Does oily skin wear strings down faster?

oniman7 · #1 06-12-2011, 11:28 PM

I'm a teenager playing bass, and teenagers tend to produce a lot of oil. Even my finger tips tend to be extremely oily in the last couple of years. I try to wipe my fingers off before I play my bass or go on the computer or anything, but I still feel the oil and can sometimes see prints on things.

Anyways, I got a new bass in March and had new strings on it. The strings are nearly dead at this point. They still reproduce to their full extent, but the tone I love is becoming quickly replaced with an unsatisfying thud. I was wondering if an excess of oil on my skin could be accelerating this.

Shakin-Slim · #2 06-12-2011, 11:30 PM

phatbass · #3 06-12-2011, 11:41 PM

I went through this myself. A couple of routines to get into which really help IMO:

Wash your hands before playing, and when you have a break.

Wipe down the strings with a cotton cloth (don't forget the undersides as well - be thorough) when you have a break and when you've finished. Don't put it away wet. Or your Bass...

This will not make the strings last forever, but I get a lot longer out of a set when I do this.

oniman7 · #4 06-12-2011, 11:42 PM

Can I use an old T-shirt as a cloth to wipe it down?

JimmyM · #5 06-13-2011, 12:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oniman7

Can I use an old T-shirt as a cloth to wipe it down?

Yeah, but they'll still go dead. So if this happens to you a lot, The best thing I've found to do is get two sets of strings, soak one in denatured alcohol for a week while you use the other set, and then you swap them out.

Or you get used to the deadness and never change them at all

oniman7 · #6 06-13-2011, 12:26 AM

I hate the deadness. I know that's some people's preferred tone, but mine have to be zingy and sharp.

mmbongo · #7 06-13-2011, 05:22 AM

I keep hand sanitizer next to my practice station and rub some on before touching any basses. Seems to help quite a bit! Make sure you let it dry first though

john grey · #8 06-13-2011, 09:17 AM

IMO it's a combination of oil and skin cells (debris, dirt and some oil) that adhere into the coils. Changing them out and seriously cleaning will help.But IF you seriously calloused fingers and the strings are 'rough" in their coil design, they will get plugged up no matter what. The cleaning needs to get the crud from between the coils. In a looped configuration the coils become more open to removal of that debris.

Ideally, the best bet is to find a source for $9 strings. barring that the cleaning should be done in a coiled configuration. I spoke w/ someone who is experimenting with ultrasonic cleaning. Boiling in water is foolish. Solvents do help but the materials must be removed (& the solvents must penetrate). This becomes a problem with silk wrapped strings. It's always a trade off between hassle and effectiveness and money / time invested. Some strings are VERY rough when new; they tend to get dead the fastest due to the obvious abrasion.

I've gotten strings unusually clean without extreme heat and it does seem to help a great deal but it's a time consuming agenda. Realistically if you can get a solid month of practice & playing everyday with clean but heavily calloused fingers (IMO) you're doing well.

Phalex · #9 06-13-2011, 09:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyM

Or you get used to the deadness and never change them at all

^ Works for me.

LoveThatBass · #10 06-21-2011, 06:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mmbongo

I keep hand sanitizer next to my practice station and rub some on before touching any basses. Seems to help quite a bit! Make sure you let it dry first though

Same here! I clean my hands with sanitizer before I play and I wipe my bass down, chrome, body, strings, neck when through playing it.

Art Araya · #11 06-21-2011, 06:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyM

Yeah, but they'll still go dead. So if this happens to you a lot, The best thing I've found to do is get two sets of strings, soak one in denatured alcohol for a week while you use the other set, and then you swap them out.)

I have this same problem bro. The denatured alcohol has saved me so much money and I have the bright string sound I want every week.

Wish I had known of this 25 years ago!

BassNeo · #12 06-21-2011, 07:05 PM

Washing your hands before playing will help, but try using a pumice-based hand cleaner. You can buy it at any Pep Boys, Napa, etc...

The pumice does two things - removes the dead skin cells on your fingers and it dries out your hands more than plain soap does. Trust me on this, using it several times daily causes plenty of dry skin.