orioletb1 - Posted - 10/15/2009:  07:40:56

Nickel silver fingerpicks, ie nationals, showcase 41s, need a good cleaning on occasion. What I do, is use the following steps:

1. use the finest steel wool
2. use cardboard (I don't know why, but it works)
3. use denim
4. use the side of your nose for that final slick finish

By doing these steps you will minimize pick noise and increase the life of your picks. Also, you can take that good old set of trusty, crusty, rusty nationals and make them like new. Anyone have good ideas on cleaning or polishing picks?

Edited by - jazzylynne on 10/17/2009 09:59:06

The KIDD - Posted - 10/15/2009:  08:03:19

Good suggestions for sure!..Ill have to try the cardboard.Ever since I got these NP2's, Ive had pick noise probs in my recordings. I cant go back to the pointed nationals which are VERY quiet. They didnt have the "punch" the 2's have, plus the attack is quite diff. so Im always lookin for new ways to get a diff finish on these.Thanks for posting!

http://www.myspace.com/johnkuhnbluegrass

PharmBoy - Posted - 10/15/2009:  10:14:19

Really? I've never done anything to my Dunlops...

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There is no growth in the Comfort zone, and no comfort in the Growth zone.

"The instrument proper to them is the Banjar, which they brought hither from Africa."
-Thomas Jefferson

( )======"===::}

3fingers - Posted - 10/15/2009:  18:09:47

I just rub them on the back of my leather strap in between songs and it shines my showcase 41's up nice.

Craig
http://www.myspace.com/borrowedtyme2
Come along down to the barnyard lets have us a little banjer pickin
Jeremiah 6:16
Romans 3:23, 6:23, 5:8 10:9, 10:13, 1st John 5:10-13.

Edited by - 3fingers on 10/15/2009 18:11:05

dbowman - Posted - 10/15/2009:  18:26:31

I use one of these kits from Harbor Freight. Chuck it up in your drill press/power drill and you can put a mirror finish on your picks! http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ct...number=98710

Dwight

beegee - Posted - 10/15/2009:  18:54:37

I use Flitz and a Dremel buffing wheel

__________________________
"It is better, of course, to know useless things than to know nothing." -Seneca

eMike - Posted - 10/15/2009:  19:58:58

Jeweler's rouge and a buffing wheel does a great job.

PBGuardsman - Posted - 10/15/2009:  22:04:52

I always used the backside of my belt. It seems to work fairly well but I'll have to try cardboard.

"But who indeed are you, a human being, to argue with God? Will what is molded say to the one who molds it, 'Why have you made me like this''? Romans 9:20 (NRSV)

bob chappell - Posted - 10/16/2009:  03:33:44

I have always used a small bit of simichrome polish, then rub against a soft cloth. Shines them up like new.

thetexan - Posted - 10/16/2009:  08:05:41

I use the back of my leather banjo strap as a strop and polish the metal picks by just rubbing them back and forth over the leather for about 30 seconds. It shines them as well as any chemical cleaning.

tex

Ikaika - Posted - 10/16/2009:  23:49:47

I'm new here, I hope nobody minds if I offer my 1-1/2 cent's worth on this. I've done two things. I've used "Nevr Dull" it's a can of cotton with metal polish mixed in with it - the stuff works wonders on not only picks but anything that tarnishes. What I did in the 80s, when I was playing a lot is, I would buy Dunlop 18s (instead of 20s), and take them to a bumper shop and ask them to dip them in chrome. They never tarnish after that (the first place I did this didn't charge me anything, the second place charged $10). If you decide to do this, make sure you shape them first, because if you try to do that after, the chrome will crack. You might even try doing this with a couple different gauges - even down to 16s (if they make them that light), because the chrome adds a bit of mass to the picks, and might be too heavy for players who like the lighter picks. Oh yeah, make sure they're nice and clean before you take them to the bumper shop. Hope this helps.

http://www.myspace.com/imthefid

Kevin B - Posted - 10/17/2009:  05:41:18

Chrome plating new picks is a great idea. You can get Cobalt plated Dunlops from JDMC. They are much stiffer to try and shape.

Kevin ( )=='=~

'Possum, It's what's for dinner . . ."