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Reinventing the wheel... and making it worse! *warning* plectrum content for the easily offended


warwickhunt
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About 15 years ago, my mother got in contact with a long-lost cousin who had emigrated to Canada as a kid. He eventually visited us in Scotland, and brought over a huge box of 'Ridley 3-way picks', that his son had invented and got a patent for. Basically, two plectrums together at slightly different angles. It could sound quite nice on acoustic or jangly electric, though didn't really work for bass.

I don't think they ever really took off, but this post did remind me of them a little!
image.png.f96be1f6bd54c6c9700ad7f310154c48.png

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I could see the value in it if the idea is to thicken the grip part - I find it much more comfortable to play with thicker picks (use ~3mm felt picks for older stuff, 3mm stubby triangles on guitar, but like a thin pick for more aggressive picked bass, but I find using a 0.76mm pick less comfortable - more force required).

 

Slightly less convinced by the flexible nature though. Is it trying to act like a flexible/thin plectrum, but with rigid/more durable material?

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18 minutes ago, warwickhunt said:

image.png.856faaddca825b875f026f6e7b05d87c.pngGoing off the image, I'd say it actually 'moves', rather than flexes!

Sorry, that's what I meant by flexible. Total vocabulary failure to use the same word to describe two different things in the same sentence... I'm assuming the 'tongue' as they've termed it is rigid and moves about a pivot, rather than flexing like a traditional thin-ish pick, and is there to account for that action?

 

If it flexes and moves, it's going to feel really inprecise I reckon.

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2 hours ago, geoham said:

About 15 years ago, my mother got in contact with a long-lost cousin who had emigrated to Canada as a kid. He eventually visited us in Scotland, and brought over a huge box of 'Ridley 3-way picks', that his son had invented and got a patent for. Basically, two plectrums together at slightly different angles. It could sound quite nice on acoustic or jangly electric, though didn't really work for bass.

I don't think they ever really took off, but this post did remind me of them a little!
image.png.f96be1f6bd54c6c9700ad7f310154c48.png

 

I had one that was like two picks spaced part by about 1/8", it did give 12-string like attack, but not the shimmer afterwards. Not something I used much.

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For the last few weeks my FB feed has continuously features a guitar pick with kind of triangular/pyramid shape lumps on the surface (surface which strokes the string, not the gripping surface)

This thread comes up so I pop over to FB to find it and post here. Is it in my feed? No. What are the odds eh 😃!

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11 hours ago, musicbassman said:

This makes about as much sense as keyless ignition in cars - i.e. a solution looking for a non-existent problem.

 

My next invention, to solve the problem of where to put the fob so it doesn't rattle and slide around, is to fit it with a little metal blade and fit a receptacle to the side of the steering column to slot the blade into, leaving the fob hanging in a convenient, easy to hand location. 

 

Oh yeah, and the plectrum is stupid...

 

...and yes, I am a miserable bugger tonight 😁

Edited by Maude
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While I've got my inventors hat on. 

Couldn't the bridge be mounted on lateral roller bearings to provide an inbuilt 'slop' to negate the need for this plectrum? 

If that's too technical then maybe just drill a hole in your plectrum and tie a little string loop through it. Then holding the string, just swing the plectrum at the strings.

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