Boiling strings!? What the . . .

[peacemaker]

Yep . . . a bass player I recently played with told me of the days of yore when he was touring the club circuit for not much $$. He said he made one set of strings last forever and a day although he was playing 5-7 nights a week the whole time. The trick? Boiling the strings once or twice a week to remove all the gunk from the wraps. Cook 'em, dry 'em, put 'em back on, just like new . . . I'm thinking . . . um . . . seriously? This has to be too good to be true. When I think of the amount of money I've spent on strings over the years, if I could have made one or two sets last a year . . . I'm HIGHLY skeptical, but thought I'd throw it out there if just for giggles . . .

[barrymclark]

It cleans them. That much I can say. I have heard though that it will affect the string physically and ultimately the sound of the string due to the high temperature it is exposed to.

[jazzrat]

Maybe for bass strings but I'd think you would asking for breakage trouble with

the plain treble strings on a guitar set.

[jrfreed]

A bass player buddy of mine used to do this too...but if I remember he'd only do it twice before replacing the strings.

 

I never tried it with guitar strings

[JeffB]

Works to extend the working life of bass strings a little. If you are a bass player doing 4 nights a week and want some extra mileage out of your strings it might be worth it considering the price of bass strings compared to guitar strings.

I tried it once yrs ago on my guitar but decided it wasnt worth the effort. A dead and crusty string is a dead and crusty string. Couldnt see the point in wearing out my frets and having bad intonation just to save a few dollars. ymmv

[paul144]

Bass strings can be reused easier due to the thicker gauges, they won't break when re installing like guitar strings. Better to soak them overnight in Naptha in a closed plastic container, and shake em around a bit, then let air dry. The Naptha will evaporate quickly and won't cause any extra oxidation the way water may.

 

Want your strings to last longer? Wash your hands before you play and wipe the strings down with a microfiber cloth right after you're done playing. When the bottom of the strings have bumps where the frets are, time to change em.

[tulk1]

Brewer and Shipley (anyone remember One Toke Over the Line?) used to soak their acoustic strings in ketchup to remove the gunk. Said it extended the life significantly. And, it was free if the waitress wasn't looking during dinner.

[FredZepp]

Brewer and Shipley (anyone remember One Toke Over the Line?) used to soak their acoustic strings in ketchup to remove the gunk. Said it extended the life significantly. And, it was free if the waitress wasn't looking during dinner.

Hmmmm , I would have guessed mustard would work better than ketchup.....

learn something new every day, I guess.

[Guest mgoetting]

Just remember to take them off the guitar before boiling.

 

Seriously, I wouldn't try it without locking tuners. It would be easy to fracture the unwounds with reuse.

[tulk1]

Hmmmm , I would have guessed mustard would work better than ketchup.....

learn something new every day, I guess.

I would imagine it had as much to do with quantity available. There's always a ketchup bottle on the diner tables. Those guys toured for years and were almost always stoned broke.

 

Just remember to take them off the guitar before boiling.

LOL!! No kidding!

[FredZepp]

I boil my picks.... to get that softer tone....

[big bob]

I boil my picks.... to get that softer tone....

as monty python said "go boil your bottom under a silly person, you stupid english kaaanigget."

[peteraltongreen]

Yep . . . a bass player I recently played with told me of the days of yore when he was touring the club circuit for not much $$. He said he made one set of strings last forever and a day although he was playing 5-7 nights a week the whole time. The trick? Boiling the strings once or twice a week to remove all the gunk from the wraps. Cook 'em, dry 'em, put 'em back on, just like new . . . I'm thinking . . . um . . . seriously? This has to be too good to be true. When I think of the amount of money I've spent on strings over the years, if I could have made one or two sets last a year . . . I'm HIGHLY skeptical, but thought I'd throw it out there if just for giggles . . .

 

Yes,I've done that.It really does work for bass strings.The dead skin out your finger ends comes out a treat,along with the remains of that Big Mac you ate in the break ! Generally,you can only do it a couple of times,then replace.How do you deal with the windings on the machine head ? When putting the strings on the bass ( Fender type ),I take the string two machine heads up in length.i.e.on the low E,take the string up to the D machine,bend 90 degrees,leave enough string to go down the machine head hole,cut the string.Wind the string down the capstan.This gives enough winding to give a good break angle over the nut.When you take the string off to boil it,it'll come off,dead neat. Try it.

Peter Alton Green

[cod65]

Eddie Van Halen supposedly did this back in the day, IIRC. prolly had some body do it for him though.

[212Mavguy]

Have a lead guitar playing buddy that used to do it and swore by it...for his guitar strings. But don't think he did it more than a couple times. He was a dirt poor hippie when he was doing it. PITA, I'd just rather buy a few sets of strings at a time, speaking of strings, anyone know how to find Pyramid or Thomastik Infeld strings in SLC, Utah? Pyramids can't be gotten anymore lately.

[tulk1]

Have a lead guitar playing buddy that used to do it and swore by it...for his guitar strings. But don't think he did it more than a couple times. He was a dirt poor hippie when he was doing it. PITA, I'd just rather buy a few sets of strings at a time, speaking of strings, anyone know how to find Pyramid or Thomastik Infeld strings in SLC, Utah? Pyramids can't be gotten anymore lately.

JustStrings.com has Pyramids; it's where I get them. Couple of other online string places have them, too. But can't remember the names. Have never seen them in a music store.

[DeLorean]

Boiling dead strings gives you cleaner dead strings. Strings are not that expensive, even bass strings.

[High Flying Bird]

I used to know a guy who claimed to have boiled his strings. He also drank bong water. I wonder if there is a link?