What Pick? Please Help! :)

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luke104

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Heyy!
Iv had a ukulele for a while now and cant get to grips with chords without using a pick! i was wondering....what pick do you suggest for a ukulele? finger ? thumb? soft? felt? whatever!!
because im using a steel one now and it makes it sound bad!
 
tried a number of different picks, but I prefer my fingers. I have used a folded matchbook cover a couple of times and that sounded kinda cool, but in the end no pick was the best pick for me
 
I started out using my thumb only. That didn't work.

Then I used the fleshy part of my thumb for the downstroke and the fleshy part of my forefinger for the upstroke. That worked for a while but it was exhausting; couldn't perfect the technique. Also, I couldn't get enough volume doing that.

Then I switched to using my forefinger, and that works very well for me.

I used a felt pick once, but -- no. My instructor frowns on picks, but I don't know her reasons why.

I'm told that Hawaiians use their forefinger mostly and never use a pick. I've seen only a very few people use any kind of pick with the ukulele.
 
I now Brittni Paiva has one o those hooky-thumb-pick's on in her "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" video. I went out and bought some "felt" picks. They were more like little pieces of corkboard. They.... don't sound well on the soprano, but they worked OK on my baritone.

-Kyle
 
I've heard felt picks work pretty well if you perfect your technique with them. I have one but I hardly ever use it because I prefer the way my pointer finger sounds on the strings. It's just a matter of preference...
 
i use my thumb and fingers, but i have seen artist and musician Robert Armstrong (he created Mickey Rat, and plays with Janet Klein and also with the Cheap Suit Serenaders) play with a thumb pick, but he also plays lap steel, so that's probably why.
 
Gone through a lot of picks. Dunlop, Planet Waves, National, Alaska Pik, and felt. I'm more comfortable using the National. Fits my thumb better. Alaska Piks are too flimsy, too easy to twist. Holding the felt, tires my thumb and forefinger. Depending on the song, if I do a lot of picking with the thumb, then I go with a thumb pick. If I do more strumming then picking in the song, then I take it off and use my thumb for both up and down strumming. What's nice with the plastics, you can shape it. File it to the shape you want. :nana:
 
Wedgie makes a rubber pick called "rubbers" (naturally) and they sound very similar to fleshy part of a finger. I have many different picks but only use them if I need more volume when playing in bands. Then I always use a plastic pick.

Otherwise I go back to using just the fingers and thumb.
 
WS64 uses some picks in his covers when you look at some of his videos. they seem to be the thin guitar picks. i've tried out the rubber "wedgies" kind of picks and found them to be bulky and other picks to just not feel natural with a uke.

but sometimes its great to experiment with
 
dhkane said:
Gone through a lot of picks. Dunlop, Planet Waves, National, Alaska Pik, and felt. I'm more comfortable using the National. Fits my thumb better. Alaska Piks are too flimsy, too easy to twist. Holding the felt, tires my thumb and forefinger. Depending on the song, if I do a lot of picking with the thumb, then I go with a thumb pick. If I do more strumming then picking in the song, then I take it off and use my thumb for both up and down strumming. What's nice with the plastics, you can shape it. File it to the shape you want. :nana:
Click to expand...
Good post, brah! So, da Alaska Piks neva work out? Lemme try it latah on.
 
Personally i have used fingers, felt picks, and plastic picks... Fingers have that nice soulful sound that most people enjoy... felt picks just kindof sound wierd to me but that could just be me. when i want to really hear that strummed hard sound i use Dunlop .60mm (The red ones) they flex awesomely and dont muffle the sound too much.

i would go to a local music shop and get a crapton of diffrent picks *most have like an assortment box* and play on them all till you find your sound...

Peace
Bassukuguy
 
I personally like all picks. I also enjoy fingerpicking a lot too. Also, I'd like to point out, until a week ago I had no idea how to fingerpick,so I thought I just couldn't. I watched a vid on Iamhawaii showing how to do it, and now I like it just as much. I think the most challenging to use is a felt pick, maybe it's just me, but it seems really stiff. My personal favorite is Wedgie Rubber Picks. Sounds just like fingers, and plays like a pick! Good luck!
 
Neva work for me, brah. Dropped it off at FH72, he likum. Hey, I got one finga pick for you. Brahda David in Hilo plays it with the plastic below the finga, I play it with the plastic above the nails. Wateva. See you at HSG.
 
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