I use my fingers and finger nails (when I have them) mainly because I like the sound better. When playing the 5 string banjo melodic or blue grass style I use Ernie Ball picky or pickey finger picks. These picks do not look like they would work very well because they come to sort of a point where the string touches the string. The advantage is that they let you feel the sting if you have them adjusted properly. They are sort of a combination of part finger and part fingerpick.Cap't Bob