"I love your picks"

Tommy Emmanuel CGP

"Dave Skowron has done a great service to pickers everywhere. To find a pick that improves your tone and control and just makes you want to PLAY MORE . . . it's a beautiful thing! A lot of thought and care has gone into the design of these picks - I'd recommend them to players anywhere."

Tony McManus - Celtic Guitar Maestro

"This is the best pick I've ever tried, and I've tried them all!

Stuart Ryan, Winner of Guitarist Magazine's Acoustic Guitarist of the Year 2002

"I have not stopped using it since. That has been some weeks now and I see no wear whatsoever. They really snap the tone out of these taterbugs and best of all, they feel and sound nearly identical to the tortoise I began using again. I have ordered a dozen more. I am sold on the Tor-Tis material and can't wait to try out the rest when they arrive."

Mike Compton - Mandolin Master

"I got the speed-bevel models. I did "blunt" the points on them but the bevel is almost exactly like the way I wear picks naturally. I didn't find them to be any more thin and raspy sounding than a brand new TS pick.. I always have to blunt and bevel TS to achieve the tone I want. While it may take a while to modify a TS pick I was able to reshape and polish Dave's picks in a matter of minutes because the bevel was so close to begin with. After A-B-ing Dave's with some of my favorite TS picks I came to the conclusion that they sound just as good.

Jack Lawrence - Journeyman Guitarist and touring partner to Doc Watson

"I'm picky about my flatpicks. I like a certain tone and a certain feel and most recently, after a few years of Clayton Golds and Wegens, I returned to some old TS I had been saving. I was again hooked on that warm, full sound only real TS has. However, always curious, I tried a Coral Tortis tricornered (Style "C") with the speed bevel and found THAT SAME SOUND. I reshaped it a bit (as I do every pick) and cannot tell it from real TS. That is, except for the cool swirly coral color. Great product...and finally, a pick that actually IS like real TS. "

Roy Curry - 1980, 1991 National Flatpicking Champ, Walnut Valley Festival at Winfield Kansas

"I used to hold tortoise shell picks off the counter a few inches and drop them, and then do the same with any number of different kinds of picks. The TS picks have a distinctive sound when they bounce and nothing has the same sound. I tried that with the Tortis and I couldn't tell the difference between them and the TS. Then the real test came when I used them at the gig. The guys in the band thought I had gotten some of the best looking TS they had ever seen until I told them it wasn't TS! The Tortis picks have held up well and when you're in a more intimate setting than playing in the band you can really hear the subtle tones of this pick, in the same way as the real TS. It has a warmth like TS. That's what I like about it the most, the warmth in the tone. I think this Tortis pick is the answer to TS everyone's been searching for."

Allen Shadd - 1997 National Flatpicking Champion, Walnut Valley Festival at Winfield Kansas

"I got the picks in the mail today. I'm blown away. They are more that I could've expected. They've instantly replaced my old tortoise shell as my most prized pick. I would've never known the difference if someone had told me these were real tortoise shell. Except these are even better. The Medium and Heavy are my favorites. I've been picking bluegrass all afternoon. Very inspiring. You made my day. Anyhow, you can probably see that I'm very impressed. I'm doing a session in the morning. I'll be bragging on them. . ."

Mike Waldron - Guitar player for Lee Ann Womack and Nashville session player

"After 30 years of trying almost every guitar pick that came along, I finally found the pick that does everything I need. The Tortis Pick, manufactured by Red Bear Trading Company, produces a full, clear sound without any clicks or taps, glides smoothly across the strings, stays put in the hand, and wears like steel. Unless you lose it, the Tortis pick will provide a very long period of excellent performance."

Doc Shuey - The Shuey Brothers Bluegrass Band

"Dave, without a doubt your Tortis pick does everything better. I can't believe the tone and clarity I get from such a heavy pick. This material and its beveled edges is just plain fast. The pick is unbelieveable, and it makes me and my instruments sound better."

