A very personal, incomplete history of Guitar Craft picks, from sacred Ebonite relics to custom experiments, urban legends, and a few things I probably should not have lost.
The one’s embossed “GuitarCraft” are early Iketani picks. I still have some myself. The yellow on that odd one is likely from the sulphur that is in ebonite—if I sand an ebonite pick to a thinner thickness, i get such a visual effect. (The amount of sulphur in ebonite can vary with manufacture)
I like ebonite a lot as well as galalith, though I’m still working to see if I can find a material that plays even better without sacrificing feel (e.g. ebonite transfers heat better than Delrin so an ebonite plectrum feels warmer in the fingers than a Delrin). There’s a lot to consider, but out of necessity I’ve got a ‘feel index’ that equally weights five different aspects (in subjective reality, some of these aspects may be more important than others), such as the time for ring-down (how long it takes the pick to stop vibrating after a stroke).
What GC picks are available currently? And where can you purchase? RF used tortoise shell picks until they became illegal to manufacture and own as did other players such as Ritchie Blackmore.
TS picks are essentially unobtainable these days, though the occasional vintage one still shows up now and then. There are, however, several companies producing picks made from modern materials that come surprisingly close, such as BlueChip, Manouche Picks, Red Bear, and others.
The catch is that none of them currently make picks in the Guitar Craft shape.
The good news is that a few people are actively working on producing new GC picks, and I'm quite confident that before long we'll see several alternatives emerging in different parts of the world from different makers. As I mention in the article, I think we're currently in that exciting phase where initiative, ingenuity, and sheer enthusiasm are beginning to create a new supply of excellent picks for the community.
In the meantime, Herdim picks can still be found on eBay:
Personally, I don't think $55 for five picks is unreasonable—unless, of course, you're planning to throw them into screaming crowds the way guitar heroes do!
You've actually given me an idea for a future article: some suggestions on what to use while we're waiting for the new generation of GC picks to arrive.
I have an idea that I’ve been entertaining. Was trying at one point to find a lab that was growing it for veterinarians to repair tortoise shell damage on endangered species. Nobody is doing it last I checked. Labs are growing cartilage and various proteins for a while. Why not grow tortoise shell? In sheets. Most issues seem to be the cost of production. keratins.
Well, I don’t know how much it would cost, but some modern materials come surprisingly close — casein, for example, also known as galalith or “milk stone.”
It would probably be much cheaper and faster to ask one of those makers to produce a GC-style model, as I did with Red Bear many years ago.
When Ebonite is exposed to sunlight or UV light for extended periods, the sulfur will migrate to the surface, which may be what happened to the early GC pick above.
Hi Fabio, I loved the story behind Guitar Craft picks, I have one myself that I treasure. Coincidentally, today I found these Rombo triangular picks online. Have you tried them?
The one’s embossed “GuitarCraft” are early Iketani picks. I still have some myself. The yellow on that odd one is likely from the sulphur that is in ebonite—if I sand an ebonite pick to a thinner thickness, i get such a visual effect. (The amount of sulphur in ebonite can vary with manufacture)
I like ebonite a lot as well as galalith, though I’m still working to see if I can find a material that plays even better without sacrificing feel (e.g. ebonite transfers heat better than Delrin so an ebonite plectrum feels warmer in the fingers than a Delrin). There’s a lot to consider, but out of necessity I’ve got a ‘feel index’ that equally weights five different aspects (in subjective reality, some of these aspects may be more important than others), such as the time for ring-down (how long it takes the pick to stop vibrating after a stroke).
Very interesting!
Keep us posted!
Thank you! I found one in Colombia, I'm trying to figure out how to get it shipped to Ecuador 🙃
What GC picks are available currently? And where can you purchase? RF used tortoise shell picks until they became illegal to manufacture and own as did other players such as Ritchie Blackmore.
Thank You!
Hello David,
TS picks are essentially unobtainable these days, though the occasional vintage one still shows up now and then. There are, however, several companies producing picks made from modern materials that come surprisingly close, such as BlueChip, Manouche Picks, Red Bear, and others.
The catch is that none of them currently make picks in the Guitar Craft shape.
The good news is that a few people are actively working on producing new GC picks, and I'm quite confident that before long we'll see several alternatives emerging in different parts of the world from different makers. As I mention in the article, I think we're currently in that exciting phase where initiative, ingenuity, and sheer enthusiasm are beginning to create a new supply of excellent picks for the community.
In the meantime, Herdim picks can still be found on eBay:
https://tinyurl.com/GCPICK
Personally, I don't think $55 for five picks is unreasonable—unless, of course, you're planning to throw them into screaming crowds the way guitar heroes do!
You've actually given me an idea for a future article: some suggestions on what to use while we're waiting for the new generation of GC picks to arrive.
I have an idea that I’ve been entertaining. Was trying at one point to find a lab that was growing it for veterinarians to repair tortoise shell damage on endangered species. Nobody is doing it last I checked. Labs are growing cartilage and various proteins for a while. Why not grow tortoise shell? In sheets. Most issues seem to be the cost of production. keratins.
Well, I don’t know how much it would cost, but some modern materials come surprisingly close — casein, for example, also known as galalith or “milk stone.”
It would probably be much cheaper and faster to ask one of those makers to produce a GC-style model, as I did with Red Bear many years ago.
When Ebonite is exposed to sunlight or UV light for extended periods, the sulfur will migrate to the surface, which may be what happened to the early GC pick above.
Hi Fabio, I loved the story behind Guitar Craft picks, I have one myself that I treasure. Coincidentally, today I found these Rombo triangular picks online. Have you tried them?
https://rombopicks.com/products/rombo-guitar-pick-set-prisma-4-picks
Update: I bought one today!
It seems really good!
I need to get used to the different height levels in the center of the pick.
Not as precise as the Iketani, but a little bit more warm.
Maybe some Craftys could get in touch with thé brand and see if there's a chance to have a GC special edition ❤️🔥💎🎸
Hi! I am glad you enjoyed my article. More to come!
I never tried Rombo picks.