'm wondering how long you guys use a pick for. Do you wait till you lose them (which is my rule of thumb) or is there a preference? I guess after some usage, the tip rounds out a bit. I'm not sure if that hinders my practice, but I'm thinking it might because some days I feel like my finger nail gets too close to the string and I miss the note. I'm wondering if I should get in the habit of newer picks more often.

get a surfpick

I usually use a pick either until I lose it or the main point is almost as rounded off as the other 2 sides. Then I grab a new one.

the bhudda holds my pick collection..along with a bunch of other things....:smile:

I never use them to play guitar, I used to drop them a lot so I gave up....one less thing to think about...:roll:

. visiting players get to use them the most, first thing they ask,, gotta pick?......:wink:

I always have a dozen or more laying around and I probably lose them before I wear them out although the thins tend to break after a while if the get brittle.

Forgot to mention I use mediums or orange dunlops. Several years ago I was ordering strings from MF and they wanted me to spend just a little bit more money in order to get free shipping. Well I fell for it and bought 2 packs of picks. I havent had to buy picks in 5 years, But I am now running low.

Chalk me up to one that has never had a pick long enough to wear one out.
I lose them constantly. My favorite thumpick is the white heavy National these days.
When I use a flat pick which has been quite a bit lately for me, I like the orange dunlops.
They are nice and thick and give a nice crips Tele tone.

I use them till there worn out or lost. I have a little jar on top of my amp that I keep them in.

gee, you mean picks actually wear out? i've never been able to hold onto one long enough to find out. i use one 2 or 3 days, then the couch eats it.

gee, you mean picks actually wear out? i've never been able to hold onto one long enough to find out. i use one 2 or 3 days, then the couch eats it.

Just think how many you'll have when you move the couch! :P

http://i824.photobucket.com/albums/zz167/hankstank/MyPickyBank.jpg

I almost never wear them out, except for now and then a wooden one--they tend to wear quickly--because I rotate through my collection of "boutique" picks. I've had this old piggy bank since I was very small. It comes apart just behind the pig's ears, but it was stuck shut most of my life, try what I might to open it.

A few years ago, about the time I started collecting picks, I finally got serious and opened it; I forget how, but I think it involved WD-40, a strap wrench, and a federal grant. Now it's about half full, and it contains hundreds of dollars worth of high-quality picks, many of which are worth what I paid for them!

Here's a few picks posing for the camera:

http://i824.photobucket.com/albums/zz167/hankstank/Pickholders.jpg

Picks are the only thing I've ever dropped and was "NEVER" found,, why is that?

Cool replies! I can't tell you how many picks have gone through the washer/dryer. Good to know that little thing can withstand that kind of abuse, not melt away, and come out sparkly clean!

Ima Jazz III Dunlap guy and as soon as the point is gone the pick is too.

I have about 30 in various locations around the house, because I'm an idiot.

I use Dunlops upside down, so the grip dimples make a scratchy sound. So I use them till the dimples wear off and there's no more scratchiness. Hasn't actually happened yet, as I never seem to use the same one twice.

Fender mediums until I lose them (probably 50% of the time) or until they break (probably 2 out of 10?) I play bass also and that's how most of em break :/

I did have one I used that was pretty well rounded out at one point and then I lost it. Yeah, rounded picks do seem to need some adjusting to.

I have a jar of picks and a bunch lying around. If too many are lying around, they go into the jar. If I need a pick, I know where to look.

I use picks till I lose them, although some of the purple Tortexs I use have acquired a warp along the lie of my thumb. Still usable though.

I've been using this one since around 1987. Somehow it's still with me after three changes of city & a dozen apartments. D'Addario 'Delrin' I think.

I have others, & I mainly fingerpick these days, but it's still the one I always reach for when I want one!

When I lose them. I use the butt end to play so the life is doubled.

I use one till I drop it...surfpicks are great and have worn a couple down to almost nubs...now it doesn't matter if I use the pointy or the rounded butt end.

I use Wegen picks with acoustic guitars and mandolin, and I've never worn one out. But on electric, I use D'Andrea pro-plec 1.5 mm, and I throw them away as soon as they lose their glassy-smooth edge, which usually takes one or two gigs. I buy them by the dozen.

Until it starts to taste funky

Wow, never had a pick long enough to show any wear. I would say mine last a max of about 2 weeks before I break them. Sometimes several a night. I use thin Fender celuloids. I lose some too.

I'm a Jazz III Dunlop guy and as soon as the point is gone the pick is too.

Gitold, I think we were seperated at birth.

About 4-5 days, depending on when I change my pants
Then it's gone.

