New guitar pick idea
That’s gorgous.Sadly, I would constantly be catching the cheek fur on the other strings!
I’m sure there are better pickers than me though ![]()
Looks great
It looks super cool, but I can definitely see the little parts on the side getting caught in the strings and breaking off. Or just breaking. Acrylic isn’t my friend when it’s comes to cracking.
I’m wondering if it would be possible to maybe take a couple pieces of veneer and wedge a really thin piece of transparent PET plastic or something in between to give it the thinness and durability found in guitar picks? Then you can do the tiger idea in an engrave, but have the PET in the middle be smooth so that nothing gets caught. I think they sell thin sheets of PET in different colors, too.
Your original would make a really cool pendant, too.
I can see his stripes,
So I know he’s clean.
That looks great! I don’t play the guitar so not aware of the catching on the strings ![]()
The strings shouldn’t be an issue if you practice consistently. You can use ear areas as well to strum
Normally you don’t play with the whole pick exposed, just the tip you’re playing with. As far as durability, I drop and play with the edges and adjusted my setting so they don’t easily break off but more durable materials is always an option
I don’t play guitar
my kids do, so I only know what their picks look like and how thin they are. I was thinking about making them custom picks before, but my thin acrylic is so breakable and like twice the thickness. ![]()
guitar picks aren’t really acrylic, generally. i mean, you can use anything, depending on whether you like a hard pick or not. for a while i was playing with the random little plastic tool for prying the grill cover off of my spark amp, cuz it had a nice indentation in it that kept me from losing it (especially over the summer when we were busking outside and it was hot and humid and my hands were sweating) and it was pick shaped. but i generally prefer a pick with a little more “give” to it than something that hard. like a 0.70 mm. especially when i’m playing acoustic.
You can go with a thicker material. Thicker picks offer more control, volume, and a full-bodied sound with an articulate attack, making them good for aggressive playing and lead guitar. Conversely, thinner picks provide more flexibility for strumming, a brighter, softer tone, and are often preferred for classical music and nylon-string guitars.
While this is more a “show piece” for gifts, it is functional. If you prefer a more flexible material that’s safe to laser, that’s always a better option. Keyword: Safe. I could use it as is, make a mold or make a stamp. Acrylic picks are used but as stated above, the material can be adjusted for desired sound and durability. I had to play with the cut lines to make the edges more durable. There is some give and flexibility. It’s actually a lot tougher than it’s looks. I literally tried to break it and it took deliberate force before I started to worry but it still didn’t break
Interesting, had not thought of grips on a pick, but makes total sense when you said it. For DIY I imagine small drops of hot glue could do that perfectly (or if you are very adventorous make tiny molds of two halves of a sphere drill a hole in the pick (small) and pour silicone through the hole to fill the cup then when that has cured flip it and put the other side on (since silicone bonds isotropically to same silicone - do not mix catalyst types or you get goo). You could make a pretty sweet grip that way (if you are industrial you could do something similar with injection molding TPE or TPU through the pick)
So how thick is thick? Is that Medium Acrylic size? or something thinner. I don’t play guitar, but the picks I have seen generally seem much thinner than 1/8 or maybe even 1/16.
None of the picks I have within reach are thicker than 1mm.. most are closer to 1/2 - so, 1/32” or less..
I know I’ve had thicker ones in the past. Specifically some I remember that were textured for grip, but the tip itself was super-thin. I loved those for very “delicate” pieces - like “more than words” by extreme, one of my favorites.. I think those picks were “eddie ball” branded, and I had grabbed a few from a guitar shop in Birmingham, England, when I was in college there around 1990..
The Washburn my daughter now has came from that store. I also had an Ibenez, but I sold or gave that to my best friend in college when I moved over here to the US. He then moved to AUS, I don’t think he kept it..
Great idea an d even better design. Love the tiger!
This one is a 1/4” inch so it would have to be for a special gift or for people who specifically need a thicker pick for certain sounds. From my research I don’t see any direct negative to using thick guitar picks besides preference and desired sound
have one made of 1/8 purpleheart since I named my guitar Purpleheart…I haven’t used it though, definitely worried it’ll crack the first time
it probably will break. and that’s mostly because of the grain direction (plus thinner hardwood is not as stable). if you play guitar with the grain running horizontally instead of vertically, you’re putting more stress on the grain lines.



