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FlyinEagle - Posted - 05/09/2017: 05:22:35
I have to ask, is there some tonal property that makes the clown barf picks more desirable? Or is it just cool looking/fun to say?
Is the preferred clown barf Golden Gate or Kel Kroydon?
rb4player - Posted - 05/09/2017: 05:37:45
Kel Kroydon clown barf my fave. More mojo than black, for sure.
Jim
Dave 13 - Posted - 05/09/2017: 05:50:12
These are strange picks, I have one that I got from JDMC last year.
I was slightly reshaping it , when I was cleaning up the edge with fine sandpaper the plastic smells Minty & weird
No telling what exactly there made of, I'm sure its recycled
Dave
TOMCAT - Posted - 05/09/2017: 06:19:32
My opinion is the clown barfs are the best plastic pick , and the KK clown barfs are the best of the best. I used a blue chip for awhile and really liked it, but I worried myself to death about losing it, so I sold it and bought a truck load of barfs.
Fathand - Posted - 05/09/2017: 06:34:18
I use Dunlop myself, they are different from the regular picks in that they are thicker and thus stiffer. The extra thickness makes them take a little longer to wear out.
PKM - Posted - 05/09/2017: 06:51:17
Jeff, I use the Golden Gate clown barf, but have not tried the KK. I didn't pick them because of the easthetics, I like the depth of the blade, the feel, etc. I have 2 Blue Chips but don't care for them as much. The Dunlops are very similar to the Golden Gates and I'll use them sometimes. The GG Clawn Barfs do come with a very slight scratchy edge to them at first, like all picks. I don't bother with sanding them, because that tiny bit wears in quickly after the 3rd tune you pick.
Funny, many pickers pick with a Blue Chip and keep clawn barfs as spares on their banjo hooks, but I do the reverse. My Blue Chips are my spares hanging on the banjo at gigs while I play with GG clown barf. Some think they look cool. I think they're tacky, but I love how they pick and they sure are a lot easier to find if you drop one onto a dark stage during a gig !!
Cheers, K
beegee - Posted - 05/09/2017: 07:59:16
I find that the KK Clown Barf picks last a long time, are comfortable, have a good solid feel, pull good tone, and wear evenly without the scratchiness I find in tortoise or white picks. Plus they look cool.
Redmanc - Posted - 05/09/2017: 08:19:38
The other GG picks, ivoryoid and pearloid, are the same shape but different materialc unless I'm wrong. I prefer the ivoryoid over the clown because the texture keeps it on my thumb. Great great picks
FlyinEagle - Posted - 05/09/2017: 08:35:37
Aha, mojo...the hidden element.
So it seems the clown barf is a bit thicker, a bit more durable, and possibly toxic if it's fumes/dust is inhaled.
I have been using (and loving) a blue chip, but I might have to add a clown barf to my next Elderly order…
Cornflake - Posted - 05/09/2017: 08:39:31
I've tried many picks including a year with Blue Chip. Th kk clown barf fits my thumb just right. It's a bit beefier than other picks and gives me a nice solid hit without the little "click" I got from the Blue Chip (The color also makes it easier to find when you drop it in the grass).
banjoez - Posted - 05/09/2017: 09:59:13
The clown pukes have a nice snap off the strings (if you have the proper attack). This allows for clarity and clean tone. It's in the plastic. Others just don' t have it. The old Nationals were the last picks that seemed to have similar characteristics. They seemed more brittle and this gave them that snap, however, they also cracked pretty easily around the bend. The clown pukes don't seem to have that issue luckily. Blue Chips sound like a piece of wet wood by comparison.
Edited by - banjoez on 05/09/2017 10:07:51
rtyrie - Posted - 05/09/2017: 10:20:01
I started using Golden Gate clown barf thumb picks in 2005 when my banjo instructor (Harry Trott) told me to play with more feeling and color. I initially got it as a joke but I found I really like them and have used them ever since.
