Sounds weird, but when Ive encountered this issue in humidity, I rub my fingers on my oily ol’ nose and it helps grease things up. Proper funk!
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Had to stop using Flats last night.. bummer
- Thread starter wyleeboxer
- Start date
I used to play regularly near the beach and outside in S Florida. I had a string lube that I just hit the strings with when needed…I think it’s called finger ease. Works well.
I forgot who it was, but there was a famous bass player who kept a fried chicken bone in his case. He’s handle it to grease up his fingers before gigs.
Half way thru our 2nd set last night (playing Sade “Paradise”) the humidity outside must have started going up because my fingers were just sticking to my strings. I live and play near the ocean in Southern California and have been playing this same set of GHS Precision 40-95 light gauge flats since October, so they are well broken in. Love the tone but just can’t take the random stickiness anymore, especially as we get closes to warmer weather.
I have another gig tonight and tomorrow too, so this morning I put a near new set of Dunlop bright nickel’s which are my favorite rounds. Just hope my fingers can acclimate to rounds asap?
Try some corn starch on your hand and fingers. That's what I use for outdoor gigs when the humidity is high.
Good Luck!
Funny that I had the opposite experience. Despite I live in an all year long humid country, over those years I had been using several sets of flatwounds, which mainly were the Chromes (the other were La Bella's and Dunlop's), I never experienced any stickiness with them, including when they were new. Until... one night I had an outdoor gig in a resort located on a cold mountainous area (yes, seriously... mountain, not beach) where my trusted 2 year old broken-in Chromes turned sticky.
I didn't even think of using the microfiber rag I had ready in the gigbag for aftershow cleaning of the instrument.
Filmed a music video 2 summers ago with some flats. We were in a warehouse with no ac and more humidity than you can imagine. Next day my strings felt like they were covered in aspestis
yeah, we get some here, more than we used to (it's also colder here right now than in the NE---we're in upside-down weather times....). That said, I've never really had this sticky flatwound issue, and have been using Labellas for ages. Plenty of outdoor shows, etc. I do think I recall Chromes maybe feeling a bit that way at times though.
That Fret stuff which sprays on the neckto clean the strings, and slick it up a tad.
It's basically Mineral Oil
And you can find pure mineral oil in the pharmacy section of your local drugstore or big box Wally store and it's like a $1.50 maybe $ 2 for a pint. Stick a rag in the hole (I use a red mechanics rag) and you get the end of the rag somewhat wet and you pinch each string and go up and down it and then you take the rag wipe all excess off.
I have a maple neck so I'm not too worried about the extra oil but if you do have a Rosewood or other porous fretwood neck and you're a little concerned about the amount of oil you put on fretboard then all you have to do is use a piece of cardboard or something suitable, put it between the strings and the fretboard the neck and do the string cleaning with that in place. Problem solved and you and no worries about any excess oil.
Cheap and works great.
BTW baby oil is Mineral Oil with fragrance. I have used that too, but only as an emergency. It worked!
It's basically Mineral Oil
And you can find pure mineral oil in the pharmacy section of your local drugstore or big box Wally store and it's like a $1.50 maybe $ 2 for a pint. Stick a rag in the hole (I use a red mechanics rag) and you get the end of the rag somewhat wet and you pinch each string and go up and down it and then you take the rag wipe all excess off.
I have a maple neck so I'm not too worried about the extra oil but if you do have a Rosewood or other porous fretwood neck and you're a little concerned about the amount of oil you put on fretboard then all you have to do is use a piece of cardboard or something suitable, put it between the strings and the fretboard the neck and do the string cleaning with that in place. Problem solved and you and no worries about any excess oil.
Cheap and works great.
BTW baby oil is Mineral Oil with fragrance. I have used that too, but only as an emergency. It worked!
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He was finger lickin good!Harland David Sanders was is name!!!
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I've been living in LA for nearly 20 years and my partner was born and raised here. This weather right now is a classic case of so-called SoCal June gloom in late May.
I suspect how sticky flats are for anyone is a function of things including attributes of brands of strings, personal body chemistry, how oily their skin, how they perspire, etc.
I play flats so cal...chromes fretless...never happened to me. Today the venue owner wanted me to play his new ric for a set and the rounds and frets felt sticky to me...couldn't wait to get back to my flats.
I sometimes have a problem with my strings getting a little grippy. I use Fast Fret when that happens -- one treatment good for at least a few gigs.
I've tried alot of flats and found the smoother they are the more friction they have ironically no matter if it's cold or hot out...that being said I've never had that problem with Chromes which personally I love alot...they just work for me... everyone has a different reaction to whatever said strings! That's what we are here for and the discussion's...good luck!!
Get some Fast Fret…Half way thru our 2nd set last night (playing Sade “Paradise”) the humidity outside must have started going up because my fingers were just sticking to my strings. I live and play near the ocean in Southern California and have been playing this same set of GHS Precision 40-95 light gauge flats since October, so they are well broken in. Love the tone but just can’t take the random stickiness anymore, especially as we get closes to warmer weather.
I have another gig tonight and tomorrow too, so this morning I put a near new set of Dunlop bright nickel’s which are my favorite rounds. Just hope my fingers can acclimate to rounds asap?
