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Any metallised - electrolysis - nylon string for bass ?

#9
MCF said:
Those Galli chromes might just get a try on my five string Breedlove. I’ll likely have to wait for Christmas though.
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Please report back if you ever try them. I started a thread asking about opinions on these strings a couple of weeks ago and got 0 replies. I don't think many bass players have actually tried them. I found one youtube video with poor audio from a Gallli endorser, which told be precisely nothing. I also found a post here on talkbass complaining about tuning instability. That's all I could find about these strings ANYWHERE.

I'm especially interested in knowing about tuning stability and longevity. If they wear out anywhere near as fast as classical guitar strings it's a definite no-go for me, as they are rather expensive.
 
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#10
Deleted member 271037 said:
Please report back if you ever try them. I started a thread asking about opinions on these strings a couple of weeks ago and got 0 replies. I don't think many bass players have actually tried them. I found one youtube video with poor audio from a Gallli endorser, which told be precisely nothing. I also found a post here on talkbass complaining about tuning instability. That's all I could find about these strings ANYWHERE.

I'm especially interested in knowing about tuning stability and longevity. If they wear out anywhere near as fast as classical guitar strings it's a definite no-go for me, as they are rather expensive.
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Looking for an alternative to phospers. I’ve thought about tapes, but am afraid the’y’ll be too dark for my tastes.
 
#12
Electrolysis is the process of breaking down a liquid into simpler substances by passing an electric current through the liquid to effect a chemical reaction. Probably the most common use of the process is breaking water into hydrogen and oxygen. The water has to be treated with something to make it conductive, usually salt or acid, since pure water won’t conduct electricity.

I sounds like you might be thinking of electroplating. That is using an anode & cathode immersed in an electrolyte and applying opposite polarity electrical current to each, which causes the anode to dissolve into the electrolyte and deposit as a thin layer on the cathode. It’s how cheap jewelry is made, depositing gold or silver onto a less valuable metal. There is also copper plating, chrome plating, nickel plating (on bass strings!) & probably several others.

I don’t think nylon can participate in this process because it’s not a conductor of electricity.
 
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#13
Tim Skaggs said:
Electrolysis is the process of breaking down a liquid into simpler substances by passing an electric current through the liquid to effect a chemical reaction. Probably the most common use of the process is breaking water into hydrogen and oxygen. The water has to be treated with something to make it conductive, usually salt or acid, since pure water won’t conduct electricity.

I sounds like you might be thinking of electroplating. That is using an anode & cathode immersed in an electrolyte and applying opposite polarity electrical current to each, which causes the anode to dissolve into the electrolyte and deposit as a thin layer on the cathode. It’s how cheap jewelry is made, depositing gold or silver onto a less valuable metal. There is also copper plating, chrome plating, nickel plating (on bass strings!) & probably several others.

I don’t think nylon can participate in this process because it’s not a conductor of electricity.
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You are absolutely right , electroplating , by the way they can coat plastic with metal but I think I dont know the technology . May be they dip plastic in conductive jell and plate. In cars interiors , there are tens of different polyurethane foam molded parts with metal coating.
 
#14
Mustafa Umut Sa said:
You are absolutely right , electroplating , by the way they can coat plastic with metal but I think I dont know the technology . May be they dip plastic in conductive jell and plate. In cars interiors , there are tens of different polyurethane foam molded parts with metal coating.
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That coating is exceedingly brittle, with a nylon core, being stretchy the core would shrink dimensionally, and the metal coating would not. This would cause a separation.
 
#15
Mustafa Umut Sa said:
You are absolutely right , electroplating , by the way they can coat plastic with metal but I think I dont know the technology . May be they dip plastic in conductive jell and plate. In cars interiors , there are tens of different polyurethane foam molded parts with metal coating.
Click to expand...

I don’t know if the “plating” on plastic parts in cars is actually an electrically conductive metal or if it’s a type of reflective coating applied by dipping. There is a chrome “film” that is also used in cars which might actually be metallic, like magnetic tape (used for recording in the past) which has chrome deposited on one surface and adhesive on the opposite side. I think cheap mirrors and flashlight reflector are made by vaporizing chrome and allowing it to deposit on plastic in a vacuum chamber. Sounds suspiciously like a high tech version of spray painting….

If it’s a “non-metallic core with a metal exterior” string you are looking for, they’ve been around quite a while. Upright bass strings used gut core with metal winding several decades ago, but there is a modern version that uses a nylon / perlon core and is wrapped with a chrome plated steel ribbon. The one that comes to mind is the Obligato made by Piastro, but I think there are several others. Innovation upright strings are nylon winding on nylon core, which is what I use on my upright.

The Galli strings mentioned in post #2 of this thread sound like a similar string made for downwrong bass.

I have some Labella Silverbacks that are nylon core with silver plated metal winding for my Uke bass. I also have a set of Galli strings currently on my uke bass that are nylon core with black nylon filament winding (no metal). Just had those a short time, still evaluating…..
 
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#16
Mustafa Umut Sa said:
I mean steel electrolysed in conductive fluid nylon strings
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Ah I see. As others have mentioned. Electrolysis is the process. Electroplating using an electrolyte ( a suspended cation of the metal in solution) to be deposited is the application. The cationic solution receives the positive charge and functions as the annode during charge.The object being coated serves as the negative electrode or cathode during charge) . Nylon can only be used to receive an electroplated material if it is made from a specially blended resin. Plastics that Can and Cannot be Plated On
This company specialises in plating plastics Adaptive Plating Technology | SAT Plating
So technically it is possible. Results would be intriguing for strings to say the least, ie how would stretch be dealt with. Constant flexing.
 
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#17
What if you just Google “bass guitar strings” and buy one of those?

I think if you contract a chemical engineer and a fabrication company it may cost you a lot more just to find out.

But I’d venture a guess retail items labeled “bass guitar strings” can already be tuned right on up to bass guitar notes.

Give it a shot.
 

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