Welcome To Steel Guitar France

Hi Crowbear,

Thanks for your comment.
Yes, I play without any picks.
When I started to play Pedal Steel in the 70-ties, I also played classical guitar.
I could not get used to these finger picks at all and muting with the palm of the hand
as it is described in the PSG lessons available.
It was easier to mute strings the classical guitar way.
Just put the fingertips back on the string. This was quicker and easier
But the main reason was to have contact with the strings.
Feeling the strings directly, instead of having the picks extending the length.
It just was not handy for me to combine both methods.
So I stuck with the pickless method, which in the end allows you more flexability.
I use 3 fingers plus the thumb.
However, there's one disadvantage. You have to keep the nails long enough and if
you get older they become brittle so you have to reinforce them.
I put a bit of superglue on them and in case one tears, I need to repair and glue
a tiny piece of e.g. cloth on it.
And with the nails long enough for steel, you cannot play bass with the fingers
because the nails are producing a click instead of getting a fat tone.
I have been a bass player for several years and had to keep the nails short, so
I did not play steel very often.

Best regards and kick on peeping

Ellio