Getting Thumbpicks Large Enough to Fit

[joe1871]

Hey All,

I am a very large guy with very large guy hands. I laugh at all the smaller guys with Napoleon complexes - try being off the charts huge. Nothing fits.

Even XXL is nowhere near large enough for thumb picks. I have tried taking the Dunlop Xl picks and softening them in hot water but it doesn't work well. I Have a very hard time playing for any length of time with a thumb picks, my thump turns blue and goes numb. Any suggestions?

Joe

[rllink]

Originally Posted by joe1871

Hey All,

I am a very large guy with very large guy hands. I laugh at all the smaller guys with Napoleon complexes - try being off the charts huge. Nothing fits.

Even XXL is nowhere near large enough for thumb picks. I have tried taking the Dunlop Xl picks and softening them in hot water but it doesn't work well. I Have a very hard time playing for any length of time with a thumb picks, my thump turns blue and goes numb. Any suggestions?

Joe

I've found a hair dryer works well on the Dunlop tortoise shell thumb and finger picks. Another option is a Dunlop metal thumb pick.

[Charlie Bernstein]

Get the largest plastic thumbpick you can find, boil it to make it soft, and shape it to fit.

Or: Get the largest metal thumbpick you can find and shape it to fit.

Or: Email some pick companies, tell them what your problem is, and see if they have anything for you.

If those don't work, you can't fire me, I quit.

[PeterM]

Buy yourself a ProPik

[Mobilemike]

Try metal thumbpicks, like what Blue Chip makes (I'm sure there are other companies too).

Metal seems like it would have more flexibility to bend into a bigger shape than plastic.

-Mike

[HFox]

Call Blue Chip.....They are VERY accomadating folks.
The'll make one for you.....

[Guitars44me]

Originally Posted by HFox

Call Blue Chip.....They are VERY accomadating folks.
The'll make one for you.....

Seems like a great idea to me. My hands aren’t that big and I have to enlarge thumb pics sometimes myself

Usually able to do it with hot water. Almost boiling water, maybe 30 or 40 seconds of immersion. Jam your thumb in it and quickly get it under cold water

If it’s not big enough, try a second go…

Good luck!

Oh, there’s some kind of shark pick thingy that is like a flat pic in a neoprene jacket that fits around your thumb. You might want to check out one of those.

Cheers

Paul

[Mr. Jelly]

You may be already doing it this way. When softening a thumb pick to make it larger using boiling water technic is the key. I use tongs holding only the pick area. I only dip the bend in the boiling water. Not the whole thumb pick. I hold it there. After a minute or two the pick will start opening up. Making it larger. When it gets to the point where I think it will work for me, I dip it in cold water to stop it from getting larger. Repeat as necessary. Also, different plastics react differently. One brand wouldn't budge at all.

[airborne1]

Originally Posted by Mr. Jelly

You may be already doing it this way. When softening a thumb pick to make it larger using boiling water technic is the key. I use tongs holding only the pick area. I only dip the bend in the boiling water. Not the whole thumb pick. I hold it there. After a minute or two the pick will start opening up. Making it larger. When it gets to the point where I think it will work for me, I dip it in cold water to stop it from getting larger. Repeat as necessary. Also, different plastics react differently. On brand wouldn't budge at all.

This method has worked well for me also!

[donlyn]

Getting Thumbpicks Large Enough to Fit

My thumbpick fits perfectly.

It grows at the end of my thumb. Just needs a little care every now and then.
Trim and a shave. Two bits.

Be well and pick well,

Don
.

[BlueBowman]

Originally Posted by joe1871

Hey All,

I am a very large guy with very large guy hands. I laugh at all the smaller guys with Napoleon complexes - try being off the charts huge. Nothing fits.

Even XXL is nowhere near large enough for thumb picks. I have tried taking the Dunlop Xl picks and softening them in hot water but it doesn't work well. I Have a very hard time playing for any length of time with a thumb picks, my thump turns blue and goes numb. Any suggestions?

Joe

I might be in the minority here, but I prefer my thumbpicks to fit very tightly. I play a heavy-handed, percussive style, so they need to be. This is especially true if you wanna do any kind of up-stroke rhythm with a heavy attack. Of course, a blue finger is not ideal, but even a somewhat restrictive feeling-thumbpick can be adapted to over time. Just start off with a couple minutes, rest, then a little longer, rest, etc. That worked for me when I first started. In time, your thumb will get used to the feeling and it'll become second nature. This might not be for everyone though.

[NotALuth]

Hi Joe,

Have you tried one of the Black Mountain thumb picks?

https://blackmountainpicks.com/pages/thumb-picks

It’s a sprung hinge design that hopefully would open large enough to fit you without excessive pressure.

Hope that’s of interest.

Regards,
Clive.