Knoob
Guitar Pick Holder
We’ve all been there. You’re about to rip into your latest single. The excitement is palpable. The roar of the crowd reaches deafening heights… But you snapped your pick shredding that last solo. The guitar techs forgot to tape spares on the mic stand again!? You throw a desperate look to your bass player but all you get back is a shrug, so you start to sweat even more—if that’s even possible…
No? Well, even a casual guitarist can relate to the constant struggle of fishing for picks in a bowl full of paperclips and decades old pennies or hunting under all the loose papers on your desk for a stray. Inventor Randy Britt had a better idea and he turned to SPARK to make it happen.
“Thanks to SPARK, the Knoob is amazingly designed and there is zero failure in the ones I've sold... Bruce and the guys got the tolerances, spring tension, etc. just right and the manufacturing sourcing was spot-on.”
— Randy Britt
(Owner and Inventor, Knoob)
EASY TO UNDERSTAND, EASY TO USE
The idea was simple, but sometimes the best ideas are—Randy wanted a holder for spare picks which could be attached to and hidden by your guitar strap so they’re always accessible but never visible. The challenge came in the specific execution of that idea. The devil is in the details, but luckily that’s where SPARK shines.
The goal was to allow for up to seven picks to be loaded into the Knoob for safe storage and easy retrieval. Picks can easily be removed one at a time and a spring-loaded platform raises the stack to present a new pick every time one is withdrawn.
““The Knoob is a great product... No more hunching over to look for a pick on an amp or on a desk, clutching the guitar neck in one hand and fumbling around with the other. Like most people who play guitar, I have a lot of picks, and only a few of them I like to use regularly. Having them close at hand means I’m not swirling my fingers around in a dish full of picks to find the one I’m looking for.””
THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAILS
Early exploration revolved around fine tuning the shape and selecting a spring which had just the right feel. The opening needed to be large enough to easily slip out a pick with your thumb without blindly fumbling around, but not so exposed where they could fall out accidentally when you turn it up to 11. The platform shape and its positioning relative to the opening also needed to be dialed in carefully to avoid pinching picks, catching them on the lip, or allowing accidental “double feeds” to occur.
SPARK then dug through piles of springs to find the perfect one—one that felt nice to slip a pick off, but still securely held the remaining stack in place with just the right tension to only release a single pick. It also needed to be wide enough to fully support the platform and evenly raise the pile so you never miss a beat grabbing a new pick.
A step above
While some competing products did exist, they all used adhesive backing to “glue” the holder to the body of your guitar. But what guitar-lover would purposefully sully their axe with such an eyesore? Randy’s idea was to attach to the inside of the strap, keeping your picks out of sight, but still within reach. This also makes it easier to transfer the Knoob between guitars with no sticky residue left behind.
The problem is that guitar straps are all different. SPARK tried everything from pins to plastic clips, to magnets and formed metal brackets. What worked well on a fabric strap would hold to thicker leather with an irreversible death grip. Ultimately we settled on a semi-permanent screw attachment which users can position anywhere they would like on whatever strap they prefer—a true universal fit that is secure and still easy to install with no damage to your guitar.
Making It Real
SPARK created a fully tool-ready design which Randy was able to hand-off directly to his manufacturer. He was happy to report that everything came just as expected, making the transition to mass production as headache-free as possible. Randy has secured a patent for the Knoob, and the product can be found on his website at getknoob.com
