BlueChip guitar picks create a seamless relationship between you and your instrument.
Instead of forcing you to fiddle with your playing style to adapt to different thicknesses and designs, this essential item has the goal of getting out of your way.
When you’re using a BlueChip pick, you don’t need to worry about poor tone, slippage, or wear.
If you’re used to using Fender or Gibson products only, you’ll want to consider giving BlueChip picks a try today. They work well for mandolins, banjos, and acoustic guitars.
You’ll find them to be durable and easy to hold. The tone your guitar or stringed instrument produces is incredible!
Bluechip Picks – Everything You Need to Know
BlueChip Picks use a patented composite material with a proprietary formulation to improve your playing experience on stringed instruments. It can withstand high temperatures, resist the regular wear and tear of other picks, and uses a lubricant to make it fast off the strum.
Although some reviewers have mentioned that they think BlueChip Picks products are indestructible, that isn’t the case.
The materials are quite durable with their proprietary design, staying a consistent shape around high humidity and temperature environments.
You’ll notice excellent flexibility with these picks, allowing them to function like the thinner models from other brands.
You don’t need to polish them with lubrication products, and flaking is never an issue with them.
That’s why these picks show very little wear after several months of using them.
You cannot bend BlueChip picks overtly without having them break. When you have normal use conditions, they’ll stay intact without question.
Even if you forget one on your dashboard on a hot day, it won’t deform in the sunshine.
I’ve even had BlueChip picks make it through my pockets while doing the laundry. It can handle the heat of your dryer without deformation.
About BlueChip Picks
BlueChip Picks is an American small business operating in Knoxville, TN.
The product comes from the results of a five-person crew that loved stringed instruments and wanted to create the best item possible.
The organization says that their most common question involves the color of their picks. Since the company name is BlueChip Picks, customers expect that items to have the same hue.
When the BlueChip Picks order arrives, you’ll discover that they are brown.
Each pick gets finished with an industrial-grade CNC machine to ensure players receive consistent items with each order.
They used exceptionally close tolerances that let them keep one of the highest standards in the industry today.
What Options Do I Have with BlueChip Picks?
If you want to try BlueChip picks with your guitar, banjo, mandolin, or another stringed instrument, the company offers three different solutions: finger, thumb, or flat picks.
It is the flat picks that get made with the proprietary materials that develop lubrication to give you flat action over the strings.
You’ll find dozens of different models available in each category to consider. Some products even qualify for engraving if you purchase picks directly from the manufacturer.
Here are some of the highlights to consider when reviewing the inventory from BlueChip.
| BlueChip Flat Picks: | ● If you select on the flat picks from BlueChip, you’ll be receiving a professionally machined product. ● Each one is hand-beveled to create the perfect shape. ● Should you want to engrave on it, the company uses a laser-etching process. ● Some guitarists like to drill holes in their picks to keep them lighter. ● If you select the IBJ55, you won’t need to worry about taking that step because it comes with six pre-drilled holes. |
| BlueChip Thumb Picks: | ● The company produces a series of thumb picks that use custom stainless steel bands and a 50-size pick to use with stringed instruments. ● You’ll want to shop for your product based on size because these products are made to be comparable to the standard user experience from any other brand. ● That means you’ll want to find a large size option if that’s what you’re already using to try BlueChip thumb picks today. |
| BlueChip Finger Picks: | ● When you do fingerpicking on your guitar or stringed instrument, BlueChip delivers an excellent product with its 304 stainless steel picks. ● You can choose to purchase them separately or buy a pair that comes in a jewel box for extra protection. ● You’ll find the finished thickness at 0.175 inches provides a comfortable fit with a bright tone. ● Although the mellow sounds still ring true on your acoustic guitar, banjo, or mandolin, the attack lends some brightness and crispness to each note. |
What Are Blue Chip Picks Made Of?
Most picks get made from cheap plastic materials. That’s why the price point stays as low as it does.
When you purchase picks from brands like Gibson, Fender, and others, the average price is about $1 per item because the material cost is low.
BlueChip Picks use a material called Vespel to give musicians on stringed instruments. It comes from DuPont, and it’s a trademarked series of polyamide-based plastics.
Most of the applications for Vespel are in the semiconductor, aerospace, or transportation industries.
