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Double Bass Cleaning old strings with metho? advice sought

L

looseleftie

Guest
Oct 20, 2011
5
0
#1
Hi, just began playing again after 9 yr break, my strings seem a bit grotty/dull. Trying not at present to go out a get some new strings, so I was wondering about cleaning them, give them a little umph back.. Anyway, I use to clean strings with meth and a cloth.. Is this still an acceptable method? Or are there others out there?
Cheers guys
 
#2
You mean methanol? Best advice is keep it off your skin, it's quite toxic and easily absorbed. You could try rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol, usually it's 70% alcohol / 30% water, but I think you can find 90%.

But 9 year old strings... dunno how much life you can bring back no matter how much you wash them. Know anyone who plays bass and might give you an old (but not 9 years old) set?
 
#4
rickdog said:
You mean methanol? Best advice is keep it off your skin, it's quite toxic and easily absorbed. You could try rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol, usually it's 70% alcohol / 30% water, but I think you can find 90%.

But 9 year old strings... dunno how much life you can bring back no matter how much you wash them. Know anyone who plays bass and might give you an old (but not 9 years old) set?
Click to expand...

No he means what Americans call denatured alcohol. We call this methylated spirits or metho for short.
 
#7
Not to add anything to the bellowing, but please at least do it where there is adequate ventilation. I used it in a basement room once, and didn't even feel that the concentration was all that high, but lost my sense of smell for two or three years. Still not normal, but I can smell food and flowers again, thankfully. For a long time I had no sense of smell at all.

Denatured alcohol (methylated spirits) can be nasty stuff. I still use it, but sparingly, and outdoors if I'm stripping an instrument to start over on varnishing, or anything like that.
 
#10
looseleftie said:
Hi, just began playing again after 9 yr break, my strings seem a bit grotty/dull. Trying not at present to go out a get some new strings, so I was wondering about cleaning them, give them a little umph back.. Anyway, I use to clean strings with meth and a cloth.. Is this still an acceptable method? Or are there others out there?
Cheers guys
Click to expand...

That should be fine. Slacken the string to squeeze the gunge out from between the windings before you clean it - and do one at a time. ;)
 
#15
I'm not sure where I read about it, maybe here somewhere but I have a 5' length of 1" PVC capped at both ends and filled with denatured alcohol. I let my strings soak in there for about 2 -3 days every 3 or 4 months and they stay sounding great. I change the alcohol about once a year. I've been using the same strings for about 4 years now I think. They always come out sounding new.
 
#16
An even better way to deep clean your strings is to pour a bowlful of methyl hydrate (or rubbing alcohol), take a string off and let it soak in the liquid for 10 minutes or so then wipe them down repeatedly with a cloth until clean and dry. Put it back on the bass and remove the next string. Viola, brand new strings but it is already broken in.

Wear gloves to prevent absorbing any dangerous chemicals. When finished, don't discard the liquid. It's not good for our water supply. Pour it back in the bottle for later use.
 
#17
I'm just wondering if alcohol is the best thing to use. First, with alcohol, if you're worried about toxicity, why not use grain alcohol? You can't get it everywhere, but some US states allow the sale of 95% drinking alcohol. some luthiers use it in their varnish preparations instead of denatured, which is intentionally adulterated with poisons to keep you from drinking it.

As to effectiveness, I bet a mix containing some toluene or xylene would get at waxes and oils the alcohol wouldn't dissolve. But that's when you want to have gloves and mask, and ideally be outside.
 
#19
I had the same set of strings on my bass guitar for 4 years, even though I knew they needed changing. While playing a gig, the A broke at the bridge. Not having a replacement, I managed to slacken enough length from the nut end and tied a knot at the bridge end and continued on that night.

Anyway, wouldn't a really old set of upright strings be in danger of easily breaking as well?
 
#20
spoonido said:
I had the same set of strings on my bass guitar for 4 years, even though I knew they needed changing. While playing a gig, the A broke at the bridge. Not having a replacement, I managed to slacken enough length from the nut end and tied a knot at the bridge end and continued on that night.

Anyway, wouldn't a really old set of upright strings be in danger of easily breaking as well?
Click to expand...

It's exceedingly rare.
 

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