I have been tempted to go with one of the newer/exotic picks but have not seen a compelling reason to do so.
My two cents
Your mileage may vary
FlyinEagle - Posted - 05/09/2017: 10:35:54
quote:
Originally posted by banjoez
Blue Chips sound like a piece of wet wood by comparison.
I love the blue chip for the comfort, but I have to agree banjoez about the tone. It is a bit...gentle.
Kenneth Logsdon - Posted - 05/09/2017: 12:27:14
Years ago I learned (to me) better than the "one"that pick" thing... Something always happens to it... So I buy them, the Clown Barf, by the handful and pitch a handful into each case and use them interchangeably.. no more thumbpick problems..
(now finger picks, different, used one set for more than twenty years, then they disappeared one night... Still miss them (even though I have a dozen sets of the same, bent exactly alike... their not??)
Banjophobic - Posted - 05/09/2017: 12:56:44
Why not would be my question. There are lots of pick choices out there, thankfully, try whatever your time and budget allow and find a thumbpick that suits you.
Staghorn5 - Posted - 05/09/2017: 15:08:34
Bleh, I think I'm gonna hurl.
mike gregory - Posted - 05/09/2017: 15:54:37
For those like myself, who were not EXACTLY sure what they look like, heres a picture.
TOMCAT - Posted - 05/09/2017: 16:24:00
Banjerdelic!!!
ildertongap - Posted - 05/09/2017: 18:06:10
Just when I get to thinking that I may be getting a handle on this whole banjo-bluegrass thing....some clown barfs and I am clueless in Canada.
mikehalloran - Posted - 05/09/2017: 18:09:45
They have been available since the psychedelic '60s — at least, that's when I first saw them.
Banjophobic - Posted - 05/09/2017: 18:54:16
I figured these picks had something to do with Greg Rich and something in the 60s...hahaha.
BanjoClive - Posted - 05/09/2017: 21:48:53
I mean its great if you cant make up your mind on what color to pick... maybe it was a factory accident? 
I havent tried the KK version but I like the golden gate version of it... its a lil bit big but very comfortable...
Edited by - BanjoClive on 05/09/2017 21:50:31
banjoez - Posted - 05/10/2017: 06:09:51
quote:
Originally posted by Clive M
I mean its great if you cant make up your mind on what color to pick... maybe it was a factory accident?
I havent tried the KK version but I like the golden gate version of it... its a lil bit big but very comfortable...
Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I thought the KK's were just re-branded Golden Gates anyway.
Tim13 - Posted - 05/10/2017: 09:00:42
quote:
Originally posted by banjoez
Blue Chips sound like a piece of wet wood by comparison.
I agree. I don't understand all the love that Blue Chips get around here. They sound dull to my ear.
Tim
gospelman97 - Posted - 05/10/2017: 09:52:03
Has anyone ever seen the clown barf picks in medium? I've only seen the large size and they are way too big for my thumb.
TOMCAT - Posted - 05/10/2017: 09:53:02
quote:
Originally posted by banjoez
quote:
Originally posted by Clive M
I mean its great if you cant make up your mind on what color to pick... maybe it was a factory accident?
I havent tried the KK version but I like the golden gate version of it... its a lil bit big but very comfortable...
Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I thought the KK's were just re-branded Golden Gates anyway.
You may be right Joe. It's been a while since it's come up. Unless it was just a BHO rumor, I remember reading that the kk picks went through the cryo freezing process
banjoez - Posted - 05/10/2017: 11:48:40
quote:
Originally posted by Tim13
quote:
Originally posted by banjoez
Blue Chips sound like a piece of wet wood by comparison.
I agree. I don't understand all the love that Blue Chips get around here. They sound dull to my ear.
Tim
I suppose some folks like a more thuddy, duddy sound or maybe they've just never tried a really good sounding pick before.
