Gravity Picks

[Structo]

A couple months ago I got a free sample from a new pick company called Gravity Picks.
If you frequent The Gear Page you may have seen them.

I receieved a red 1.5mm Mini Razer pick in the mail and I liked it a lot.
It is the same size as a Jazz III pick.

I decided it was just a smidge too small for me so I ordered some 1.5mm regular Razer picks.
These are great.

I had pretty much always used the Dunlop Tortex picks in .88mm (the green ones).

But I noticed that I seem to play better with a thicker pick.

Chris the owner of Gravity also threw in a free 3mm orange Razer.
That one works great too.

I tried the V Picks and as much as I wanted to like them they just don't work for me.
Too much pick noise with a kind of clacky noise when I picked the strings.
Plus they were clear and I would always lose them.

With the Gravity picks you can get an assortment of colors.

Now I know that many may object to "boutique picks" but until you try one you will never know.

Check em out.

In fact, email him and ask for a free pick and tell him Tom from Salem sent you.

http://www.gravitypicks.com/

[xtian]

Over the past few years I have drifted away from standard tortex style picks to heavier ones, first Red Bear, now V-Picks. It's amazing the sound difference. Now that I'm primarily playing Les Paul style guitars straight into tube amps with just a little distortion, these large, 3mm Pearly Gates V-Picks are just the right tool for both articulate lead lines and bruising power chords. I love the sound the heavy pick makes against the strings.

Not for everyone, but they sure are for me!

http://v-picks.com/productdetails.php?q=152&page=picks

[Lonely Raven]

I like really thin, but very stiff picks. Those Gravity Picks in .75 look like they fit the bill!

Thanks for pointing those out!

[selloutrr]

Have you experienced any grip issues or slippage when your finger tips get moist while playing using these picks?

[vibratoking]

Sorry, but I'm not buying what they are selling. From the website:

These handmade jewels are crafted one at a time with great care and precision.

and this

These picks are made out of sheets of cast acrylic. They are then laser engraved and cut out into the individual picks. Next is to grind and polish each pick one by one. Thats basically it. Acrylic is a fun material that comes in lots of colors and thicknesses.

Are they crafted one at a time or engraved and cut by a laser? I don't think you can have it both ways. Well, technically everything is made one at a time, but this all sounds like snake oil salesmanship. I am calling BS on the handmade jewels statement. The need to make high volume basically indicates that it is an automated process. The prices are 5x or more what they should be for a piece of plastic. OK, it's a high grade piece of plastic, but only if they buy it from a reputable cell cast acrylic manufacturer. Also, plenty of other picks are made of high grade plastic.

Acrylic is a fun material? What does that mean and why should I care?

I'll stick with my Jazz III. My problem isn't my pick. If anything, it's the guy using it.

[mlp-mx6]

The Dunlop Ultex Jazz III picks are the best I've ever used. Great feel, great tone, great durability. My only beef is the color - translucent, hard to see when you drop them.

[Structo]

Well what you are quoting is just marketing.
You got to sell the product.

I would guess he punches them out from the sheet of acrylic.
Then polishes the edges.
I don't believe he cuts them out with a laser but I could be wrong.
Even if he does, you would still have to polish the edges to a smooth surface.

The acrylic is very high quality and very consistent.
They don't seem to wear very fast either so that tells me the acrylic is pretty hard.

They are also easy to hang on to.

Here is a trick if you find picks slippery to hang on to.
Get some rosin. You can buy they type used to rosin a violin bow.
What I do is sand a little bit on the rosin then moisten my thumb index and middle finger and wipe them on the rosin.
It makes my fingers kind of sticky and I can grip the pick with out it slipping out of my fingers.

Sure they are a $5 pick in most cases but the ones I have gotten are very nice.

I didn't like the clacky noise I got from V picks.

These don't do that and are easier to find when they are a color and not clear.

Instead of doubting what I say, drop Chris an email and ask for a free sample.

The Razer Mini is the same exact size as the Jazz III.
I am really digging the standard Razer in 1.5mm.

Like I said, I used nothing but the green Tortex in .88mm for over 20 years before I started checking out some of these different picks.

It has changed my playing for the better.

[Gibsonman63]

Fender extra-heavy Jazz picks for me. After 25+ years with the same picks nothing else feels right to me. I buy a gross at a time. I rarely drop them, but I sure lose a lot of them.

[vibratoking]

Tom - point well taken. I'll drop an email and ask for a sample. It wouldn't be the first time that I have been pleasantly surprised.

[selloutrr]

I'll give them a try.

To date the two best picks I've stumbled across have bee then the Dava Control Pick. It's basically like having every thickness of pic at your finger tips. I've aslo really enjoyed the feel of Dunlop Ultrex with a rhino in a medium guage.

I'm not a big fan of the rosin trick though it does work. But switching back and forth from finger to pick it can feel sticky at times.

We should all just play these

http://images.guitarcenter.com/products ... 110008.jpg

[xtian]

Pick of Density! (uh, Destiny!)

[The New Steve H]

I tried the little Dunlop jazz picks last year, and I was surprised to see how they helped me speed up and pick cleanly. But they're so small, they put a lot of force on a small area of your finger when you play, and it gets to be really annoying. It can tire your hand out, because you have to squeeze a small pick harder.

I decided to give the big Dunlop Delrin triangles ("Tortex Triangle") a shot, but I found that the upper left corner (looking down on the pick as I hold it in my right hand) acted as a lever when I played and continually made the pick rotate counterclockwise so it wasn't facing the right way.

My answer was to grind the corner off and remove the part that acted as a lever. Now the pick fits my finger perfectly, it works as well as a jazz pick, and it distributes the force over a much bigger area.

They don't last too long, however.

[Structo]

Yeah, with the Tortex green .88mm picks, after one gig the edges would be worn quite a bit.
So evidently it is a softer material.
I did like the way it felt in my hand.

So far the Gravity picks don't really show any wear until quite a few hours of play.

I don't have a dog in the fight, just wanted to give a shout out for something I think is a good product.

I too have a hard time shelling out $5 for a pick but the improvement in my playing clinched the deal.

I have checked into getting a pick punch and buying sheets of acrylics.
McMaster-Carr is the only place I found that sells smaller sheets.
But I am not sure of the properties that make a good pick since there are many forms of acrylic.

[The New Steve H]

I looked for Delrin sheets, but it seems like it's hard to find stuff thin enough for picks.

[thejaf]

I played Fender heavy for 20 years, but last year tried the Dunlop Ultex and will never look back. For whatever reason, they have a much higher amount of amplified volume and bring out more nuances than any other picks I've tried. Every other pick sounds dull, quiet, and lifeless compared to the Ultex. Heck, I even made a few brass picks from a cracked cymbal, and the Ultex is even louder than those.