A quirky project has landed on crowdfunding platform Indiegogo that may appeal to aggressive guitar players who constantly see their picks fly off into the crowd. Coming from Acorn Amplifiers out of Atlanta, GA, it's a stompbox that dispenses a new pick at the push of a footswitch.
The small team at Acorn currently has a bunch of stomps for sale (including pre-amps and fuzz boxes) as well as tube amp heads, cabinets and combos. The idea for the Pick Pedal project spawned from some players using old mint tins on their pedalboards to stow away their picks.
As an inside joke, the gang decided to fashion a box that feeds a new pick through a slot up top every time the footswitch is pushed down.
"There is a plastic cartridge inside the enclosure that acts as pick storage and the motor mount," the team told us. "A spring load feed mechanism forces the pick stack forward so a cam on the motor can engage the next pick inline and deliver it to the user when the footswitch is pressed."
A video showing the prototype in action was shared to the shop's social media, and absolutely popped – attracting hundreds of thousands of views, along with requests to make and sell them.
Interestingly, the new pick pops up in the slot back end up (rather than the pointy end). The Pedal Pick is powered by the pedalboard supply (9 V, tip negative) and loading picks is expected to be a simple case of lifting off the cover and filling the cartridge inside. Only "standard" pick sizes are supported at the moment but there may be scope to include less common picks down the line.
Production versions will also need to be made more robust for potential life on the road, and the current branding on the box (from a well-known mint tin) will likely have to go and be replaced with perhaps something specific to Acorn.
The Pick Pedal project is now funding on Indiegogo, where perks start at US$60. The usual crowdfunding cautions apply, but if all goes to plan, Acorn is hoping to start shipping to backers from December. The video below has more.
Source: Acorn Amplifiers
