Cheap Easy Guitar Pick!

I'm always losing my guitar picks. This caused me to think about all the things I can make a guitar pick out of, I thought this one up when trying to find materials to make a metal guitar pick.

Please, take your time when cutting the pick out, this will yield better results and will afford much safer conduct.

Enjoy!

Step 1: Preperation

Here's what you're going to need:

• A Dremel Tool (a belt grinder will also work)
  • Dremel cut-off wheels & Sanding disks
• Pliers
• A coin
• Safety Glasses

Before you start, you're going to want to mark the coin, so you know what to cut off. You can do this by placing a regular guitar pick over it, and coloring in the edges.

Step 2: Cutting

FIRST! Put on your safety glasses, I experienced many pieces of flying metal when cutting out the coin. So, unless you would like small copper bits as a permanent part of your eye, wear safety glasses!

All you need to do is cut around the black, then clean up the edges with the flat edge of the cutting disk.

Step 3: Finshing

After you have all of the black cut off, use the sanding disk to clear off all the sharp edges.

Congratulation, If you put in the time and effort, you should have a nice new guitar pick to test out! This could also make an excellent pendent for a necklace or bracelet. Or a great gift for other guitarists!

Comments

[Doug Gault]

I can dig it. I've been making these picks for year's. The sound is awesome, and yes they can and will damage you're strings. However with a soft picking style your going to be able to minimize the damage to the strings, pickgaurd and guitars body and finish. I like to thin the tip for a greater playability with these modified coins. The old Chinese coins are punched and improves my grip and are better metallurgically. The blue's tones are fantastic

[RafaelM]

Hello , I'm from Brazil . I'm using our coins of 5 cents and are great. You use a pick holder for your coins ?

[redbadger95]

drill a hole in it, put it on a string it would make a great gift or charm

[kathy.temple.75]

I want to make sure everyone understands exactly what the law says...

It is illegal to deface American currency!

[F1yingJ]

Just wanted to let you know, the feds haven't come yet.

[Taranach]

You really need to stop this... It is NOT illegal to deface or destroy a coin or bill if you are not trying to pass it off as currency anymore... I have worked at the mint and you really need to stop quoting things you do NOT know.

[tandykins]

If you want to make sure everyone understands exactly what the law says - perhaps you could actually state exactly what the law says instead of spouting something incorrect.

Section 331 of Title 18 of the United States code provides criminal penalties for anyone who 'fraudulently alters, defaces, mutilates impairs, diminishes, falsifies, scales, or lightens any of the coins coined at the Mints of the United States. This statute means that you may be violating the law if you change the appearance of the coin and fraudulently represent it to be other than the altered coin that it is. As a matter of policy, the U.S. Mint does not promote coloring, plating or altering U.S. coinage: however, there are no sanctions against such activity absent fraudulent intent. (Source U.S. Mint)

Repurposing coins as other items is, in no way, against the law in the United States unless you are attempting to pass it off (or spend it) as an unaltered coin.

THAT is exactly what the law says.

Unfortunately, in Australia (where I live) even possessing a defaced coin is illegal.

[MatthewS465]

Is it illegal in Australia to own defaced currency from other countries?

[kathy.temple.75]

So everyone understands? Right? Defacing is illegal - if you're doing it fraudulently!!! Ok, you sure as heck can't make a dime look like a quarter, or a nickel either. Why in the world would you want to make a quarter look like a dime?!

Sorry, I meant this to be two posts together, it told me there was an error & it didn't post...

[dropkick]

The laws were put in place back when the U.S. was still on the gold standard and many coins were made of silver or gold (they're all nickel now - even the pennies). The government at that time controlled the price of these metals and the face value of the coins was the same as it's precious metal value by weight. Some people would shave or otherwise alter the coins in order to get the silver or gold and still use the coin at it's face value.

The laws aren't very relevant any longer.

[gattler]

That's what I call a good answer!!!

[gattler]

That's what I call a good answer!!!

[kathy.temple.75]

Wow! Things can really go wrong when only one of your posts goes in! My second one was that only when you're doing it fraudulently. Then went on wondering why anyone would want to turn a quarter into a dime, that's the only coins in the US that might work. I thought people were really going off the deep end with this one.... Trying to add humor but I dropped the gun & got shot in the foot. Please no comments about guns now!

[thundrepance]

wow! most of us don't even know the laws where we live .... you know laws where you live & around the world!! (`8^D ~ very impressive!

[reslinger]

10 points for Gryffindor!

[lbrewer42]

Makes a lot of cents.

[Jch4d]

lel

[crashzoom]

Looks very cool. When I made a quarter coin it was red inside, how did you prevent it?

[StevenH3]

Use an older coin. Modern quarters are copper and nickel, it's red inside because it's full of copper. Get a pre-1964 coin, they're 90% silver, it'll look nicer and probably be easier on your strings. If you're worried about wasting the scrap pieces of silver you cut off, technically you can recycle those, but it's really only a couple cents worth of silver at most so it's not worth refining unless you have a lot more scrap silver to throw in with it.

[erfinder]

You say this will damage strings on a regular guitar. Do you believe a bass guitar's strings could handle it?