Unlike other plastics, it doesn’t produce outgassing when it gets hot, making it useful as a heat shield, in vacuum applications, or even in cryogenic situations.
The average musician won’t need those applications. What you can benefit from when investing in BlueChip Picks is a high-quality product that will probably last forever when you treat it right.
■ How Does BlueChip Picks Have a Patent?
BlueChip has a patent for its pick design based on the use of Vespel to create new user properties when using stringed instruments.
The Goins family filed the paperwork for their item in 2008, and the application was granted and published in July 2019.
The patent for using Vespel with the standard pick shapes you can find online expires in 2037.
It covers the flat, finger, and thumb picks made from DuPont’s material.
What Is the Cost of a BlueChip Pick?
The fingerpicks manufactured by BlueChip retail for $17.50 each. You have two buying options for this product as they’re sold individually or in pairs.
You’ll find several style options to consider with the thumb picks from BlueChip. All of them retail for $40, and you can select right-handed or left-handed models.
Each product goes through the same machining processes as the flat picks to ensure you receive a high-quality item.
BlueChip thumb picks are available in small, medium, or large sizes.
If you want a flat pick, you’ll find several different shape options available. Most of the BlueChip products in this category retail at $35.
If you choose the 80 or 80LG gauge models, the price rises to $50.
Players who want to use the 100s in their preferred category can expect to pay $75.
All prices are from 2022 figures. Please remember that these costs are based on purchasing one pick from BlueChip. That means you’ll pay $1,500 if you want 30 of the Jazz80 LG picks.
That’s why some beginners shy away from these professionally machined picks.
Although the tone and quality are excellent, the risk of losing something that might have cost close to the price of their instrument is somewhat intimidating.
Can I Use BlueChip Picks on an Electric Guitar?
Although BlueChip picks are marketed toward acoustic instruments, you can use them on an electric guitar.
You’ll want to try the lower gauges on your instrument first before stepping up to something bigger.
One of the most popular choices is the TD40 guitar pick. It’s one of the best-selling options that BlueChip makes because it delivers the standard teardrop shape while offering the increased durability.
You’ll get one sharper playing corner that feels similar to what you’d get with a plastic version.
The size of the TD-40 is approximately the same as a standard U.S. quarter.
If you select the BlueChip TD-40 pick, you have three different bevel selections to consider.
The company can produce it for the right hand, left hand, or as a round bevel. You can have it engraved for an extra $5, if you prefer.
You’ll find that the TD-40 works as well on your Strat or Tele as it does on a Yamaha acoustic guitar.
If you don’t like the teardrop shape, BlueChip offers the TP-40 for a more triangular shape.
It has slightly sharper corners than some of the other models, but it still comes with the beveling and machining benefits you’d get with other investments.
When your preference is for something rounded, the SR series from BlueChip delivers excellent results.
■ What about Other Pick Options from BlueChip?
For me, I love having the TAD60 pick for my electric guitars. I wouldn’t recommend that model for beginners, especially if you’re running 10s or 9s on your instrument.
It’ll blow through them fast if you haven’t learned how to control tone and sustain.
I’d also avoid something like the TAD60 if your role is the power chord strummer in your band.
I appreciated the TAD60 because it’s slightly larger than the popular teardrop-style TP series from BlueChip.
The shape is identical, but you’ll get over three centimeters of length to use for picking and strumming.
That extra size fits my hand better, making it easier to get the consistent notes I want while practicing.
Should I Buy a Pick from BlueChip?
If you’re the musician who always loses picks, this product’s cost might not make much sense.
You’d be more worried about losing an item priced at potentially $75 than the song, which could adversely impact your overall playing.
When you can buy 48 high-quality picks at a lower price at various gauges, it might make more sense to invest in that direction than with a single product.
At that cost, you don’t need to worry about losing them!
The one advantage that BlueChip offers is versatility. You can use one pick on all of your stringed instruments.
If you perform regularly, the BlueChip product delivers musical results that you won’t believe.
The speed and tone quality is beyond ridiculous, especially when you’re set up on an electric guitar with a world-class amplifier backing you.
I’d also recommend getting a pick box for your BlueChip products to avoid having them disappear.
It might not be for everyone, but I certainly appreciate the craftsmanship and quality of BlueChip Picks and their products. If anything, it’s certainly worth a closer look!