Edited by - banjoez on 05/10/2017 11:57:40
banjoez - Posted - 05/10/2017: 11:57:12
quote:
Originally posted by gospelman97
Has anyone ever seen the clown barf picks in medium? I've only seen the large size and they are way too big for my thumb.
Bryan, I don't believe they come in any other size but many of us with smaller thumbs just dip them in hot water (real hot) and bend them for a true custom fit. I also trim the width of the blade down with a dremel a little bit to make them even more responsive. Works great!!
I was down to my last old National and was really bummed trying to find a suitable replacement and tried just about everything out there and NOTHING came close until I tried these. In some ways I have come to appreciate them even more than the old Nationals. I bought enough to last me pretty much until I can't pick anymore. 
Edited by - banjoez on 05/10/2017 12:02:50
gospelman97 - Posted - 05/10/2017: 12:03:21
quote:
Originally posted by banjoez
quote:
Originally posted by gospelman97
Has anyone ever seen the clown barf picks in medium? I've only seen the large size and they are way too big for my thumb.
Bryan, I don't believe they come in any other size but many of us with smaller thumbs just dip them in hot water (real hot) and bend them for a true custom fit. I also trim the width of the blade down with a dremel a little bit to make them even more responsive. Works great!!
I was down to my last old National and was really bummed trying to find a suitable replacement and tried just about everything out there and NOTHING came close until I tried these. In some ways I have come to appreciate them even more than the old Nationals. I bought enough to last me pretty much until I can't pick anymore for a fraction of the cost of a Bluechip.
Thanks for the information. I'm sure I will try one at some point. After spending so much time experimenting and tinkering with setup and accessories, I decided to, for the most part, leave well enough alone and just learn to play the banjo. I have become comfortable with blue chip and don't have to worry about sanding and having a bunch of backups ready. Every once in a while I will use a golden gate pearloid or dunlop calico when I'm without my bluechip. They do sound just a tad bit brighter. A nice change of pace.
jwold - Posted - 05/10/2017: 14:09:34
barf picks are easier to find when you drop them! Unless you have clown carpet of course.
Brian T - Posted - 05/10/2017: 14:59:36
I think that Clown Barf plastic will bend in very hot water = custom shape.
I remember practicing with a 8" file on the table to reshape the tip. That made a difference with my poor coordination.
mike gregory - Posted - 05/10/2017: 21:00:11
I remember holding a thumb pick in my tweezers, over a candle flame to heat it for reshaping.
Dang thing went up like a ROAD FLARE! 
(No clown barves were harmed in the making of this inadvertent conflagration.)
FlyinEagle - Posted - 05/11/2017: 03:55:00
quote:
Originally posted by Tim13
quote:
Originally posted by banjoez
Blue Chips sound like a piece of wet wood by comparison.
I agree. I don't understand all the love that Blue Chips get around here. They sound dull to my ear.
Tim
If I was selling blue chip picks I would say they produce a "warmer" tone, haha.
I don't think they sound dull, but it's definitely not as aggressive a tone as what some other picks produce.
For me, the comfort of it and the feel of it - a smoothness on the strings - are more than enough for me to look past the warmer tone.
FlyinEagle - Posted - 05/11/2017: 04:30:41
quote:
Originally posted by mike gregory
I remember holding a thumb pick in my tweezers, over a candle flame to heat it for reshaping.
Dang thing went up like a ROAD FLARE!
(No clown barves were harmed in the making of this inadvertent conflagration.)
Well, that's it right there...the clown barfs have the fire in them!
eljimb0 - Posted - 05/11/2017: 06:02:35
smells like mint when you file it >> That smell is camphor
like a road flare... nitrocellulose
nitrocellulose (which is fun to play with) and camphor ...patented in the 1870's as "celluloid" used in fake billiard balls and movie film.
and really cool looking banjos. And making clown vomit picks!!
banjoman56 - Posted - 05/11/2017: 06:26:40
quote:
Originally posted by mike gregory
I remember holding a thumb pick in my tweezers, over a candle flame to heat it for reshaping.
