How can I get the most life out of my strings

[dmrey]

I'm a 6-month 'newbie' guitar player. I picked up my Seagull S6 after spending 4-6 weeks agonizing over reviews. I'm very pleased with the S6 and I hope we both grow old together. I'm trying to use similar strings to the Godin lights that came with it - which I assume are D'Addario EJ16's. I've tried EJ17's, and Elixir Polywebs ... and came back to EJ16's (and just put on a new set last night). I might try EXP16's.

 

I know that there's volumes of discussion online about what strings sound better or last longer ... I'm trying to bypass that discussion and find out what steps I can take to make the strings I use last longer.

 

I have a few thoughts - but I'd like to know what you do.

 

Hands

It seems to me that sweat kills. So - I should probably try to wash my hands and dry them thoroughly before playing. Does it matter if I use soap and water - or would hand sanitizer (alcohol based) work just as well? I tried using hand sanitizer before I strung up the guitar last night and wiped down before storing it away.

 

Wiping

I read occasionally about folks who wipe down their strings. Do you use anything in particular to wipe with? Should it be a plain cotton cloth (like 'flour bag' dish drying towel or old t-shirt), or should it have some sort of oil or silicon based solvent to displace the sweat on your strings? I'd imagine that a cloth lightly sprayed with WD40 might help displace the water - but wonder if even just a little would hurt the strings tone (uncoated EJ16's)?

 

I was just reading over on the D'Addario website forums that some folks wipe down their non-coated strings with Alcohol based cleaners. Is this a common practice?

 

Storage

I store my guitar in a TRIC EEP 'hardside' case (not as hard as a real hard side - but hard enough that I don't worry about everyday bumps like I would with a gig bag). This is like a styrofoam 'cooler' that helps keep the temp and humidity stable during extremes. I'd assume that keeping it out of high humidity not only helps the guitar - but might help the strings as well.

 

Should I store my guitar with a cloth over the strings? Are there any other steps I should take each time I store my guitar away (other than a humidifier during the winter time)?

 

I wish I had more questions...

 

I'm looking forward to any help you can give.

 

Daniel in OKC

[AK47]

Welcome aboard.

You sure have lot of questions. I can give some suggestions that are only my opinions others may have ideas that could differ.

1] Hands, Wipe them down with alcohol and let dry to help pull oil from the skin before playing. I have never done this for my hands are very dry and never prespire.

2] Wiping down the strings is good. Never use oil or silicone on your strings. IMHO real tone killer. The alcohol used lightly on a cloth may help. Remember too much could wash dirt into your wound strings. I use a soft dry cotton cloth.

3] I have heard "tric" cases are nice. I never have seen one though. I wouldn't cover the strings in the case. I do however wipe the strings down before I play also. This will remove any condensation that may have formed on the strings. I also sometimes use a microfiber cloth that seems to work real well on strings.

I'm not fond of coated strings and also use d'addario ej16. With me they last almost as long as coated strings. Then again my hands are extremely dry.

[StratAttackJack]

My hands sweat and tarnish strings more than the average person...the battle of trying to find quality sounding strings that last long has been lost on me. I generally just wipe my strings down with a cotton microfiber cloth after playing.

I'll add that before I started playing live I would keep my strings on much longer...so if you're mostly just playing by yourself and practicing (if you're new) I wouldn't worry about it as much.

[redhawks2]

Don't know if this happens to anyone else but if I let anyone else play my guitar for more than a few minutes the strings will go dead overnight. I think some kind of reaction between my acids/oils and someone elses leads to some kind of witches brew that dissolves my strings.

[fingerpicker]

when you wipe down your strings, don't do it real hard--that also seems to be a tone killer....

[D For Kate]

yeah, you seem to be on da right track.

non-coated strings,especially phosphor bronze are da shizzle. unfortunately, once you get grime buildup between the wounds, they start to lose their zing after about 8 weeks if i keep on my hour-a-day regime.

you been playing for 6 moons; when did you last change yo strings? dont know about the rest but i luurrrvvvveeee new string! feels like your first whhhhhoooooooaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh

[denvertrakker]

Wiping I read occasionally about folks who wipe down their strings. Do you use anything in particular to wipe with? Should it be a plain cotton cloth (like 'flour bag' dish drying towel or old t-shirt), or should it have some sort of oil or silicon based solvent to displace the sweat on your strings? I'd imagine that a cloth lightly sprayed with WD40 might help displace the water - but wonder if even just a little would hurt the strings tone (uncoated EJ16's)? I was just reading over on the D'Addario website forums that some folks wipe down their non-coated strings with Alcohol based cleaners. Is this a common practice? I'm looking forward to any help you can give. Daniel in OKC

 

 

I'd strongly suggest that you not use WD-40. It may do what you want, but boy does it stink. Unless you want your git to smell like Joe's Tractor Repair, there are other similar chemicals that might work better - most electrical contact cleaners will clean your strings of residue and leave a protective film. The best on the market is Caig Laboratories' DeOxIt. Alcohol-based cleaners do a good job, also. An old t-shirt makes an excellent applicator.

[mildlysane]

 

I'd strongly suggest that you not use WD-40. It may do what you want, but boy does it stink. Unless you want your git to smell like Joe's Tractor Repair, there are other similar chemicals that might work better - most electrical contact cleaners will clean your strings of residue and leave a protective film. The best on the market is Caig Laboratories' DeOxIt. Alcohol-based cleaners do a good job, also. An old t-shirt makes an excellent applicator.

 

 

I use WD40 on my guits and it works good. There IS a smell at first, but I go back and polish it after I use the WD40 and the smell goes away. It feels good on the back of the neck too.

[brahmz118]

I was just reading over on the D'Addario website forums that some folks wipe down their non-coated strings with Alcohol based cleaners. Is this a common practice?

 

 

I've tried high alcohol formula (55%) disinfectants (Sani-Cloth) and hand sanitizing alcohol gels (Purell) on uncoated strings before, and I'm convinced they killed the strings. I'm sure not all alcohol-based cleaners are made equal, but in my experience increased infection control doesn't correlate with increased string life.