This is very interesting. I try to carry an emory board with me and keep my nails filed smoothly whenever they fray or chip (always from the middle out)and try to keep a fresh coat of clear polish on them. This seems to do the trick for me and I play a lot of downstrokes with the back of my nails on steel strings. After a long abstinence, I've gone back to playing with a thumbpick occasionally. I still have some Nationals that I use but I wonder if they've become obsolete. The music stores around here don't carry anything that's large enough for me so I'll have to send away for something. Any suggestions about who makes a good thumbpick these days. Thanks, Tim

PS Hope I'm not straying to far from from the subject and wonder if I should start a new conversation re thumbpicks.