I Finally Sanded My Picks: How Much More Do They Need

[PipeSmoker]

Today I finally had the time to sand my SouthOrd picks. I only had 400 grit wet/dry paper on hand so that's as far as I went. Sanded them dry then with a little oil and only the picks, not the handles.



I haven't tried them yet but I can feel a real difference. How far up in grit should I (or do I really need to) go? I don't think mirror polish is a must buy what do I know?

[femurat]

The important part to sand is the edge, specially on the tip. The sides are good. Check if you can feel any burrs with your fingernails on the pick edge. If your nail slides smoothly and can feel no bumps, you're done.
I usually start with 400 or 500 grit and then use 600 and then 1000. Then I polish it. You don't need to polish it. I just like it that way. I want to be 100% sure I'm not getting false feedback.

Cheers

[Ian_425]

You see a lot of mirror finish picks, which are great on the eyes, but like the previous poster said the important part is sanding sharp edges down. Usually one side of the pick is more sharp than the other since picks are usually punched out of a sheet of metal, leaving rough edges. Sand those edges and round so that they don't hang up in the warding. I usually sand with 400 and then 800 for functionality, if I am going to mirror finish (just because I like to look at it), on the sides I go 400, 800, 1000, 1500, 2000, and finish with 2500. That being said, the mirror finish is not important for function, it just looks good.