Sat Dec 12, 2015 8:59 am by Pat57
For those of you looking for alternatives to Peterson's:
Having tried many different brands I would have to say Southord Max are my favorite picks. They are VERY stiff and durable, and remarkably smooth. I ordered one a couple of years ago that arrived slightly curved, I wrote an email to their customer support and about 2 weeks later I had a brand new pick in my mail box. BUT... they are expensive!
I've tried many HPC picks and have never been impressed. They have a great design, great in its' simplicity. The problem however is that they are always very rough upon arrival, and I find they deform easily (compared to Southord Max).
Rytan, comfortable, simple handle... but again, rough and weak.
Sparrows. Very good value. Fairly smooth, and fairly stiff, all for a price much lower than Peterson's or Southord Max. As a plus, for me, they are a Canadian company, which makes them an even better value since I don't have to pay as much for shipping, and US currency is getting to be expensive.
Southord regular, again, a good value. I find them to be smooth enough on arrival, and stiffer than HPC or Rytan.
Peterson's are pretty good, but I don't find them to be as good a value as the rest. I find them better than the rest (EXCEPT Southord Max), however they are not worth the extra cost. The Southord Max ARE worth the extra cost, IMHO.
Homebrews, I've made a few awesome homebrews. Better than anything and everything on the market... but very time consuming. If you have some free time and enjoy building things, opt for homebrewing... my very best picks cost me around 1$ for my materials... they are incredibly smooth.. stainless steel.. and stiff!
I almost forgot: Cases. By far, Peterson's are the best! HPC, mediocre. Sparrows, decent. Southord, mediocre. Peterson's, awesome!