Hard to hold flatpick

[therbulus]

Am I the only one? Sometimes I play rhythm with a flatpick and it feels too slippery (e.g. Fender medium). I find myself wishing that it had a rough surface on top; once I even put some rubbery tape on it to get a better grip. Am I nuts, or what?

[J. Scott]

I use a hole punch for paper to put a round hole in the pick. Not only helps hold but an easy way to carry on a key chain.

[island texan]

Originally Posted by therbulus

Am I the only one? Sometimes I play rhythm with a flatpick and it feels too slippery (e.g. Fender medium). I find myself wishing that it had a rough surface on top; once I even put some rubbery tape on it to get a better grip. Am I nuts, or what?

Consider a pickboy. My favorite with electrics, but I don't use a pick with acoustics.

[bufflehead]

Try using a textured Primatone.

[vindibona1]

You can take a box knife and cut diagonal slices into the plastic in opposing directions. That will put some "tread" into the pick and help you to hold on. Or you could drill holes in it. Anything to make the holding surface other than smooth.

[blindboyjimi]

The primetone picks are less slippery especially the textured one, but I like the tone of the non textured ones. My electric guitar teacher keeps 150 grit sandpaper for students new to picking. One quick hard rub on either side gives a nice grippy surface where your thumb and finger go. I’ve been doing this to my Clayton 0.88 picks...my newest favorite.

[CaptRedbeard]

I have had the same problem and found I get less slippage using a Mojo grip pick.

[JayBee1404]

Get a BlueChip - they are the only picks I can hang on to. Despite being ‘smooth’, the material (Vespel) is very ‘grippy’. And, as a bonus, the high price of a BC makes you very careful not to lose it!

And the biggest bonus of all is that you’ll be playing with arguably the best-sounding pick on the market.

The usual disclaimers apply......IMHO, YMMV etc.

[Silly Moustache]

Hi, I use Blue-Chips and Wegen large triangles, which give you more mass to hold, and a blunter tip which means that they are (IMHO) easier to hold accurately.
Blue Chips get the box knife treatment (be careful NOT to take the cuts near the edge, and I do a cross hatch pattern on both sides.

Wegens already have holes drilled in them, and I have done this making small holes (1/8" or less), in picks that I have made out of Dunlop tortex/ultex blanks.

The trouble with drilling holes is that you are reducing mass and effectively, thickness of the pick.

Here is the BIG SECRET! ... Don't hold your pick so tight. teach yourself to hold it "just" tight enough, but not too tight.

I know this sounds counter-intuitive, but it really IS the secret.

[lowrider]

How are you holding the pick? How do you hold it? Can you post a pic of how you are holding it?

[jschmitz54]

Try Dunlop Flow, very grippy.

[vintage40s]

I like the raised dots on the Dunlop Primatone picks.
https://www.zzounds.com/item--DNP511P?siid=136800

I tried the hybrid flat pick on a thumbpick and didn't like it.
https://www.guitarcenter.com/Fred-Ke...hoCJ18QAvD_BwE

[DownUpDave]

There are other picks out there but I understand if you love the sound of something in particular. As others have suggested try drilling holes in the pick, it really does help to increase the grip. Here is a picture of one I did below. Funny thing is I found with Ultex and Primetone, my two favs, if you moisten your thumb and index finger these picks get sticky. I don't need holes anymore

[musicman1951]

No, you're not the only one. That's a pretty slippery pick.

Try everything:

Rough up the top of the pick (sandpaper or scratches)
Drill some small holes
Put a piece of white medical tape over the top half

See what works. Eventually you'll find something (or get a better pick from the frustration).

[rmp]

Fender picks are definitely slick.. (not in a good way)
I switched to D'Andrea (347s 73mm)

https://dandreausa.com/product/guita...rex-347-shape/