Dang thing went up like a ROAD FLARE!
(No clown barves were harmed in the making of this inadvertent conflagration.)
I got the same effect from holding one over a bic lighter. Dropped that sucker on the hardwood floor and made a smudge that my wife was in no way proud of!
banjoman56 - Posted - 05/11/2017: 06:30:46
I probably have a pint jar full of thumbpicks, of all brands including Bluechip and KK clown barfs and I have settled on the Dunlop metal pic. They're not the most comfortable pick on the market, but they produce the best tone IMO.
Jim Shank - Posted - 05/11/2017: 16:37:48
Brian,
Have you tried hot water and reshaping them?
quote:
Originally posted by gospelman97
Has anyone ever seen the clown barf picks in medium? I've only seen the large size and they are way too big for my thumb.
Barnet in SoCal - Posted - 05/12/2017: 12:30:12
I've reshaped picks by boiling some water in something small so the steam rises in a small area. I hold the blade end gently with any sort of pliers, then put the thumb loop in the steam, and move it around so it steams evenly. It soon becomes pliable, and I can reshape it with some precision using a needlenose,
I don't know ... typing it out makes it sound like a project, but it's pretty straightforward and gives you good control.
Barnet in SoCal
___________________________
-->Earl and JD: the ones… the only-s…
wuzapicker - Posted - 05/16/2017: 18:11:03
I had several back in the 1980's. They were my favorites becase they seemed less noisy than others at the time and didn't break as easily as the white Nationals I used before. I think they came from Erie Ball back then. Then they became unavailable for a while. I never found others I liked as much.
Michael
bluenote23 - Posted - 05/16/2017: 19:49:46
Well I picked up some KK clown picks because of this thread and I quite like them. I was using plain tortoise Dunlops but I find the clowns a little more comfortable (after some boiling water) and I find the band doesn't get caught in the strings (so far) which was happening more and more with me and the Dunlops.
They sound a little different but still sound like me.
FlyinEagle - Posted - 05/19/2017: 08:12:18
quote:
Originally posted by bluenote23
Well I picked up some KK clown picks because of this thread and I quite like them. I was using plain tortoise Dunlops but I find the clowns a little more comfortable (after some boiling water) and I find the band doesn't get caught in the strings (so far) which was happening more and more with me and the Dunlops.
They sound a little different but still sound like me.
Oh man, good for you. I think those plastic Dunlop picks are the absolute worst out of any I have tried!
gtani7 - Posted - 05/22/2017: 22:48:24
got my clown barf's today from American Made, been busy reshaping the band. The hot water out of the bathtub spigot is plenty hot to soften them up to a perfect fit, and i set needle nose pliers to exactly where i want the curve to open (loosen) up.
Tractor1 - Posted - 05/23/2017: 05:14:58
I do a lot of work on all three of my picks, so no high dollar pick for me just to reshape and grind sand and whetstone.I use clown barfs or golden gates .
I use an electric heat gun ,a pair of needle nose pliers and a pair of regular pliers to reshape them.I also cut file and shape to suit.I usually have the current fave sitting there for a model.
flatthead - Posted - 05/26/2017: 18:22:43
This thread got me thinking a little more critically about tone comparison between plastic vs Bluechip thumbpicks, so I made a quick comparison using the memo recorder on my phone. Granted, it's not too scientific..... One of the picks is a Large JD Crowe Bluechip, the other a Large plastic National. Both picks are not modified in any way. Let me know what you think which is which.
Edited by - flatthead on 05/26/2017 18:27:49
Mooooo - Posted - 05/26/2017: 19:00:17
They both sound good, can't hear a difference
Cornflake - Posted - 05/26/2017: 20:27:46
Number 2 clown puke.
banjoez - Posted - 05/26/2017: 20:43:02
#1 National
#2 Blue Chip
Cornflake - Posted - 05/26/2017: 21:28:37
sorry, I should have said National.
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