Rick Lampkins - The Lampkins Family Band
Champions of the 2003 National Bluegrass Playoffs at the 27th annual Huck Finn Jubilee

"Dave, Got my pick 2 days ago.. it's a gem. Once the word is out, everybody will want one. I don't know which is doing the job for me.. the material (which has just the right 'alive' firmness) or your XB edge technology (which really focuses the pick). You've done a great job. Love the old world coral celluloid look too. Now I'm wondering what the Django pick is like.. never satisfied are we."

Peter Rich, Australia

"Hi Dave, They are wonderful! The tri-corner brought my D-18 to life... it has never sounded so good. My SCGC D/PW benefited as well, though not quite as dramatically. My wife noticed the difference immediately, she thought I was trying new strings. My Larivee OM and L both sounded better too, but I use them primarilly for fingerstyle, so when are you going to make a thumbpick??? The mando pick made probably the biggest difference on my Mid-Mo mando. It isn't a particularly great instrument, I've acknowledged this, but I needed something decent to learn on, and now it sounds better. Too cool. The real surprise was the small (style A) pick on my electrics. With the exception of my Tele all of my electrics sounded better. I've tried probably every under-a-dollar pick out there, and I have my favorites, but they've all been pushed down a notch now. Wow! And in addition to sounding cool, they play better too. I find I can use a lot less energy, and both right hand speed and accuracy seem to improve. Who'd have thunkit that a pick could make such a difference? "

Bill Thompson

"Dave, Just got your pick yesterday. I am sure you are seeing a lot of thank-you emails with fancy descriptive terms of the sound of your picks. I don't really know what to say. This pick is amazing. First off, the clarity I get from my guitar is outstanding and has made playing rhythm so much crisper sounding. Secondly, this thing is improving my note accuracy. I am no longer tripping over fast passages that I have worked on for months. Thanks for this gift; it will be a well-cherished part of my playing for a long time to come".

Glenn Patterson - 2004 Dreadnoughts Unlimited Scholarship Recipient to Steve Kaufman's Flatpickin' Camp

"The Flatpick is critical in more ways than normally imagined: playability, tonal range, volume, dynamics, picking accuracy, speed, fullness of back-up, comping/chopping chords, instrument resonance, clarity, timbre, transient noise (the noise made by a pick that lays outside of tone emitted by the string), lows, highs, depth, richness, and many more subtleties that escape description. Considering the many balanced, and critical, elements that a flatpick upholds on both guitar and mandolin, why are most of us settling for a mass-produced commercial piece of flat plastic? Yes, I also have settled for the standard plastic flatpick for the last 25+ years...until I received my very first Tortis. It was a true awakening of both my ears and my mandolin. I now covet my Style C Thin (1mm)! It inspires me to play. I find myself gravitated to practicing more often. The Tortis brings out a fullness in all of my mandolins that I didn't know existed! My Breedlove Alpine, Rigel CT-110, Weber Big Sky Mandola & Octave and Gibson F-5L all seem to have an entirely new voice...one that rings with clarity and fullness...

Playability: I find that I have far more control...it's amazing how a pick can contribute to better control and accuracy. Tonal Range: There's more definition and the lows to highs seem to have a brilliance and clarity unattainable with plastic. Back-Up: Chords are full sounding without any transient noise such as clicking sounds. Speed: The Tortis is so comfortable, and because of the better control, I find that speed is easier to attain. Bluegrass Chop: On my mandolins, this pick brings out the most percussive chop I've heard to date. Inspiration: You'll find it with the Tortis!"

Mickey Cochran - Ruidoso, NM

"The sound and feel are right on the money; if this isn't some kind of shell or horn, I don't know what it is. And that's a good thing! The edge was okay as it was, and I haven't had to do anything to it except run it on my buffer to make sure it was smooth. I have about 3-4 hours' playing time on it, and the edge is still polished; very, very good! As it is, if you want to see what the fuss is about concerning shell picks, but you don't want to find and old TS box, or buy one in a back alley at a festival, give Dave a ring; these things are the real deal, as far as feel and tone go . . .it looks, feels and even has that characteristic smell when burnt of real TS."

