Blue chip picks - pretty good

pacodelucia13

Hi,

So I've tried Blue Chip picks. Now, I am not such a good picker as I used to play classical guitar and it's a lot more natural for me to play with my fingers ...that and I also leave the pick somewhere out of reach. I am sort of a beginner jazz player, but been playing guitar for more than 10 years, so I move pretty good around the fretboard. That being said,

I have bought a bluechip pick from
https://www.jp-guitars.co.uk/sales/strings_and_picks/blue_chip/blue_chip.htm

I have bought the jazz60large. 

It is very good, you slide through the strings easily. No unpleasant string noise. In fact it's so good, that I am gonna buy another one. Want to get normal size jazz III one. Maybe one with 3 corners also, not sure....or maybe the Andy Wood one.

Spent also some time looking at reviews, so this guy says there is a Dunlop jazz III one that has the same level of string noise.


Now, I am gonna try that one also...but right now, I am really in love with the bluechip pick. I mean, it's a lot better tone and gets close to the tone I have when I play with my fingers. I still prefer playing with fingers, but rhythmically there is stuff where the pick helps you more let's say.
 
Before this bluechip I have tried v pick, red bear which broke, chicken picks and normal dunlop jazz III red, black and the JP version
Out of all these, I like the bluechip best

digitalkettle

I can't bring myself to watch a plectrum unboxing video

Your Bluechip will last an age...just don't drop it somewhere dark!

Brize

I love Blue Chip picks but I monitor their whereabouts very carefully. One fell out of my pocket onto the driveway the other evening and all I could think was that I'd just dropped a fifty!

LastMantra

Can't say I've ever had a problem with my cheap ones.

ArchtopDave

I've come to like Blue Chip - been using the Jazz 60 large for at least 4 years. I sadly dropped one at rehearsal a week ago, and couldn't find it. Still got one more, but I'll get another couple soon. They last a long time, and I've just occasionally given the edge a little rub with a fine emery board if somewhere feels a little rough.

eru

For £40 they should have a built-in bluetooth chip so you can locate any you lose using a mobile app. I honestly can't believe people spend that much money on a deluxe plectrum.

pacodelucia13

To be honest, l am more bothered why one epiphone with a nice flame costs 10, 20 times less than a custom shop gibson. 
If some pick cost 10 times than another, I mean I am not that bothered that much cause we are talking small sums.

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These ones were also expensive https://www.redbeartrading.com/ccp8/index.php?app=ecom&ns=catshow&ref=RBFPICKS

So just like guitars, some of these companies say their picks are more expensive because of the material or the manual labour involved when finishing the pick. Now, it's your choice if you believe them.

Redbear says "Our picks are made from Galalith also referred to as Milk Stone or Avoriolina (Ivory imitation). This natural product is made from the hardening of casein, the protein of milk which is a “polymerized animal protein”. Using this material for flat picks delivers an organic feel imitating the warm tone and feel of real shell from the Hawksbill Turtle which is now a protected species. Many people who have tried our picks cannot tell them apart from the real thing. Our picks may be copied, but never equaled! DO NOT be fooled by the imitators. Red Bear Trading Company IS THE original manufacturer of these fine picks."

Guthrie has a signature one with them at about 35 usd https://www.redbeartrading.com/guthrie.html

I had one redbear some years ago, mine curved in time and it finally broke, because of exposure to water

Bluechip guys are not that exact in their description:
"They are made of a specially formulated composite material that will withstand very high temperatures and is extremely wear resistant. It contains special lubricants which make the picks very fast off the strings."

Now, this sounds kind of like a lot of bull, but they are fast, faster than my jazz III.

Again, at this price point you don't lose that much to find out. When talking about guitars, some cost as much as a good second hand car and we think it's ok even though we know a car has about 30k components (googled that) and a guitar dont think it has more than 100. I mean really we have a piece of wood and some pickups, and I bet I can buy a car with a board computer for the prices that gibson is charging. Maybe I should get a coffee, my hungover is developing an attitude towards gibson

joeW

I thought it was daft hype before I tried one. They really are much quieter on the strings which for clean playing makes a big difference.  I haven’t used anything else since I got a BC jazz 60 and hasn’t changed shape at all with 4 years on the clock.  Wish they were cheaper, but you can say that for anything … 

crunchman

pacodelucia13 said:

Bluechip guys are not that exact in their description:
"They are made of a specially formulated composite material that will withstand very high temperatures and is extremely wear resistant. It contains special lubricants which make the picks very fast off the strings."

The material it is called Vespel, and it is very expensive.  It's an exotic engineering material made by DuPont.  I looked at buying some but in small quantities it would probably have cost me about £20 to make a pick.

Blue Chip do have a patent on making picks from polyimide materials, so they can afford to jack their prices up at the moment.  Whether they should have been given a patent on just using a different existing material for an existing product is debatable.