Years and years, because I never seem to loose them, and they don't (or didn't) wear out. I pretty much stick to the green Tortex picks. All the writing wears off quick.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-50E2-NcFidw/Twpz7o9LJLI/AAAAAAAAAgk/ahl0tY-vT40/s800/Picks.jpg


Lately, Rocksmith has been wearing them out. Maybe I just never played them enough, or hard enough, to wear out. That has changed, since Rocksmith. I now have some purple Tortex to combat the issue, but the tips of those are starting to show wear.

I put a serial number on each pick, and log the usage time in a database. I then rotate a set of 20 picks so they get reasonably equal periods of use. When a set of picks reaches 47.2 hours of use, I retire the set and start a new set.

I use the tip half the time, and rounded side half the time so they don't wear out very quickly. The only pick I've tossed is the Graph Tech Tusq A3 I got recently. Great pick when it was new. After an hour of use it already had significant wear. Lasted about a week. Very disappointing.

Wow... I feel like an outlier. I must have a strange picking motion or use too many pinch harmonics because I wear out a pick after about 3 hours of use, and that includes flipping it. The point and sides get rounded off and chopped up so I get a weird "skritch" sound when I pick. As a result, I change picks every set when I play out. I chuck at least two picks a week in the trash!

-DJ

I have picks that I find that I used in the 70's... I'm always pleased when they show up, always wonder where they were and use them until they disappear again...

I don't use thick or even medium picks anymore... except when I find them... then, I adapt...

I use 'em till they break, or the edges get too chewed-up.

I started out playing with thin picks, but those always broke quickly.

I now use Fender heavy and Extra Heavy - they last much longer.

I don't care if the end gets worn, as long as it isn't rough and jagged.

I put a serial number on each pick, and log the usage time in a database. I then rotate a set of 20 picks so they get reasonably equal periods of use. When a set of picks reaches 47.2 hours of use, I retire the set and start a new set.

ME TOO!
This is great!

Naw, I use'em until I loose them.
I have a bunch of pics. All shapes, sizes, thicknesses, materials and, colors.

I take at least 5 or 6 to each gig.
I know what its like to forget to bring a pic, so I always bring extra's.
Sometimes they make it back, sometimes they find a new home.
Sometimes I wake up with a hangover and, some picks in my pocket from the night before that I can't explain.

i buy picks once a year, 100 of them (dunlop nylon .46mm) and every year i lose about all of them.

I keep a pick or 10 in my pants, and they move along when i change pants. I have a few other (thicker) picks too for recording and for guests, most guitarists i know HATE .46 mm's.. I keep those in a coffee cup in the studio and i've had them for years..

Until I lose it. I try to keep them all in a small, round, rubbermaid container in my gig backpack, but invariably, some don't make it back. I recently got some wedgie picks, love those things.

i use it as long as it has sharp pointy edge. if it gets to round, i pull it over a piece of old hard carpet to sharpen it again. i play the pick until it gets to small.
btw i use dunlop ultex sharp 1.4mm picks

I put a serial number on each pick, and log the usage time in a database. I then rotate a set of 20 picks so they get reasonably equal periods of use. When a set of picks reaches 47.2 hours of use, I retire the set and start a new set.

Right, me too!:roll:



Really, while I am a real hack when it comes to playing it is nice to hear that I am pretty average when it comes to picks.:grin:

I buy a pack of 40-odd picks once a month.
Some get shredded, some get lost but I'm always scratching around for a fresh one.

Since I went to the Wegen 3.5mm, I never have to replace my pick unless I lose it. Those things don't seem to wear out! 3.5mm and up!

I usually use a pick either until I lose it or the main point is almost as rounded off as the other 2 sides. Then I grab a new one.

Yeah I usually tend to lose them before I can wear 'em out.

-Jagg

If it is Tortex then I use it until the writing is worn off. If it is nylon that usually once i get my dead skin on the text I toss them. I really like "new" picks.

I probably have at least a hundred Fender medium 351s lying around the house so I never really notice wear on them.

Plus, more and more I seem to be playing without a pick. Playing with my fingers just seems to give me more range and options.

i use them til i feel like its time for a new pick, no real system or science to it. i buy a pack of a dozen every couple of months

I put a serial number on each pick, and log the usage time in a database. I then rotate a set of 20 picks so they get reasonably equal periods of use. When a set of picks reaches 47.2 hours of use, I retire the set and start a new set.

47.2? Really? I think you may want to recheck your calculations and adjust for Daylight Savings Time. The answer is 46.9312

I use 'em until I lose 'em. I keep a set of different picks in my pockets at all times, two of each. Bass picks, electric guitar picks and acoustic guitar/mandolin picks plus a standard Fender medium that I pull out for certain songs. They seem to last me nearly forever.

when I couldn't find mine, I just used my finger nails, I stopped looking for them after awhile. Then my finger nails started breaking. So I cut them short, and just used my fingers. This seems to work best for me.

I use picks until they break usually as a rule, or I wear them down to a point where they are shaped in such a way that they catch on a string and then they are gone