Mario Proulx - Ontario, CN

"Picks really make a big difference in the tonal color of your instrument. I've had a favorite pick for about 4 years now, but since getting the Tor-Tis pick, it's the only one I use. It's amazing how much better it makes me sound!"

A few months later, Dude writes . . .

"I thought Dave hit a home run with the Tortis picks a few months ago, but his new speed bevel is even better. It really gives a great sound across the board, but particularly on the mid and low end of my mandolin. Now, I'll tell you, it's a good thing I make my living building instruments and not by playing them (my family might starve if I tried the latter), but even I can tell an improvement in my right hand technique with the speed bevel! Keep up the good work Dave, I'm a convert to Tortis!"

Lynn Dudenbostel - Knoxville, TN

"Having been fortunate to recently acquire the Dubenbostel #12 mandolin, I tried every pick I could get my hands on, including my old tortoise shell picks. I was amazed at how the Tortis pick brings out the wonderful harmonic overtones of this phenomenal instrument! My playing is instantly much cleaner, too. Please send me a dozen."

Paul Indman - Los Gatos, CA

"Dave, just wanted to let you know my tortis pick is all I could have hoped for . . . its what I've been looking for. I guess I'll make jewelry out of my ivory picks."

Frank E. - Moore, OK

"Right out of the box it's great. The shape's right and the tone is just what I've been looking for. After trying about 50 combinations of brands, thicknesses, and materials, I think I finally found "my" pick! Thanks!"

Dave C. - Las Vegas, NV

"Got the picks today and gave them a good workout at a jam tonight. They are great! Not sure if I could tell them from tortoise shell in a blind test - I have never felt that way about any other pick (and I think I have tried most if not all of them)."

Two months later Phil writes. . .

"I think at this point I like your picks better than tortoise shell. No chipping, little or no edge wear. They shape easily with a nail file and hold their edge. The sound is as good as any piece of TS I have used and totally consistent from pick to pick"

Phil C. - Palo Alto, CA

"These are definitely ready for prime time!"

Jerry D. - Andover, MA

"...they really make a difference with crispness and volume."

JD - Florence, Oregon

"I've been using the pick almost exclusively since mid-April and it is one fine pick."

John - Vernon, PA

"Got my Tortis pick yesterday in the mail! Thanks so very much. I really like the looks and feel of it, and the nice tone it brings out in my rosewood Martin...loud, bold, and a kind of "vintage" sound to it."

Jeff M. - Orlando, FL

"These new tor-tis picks are fabulous!!! I had borrowed one from Dan W. and have been using it with great results. Sounds better than my TS picks! The thicker new one you just sent is even better. ..Man, this makes my new H&D TDM sound like a cannon...!!! Who needs TS???"

Terry B. - Atlanta, GA

"I handed one of them to a friend here in Seattle that is a good jazz player, he could not tell the difference in his favorite turtle shell pick and the one I got from you."

Gary M. - Seattle, WA

"The Tortis does sound like the real thing . It has the highs without being clicky and it also brings out a very powerful bass tone. I am very happy with the pick and will order additional picks in the future. The pick is as advertised and worth the cost."

Bob S. - Montgomery, PA.

"Just wanted to thank you once again, the picks are wonderful, both very comfortable to play, and sound fantastic! I love the tone of them."

Mike F. - Edison, NJ

"I just switched over to your Tortis picks after trying everything (I mean EVERYTHING ;) ) on the market. Great tone, great feel, just like the real thing! Makes my Martin sing! Thanks so much for making an available product with all the benefits of real tortoiseshell."

Bill L. - Cincinnati OH

"I got one of your B shaped tortis picks several months ago and have used nothing else since. This week I had the opportunity to try out a real tortoise pick for the first time. I was amazed to find that I could tell no difference between the tone and feel of your pick and the real thing. I don't know how you do it."

Sam B. - Avon Lake, OH