Arm rests, capo's, Elixir strings, expensive picks, come on in...let's fight it out!!

[Bear Davis]

Arm rests - I like them

Elixir strings - I use them on my Taylors

Capo's - I use them on compositions that are humanly impossible to play without because I am not willing to settle for something that sounds "like" what I am trying to play.

Expensive picks - I have thousands of picks and some of them are really expensive. Those ones sit in a display case because they were really expensive.

What else ya got - Nothing from the above list beats good technique.

That is all

[51 Relic]

Armrests - No
Bevels - Yes they look nice on the high end Taylor's
Capos - Shubb and Paige for me
Strings - I hate any coated string ( love the Martin Clapton 12-54 and EJ16s )
Picks - Just a FredKelly Speed pick

[Jobe]

Armrests? Really? I have wandered away from the armrest concept ever since that moth (the size of a small bird) flew in my cottage window and scared me to the point of me picking up my nearest guitar and striking it into submission. The guitar faired worse. A little Elmers wood glue and all was well. Except for that indentation on the lower bout. 1983. The beginning of the armrest. Still a sore spot for me.

[Mbroady]

Arm rests.....Have not felt the need but open to trying one.
Elixir strings.........The only brand I use (though I do still experiment from time to time)
Capo's... I use Kyser but have no brand loyalty. My Furch D32 has a chunky neck so I need to find an alternative.
Expensive picks........I moslty finger pick, except when jamming. more concerned with thickness then fancy. So any pick will do, though I do like Dunlap

Another thing to throw into the ring- people/companies who "relic" guitars!

[AndrewG]

Never tried an armrest; don't see the point. Strings; I've used Elixir Nanos from day one for both practical and tonal reasons. Practical because I kill uncoated strings in days, and it's more cost-effective to use Elixirs than constantly changing strings. Picks? Some of the world's finest and most influential music has been created by artists using cheap little bits of plastic. My playing isn't going to improve because my £40 pick arrived in a cute little wooden box.
Capos? Whatever works best; in my case G7th, Shubb and Planet Waves NS Pro.
No way am I going to spend £150 (UK price for an Elliott). on a mechanical clamp, irrespective that it was lovingly created and hand polished by a bloke in an apron or embellished with dead crustacean shell, if it does the job no better than what I have already.

[HHP]

Armrest - never used them, probably won't.

Elixir strings - or any coated strings, probably won't.

Capo - got a "the other Elliot" capo and it works fine. May well get a booteek one one of these days.

Picks - My personal Grail Quest. Had them all, regret not one penny invested. For the moment, have settled on a mid range one that involves a bit of DIY but ends up as best I ever used at any price.

Generally, when it comes to music stuff, "its expensive" is not much deterrent to me. Most expensive picks, strings, capos, are a pittance compared to the instruments. If you have a Ferrari, you don't buy tires at Walmart.

[SnowManSnow]

I don't like puddin'


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[dkstott]

Arm Rests -- Love em

Elixar strings? Hate em... Stopped using them after the last set flaked on me within a week of installation... Never went back

Side ports ? - Meh...

Capo--- I own bunches of them and use them daily

picks? I use the fingers that I was born with... I have no need for plastic or metal supplements.

[Goodallboy]

Arm Rests: Ruins the look of a guitar
Coated Strings: I just wipe Vaseline on mine
Capo's: Love the Paige
Expensive Picks: Sound fine with electric guitars, too soft and muffled for acoustic

[Cross Roads]

I used to play with my teeth, now I use my dentures!

[Larry Pattis]

Isn't it interesting that a (possibly) light-hearted post about controversial subjects here on the AGF ends up with a plethora of distinctly negative/sarcastic comments about these things.

As expected, actually.

Just my 1.5 cents...

[jim777]

I have a couple of blue picks I got a while back on a whim that I really like a lot. They are made of aluminum and are made by Dunlop, Techpicks are what they're called. I love the sound from them, and especially on thinner strings you can adjust your picking angle and attack pretty easily but I do feel (totally without actual evidence I might add) that they wear out the strings faster. The picks themselves do not appear to wear out at all, so the only issue with them is not losing them

I have a capo somewhere, and don't use armrests (though I think the arm cut like the ones in the new Taylors looks amazing). Elixirs I don't use, but have no negative feelings towards them.

[doublescale1]

Arm rests.....don't have an acoustic guitar with one. Maybe I don't know what I'm missing, maybe not.
Elixir strings.........Use the Polywebs, going to try the Optiwebs or what ever the new ones are. Like the Polywebs, not the orig. heavywebs. As for tone - I think they sound very good. No one in an audience would call you out for using Elixirs.
Capo's... I use the Schubb's - very useful tool and real good for holding tune.
Expensive picks.....not in this lifetime am I paying those prices - the Dunlop Primetones are as fancy as I get, I really like the 1.0's with the textured spot on it. If I cant find my Primetone pick I have good old Ultex picks all over the place - 1.0's for those too, the quietest pick I've found, even better than the heavier Primetones for no pick-clack noise.

My .02 cents so far on those topics.

[Long Jon]

A week on the ToneRite will always make any guitar sound much better. FACT.