Just ordered my first set of picks!

[Drussell0104]

I just got my first set of picks ordered from peterson. So im excited and had to post about it figured id post a list and see what yall thought.

Hooks-1-5
Rakes- bogie 1-2
diamond
Hooked diamond
triple rake (only 1.50)
Peterson Reach( only 1.75)
2-.030 tension wrench
2- .025 wrenches
pry bar no serrations
bosnian bill .25 wrenches

seems to me like i should be covered just starting out. Now just gotta wait till they get here

[mastersmith]

It looks like you made an informed order. I didn't see a case. You may want to protect them a little. Check outthe "Home Brew" section here for case ideas. If you would like a very small case (3 picks and a couple of wrenches) drop me a PM with your mailing address, I'll send you one. Enjoy your new toys!

[Scrince]

Looks like someone got on the PETERSON specials page and ordered overstocked picks.....

You will have a fun time with these, even though the quality of peterson picks is lacking these days you made a good purchase.

Make sure you get some sort of case / protection for your picks.

[Drussell0104]

Looks like someone got on the PETERSON specials page and ordered overstocked picks.....

You will have a fun time with these, even though the quality of peterson picks is lacking these days you made a good purchase.

Make sure you get some sort of case / protection for your picks.

Yea on a couple I did ! The rest nope but I do plan on getting a case.

[Papa Gleb]

Great selection of picks. Although as said above Petersons quality isnt as it was years ago , they are still superior picks with a great feeling handle which gives excellent feedback. So dont let our quality talk cause you negative thoughts on your order and to prove that I myself placed 2 orders at Peterson this month.

Peterson's trifold is an excellent case but doesnt really hold anything but picks. I know becuase I have one. I am actually going to get a Sparrows big case instead. For my EDC I have a sparrows double flip which holds 6 Peterson, 1 sparrows, 1 homebrew and 10 tension tools with space for more.

[farmall]

Nice selection of picks. Be sure to polish them. lots of youtube videos on the topic

[Papa Gleb]

Farmall is right. Peterson picks just like any other will need some hand finishing to smooth things out but actually mirror polishing is up to you. Remember the more you sandpaper them, the more material you take off and can go from .025 to .020 without even noticing. May not be a big deal but what if you have .015 which can much easier and faster go to .05-10 and then it becomes unreliable. What thicknesses did you get those picks in?

[Drussell0104]

Farmall is right. Peterson picks just like any other will need some hand finishing to smooth things out but actually mirror polishing is up to you. Remember the more you sandpaper them, the more material you take off and can go from .025 to .020 without even noticing. May not be a big deal but what if you have .015 which can much easier and faster go to .05-10 and then it becomes unreliable. What thicknesses did you get those picks in?

All of them are plastic handle .25 carbon steel except for the bogies they are gov steel. Oh and I'm def gonna polish them I gotten pretty good with cleaning and shaping metal over the years. I'll even mic it just to make sure it's on the up and up

[Random]

Nice lineup, This wont be your last order thats for sure. I got smart after breaking a couple short hooks and worm rake, I now order 5 at a time. I am kinda ruff in my picks.

[zarathustra]

Farmall is right. Peterson picks just like any other will need some hand finishing to smooth things out but actually mirror polishing is up to you. Remember the more you sandpaper them, the more material you take off and can go from .025 to .020 without even noticing. May not be a big deal but what if you have .015 which can much easier and faster go to .05-10 and then it becomes unreliable. What thicknesses did you get those picks in?

Is there a good rule of thumb to avoid this? I have just started polishing my Sparrows set (0.025") with 600, 800, 1200 and 1500 sandpaper. I just use the sand paper in a book and spend around 1 minute on each side for each grit, and one minute along each edge.. I hope I'm not taking off too much material. I'm pretty much just following kokomolock's video tutorial on polishing.

My set does contain a 0.015" hook, and I'll be very careful with that one.

[aeporia]

Farmall is right. Peterson picks just like any other will need some hand finishing to smooth things out but actually mirror polishing is up to you. Remember the more you sandpaper them, the more material you take off and can go from .025 to .020 without even noticing. May not be a big deal but what if you have .015 which can much easier and faster go to .05-10 and then it becomes unreliable. What thicknesses did you get those picks in?

Is there a good rule of thumb to avoid this? I have just started polishing my Sparrows set (0.025") with 600, 800, 1200 and 1500 sandpaper. I just use the sand paper in a book and spend around 1 minute on each side for each grit, and one minute along each edge.. I hope I'm not taking off too much material. I'm pretty much just following kokomolock's video tutorial on polishing.

My set does contain a 0.015" hook, and I'll be very careful with that one.

I work the edges (as opposed to the main flat edge), through folded sandpaper in my hands. For rounded angles (e.g. the curves in a bogie) I wrap the sandpaper around a fine paintbrush’s stem and then work that across the curve at multiple angles.

However, if I intend take a fair bit off the main flat edge — that is, I actually wish to purposely thin the pick — I tend to do the flat side(s) first, because you end up doing the edges twice otherwise (taking a fair bit off along the flat edge will sharpen the edges again; if you rounded these first you’ll find yourself doing them again).

Protip: as many have pointed out, do the flat edges using grit paper folded in a book, for two reasons:

1. Lower likelihood of slippage and stabbings, worst of which can result in a particularly nasty stabbing + broken pick. -_-

2. Holding sandpaper pinched between your hands will not give you an even spread of sanding — you will take off more material in some areas along the flat edge than in others (viz., pinching the material between thumb, pointing and middle-fingers).

Respect the ability of the lower-grit ranges to take a lot off fairly quickly, especially when put into a book — unless you’re thinning with a purpose, don’t stay in the 400-800 ranges for too long — it should only take 10 or so strokes back and forth if you’re stepping from 400–1.5k in 200-or-so-grit increments. Other than that, experiment!

I mourn for all sanding-induced stabbings this thread my lead to. *massages hands* (:

[zarathustra]

Excellent, thank you!

I thought I was on the right track, but was a little worried about wearing away too much, and I don't have a good set of digital vernier calipers to check. I'll be a little more cautious in the 600 - 800 range and save the more thorough polishing for 1200+ grits.

[aeporia]

Excellent, thank you!

I thought I was on the right track, but was a little worried about wearing away too much, and I don't have a good set of digital vernier calipers to check. I'll be a little more cautious in the 600 - 800 range and save the more thorough polishing for 1200+ grits.

I also just remembered another technique for smoothing out the edges: clamp the pick in a vice, grab a thin strip of sandpaper (e.g. 2cm by 15cm) and run it back and forth belt-style across the edges (holding the tips of the strip, see-sawing (for lack of better wording?) back and forth).

Also check out BB’s video on finishing picks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SQhJ6bBHOk

Re. calipers: I’ve never checked my pick thicknesses when sanding, but definitely noticed a few thickness discrepancies in some of my homebrew picks before I began using a book for the flat edges.