Have you ever boiled your bass strings?

[jeffb28451]

No.

 

[Johnny Fingers]

Searched for Farley’s and came up with this. Used it on guitar strings many years ago, before I switched to bass.
Invalid Link Removed

 

[nilorius]

No, i don't believe in that renewing process.

 

[Greevus]

ABSOLUTELY for years and years. Boil 'em, wipe 'em down with alcohol, string 'em back up and snap and pop the SHIZ out of 'em. There's a reason people do it: MONEY.

 

[ddnidd1]

The critical thing to remember if you boil strings is to completely dry them in an oven at low heat for 15 minutes to remove the water. Otherwise the residual water kills them fairly quickly.

Soaking for 24 hours in denatured alcohol gives better results than boiling.

 

[MegaSwing]

I tried it and didn’t even get the strings back on the bass, after I realized that buying new strings did not constitute an economic hardship for me.

To each his zone.

 

[InhumanResource]

One of my pals originally from Brazil told me he use to boil his bass strings to make them last longer. Another told me the he heard the same thing from his bass teacher. Whenever he gigs, he sweats a lot. After 6-7 hours of gigging he boils his strings to remove the sweat and dirt. They don't go back to brand new, but they really do get much better. I just changed to flat wounds on my PRS and the round wounds weren't that bad, so I boiled them and put them on my Musicman. They sound almost like brand new.

Just though I would pass along the tip and see if anyone else had had a similar experience.

Yep, I have done it plenty of times. Not at regular intervals but when they needed changing and I didn't have any money.

 

[Basslice]

I never resuse strings. I am lucky and not a sweaty fellow, so my roundwounds don't get too dirty.

Unlike dirt and corrosion, you cannot do anything about probably the bigger problem (IMO) in string age - stress/strain and mechanical damage. Strings stretch/relax/stretch, bend, and scrape against the frets. They develop micro grooves and micro cracks. The metal weakens. They lose their ability to resonate and be tuned. They lose their harmonic qualities (brightness).

 

[dave64o]

I've never done it. I wipe down my basses when I'm done playing, plus I prefer my roundwounds well broken in, so I've never really been curious about boiling them or soaking them in alcohol. Most rounds sound best to me when they're hitting the point that others would consider replacing them, or possibly boiling/soaking them, and then I keep them on until either they don't stay in tune well or, in rare cases, become even too dead-sounding for ME.

 

[Son of Wobble]

yes, and they were delish. Added a little pesto. YMMV

 

[dave64o]

I guess that answers the question "What's the best spaghetti for metal?".

 

[Son of Wobble]

I guess that answers the question "What's the best spaghetti for metal?".

 

[OzzyGreg]

I just run a good, hot bath and throw the whole bass in.
Cleans everything that way.

 

[growlypants]

I tried it. It worked, but the strings quickly reverted to their previous (dead!) status.

 

[Thumpin6string]

I deep fry mine. It adds a little crunch to my tone.

 

[jmattbassplaya]

It works to a small degree but the effort isn’t worth it IMO. Of course, I’m no longer a high schooler who doesn’t even have a single $20 to his name. These days I can afford to buy a few packs at a time

 

[Spidey2112]

No, but I did make spaghetti last night. Half the strands, then throw into boiling water, with a smidgen of oilve oil. Cook for 9 minutes, stirring every minute.

When I boiled the strings, they never got soft enough for me to eat them. And don't even get me started on trying to floss that G string from between my teeth. L

Serious... it's like it became part of me.

 

[zubrycky]

Never.

(BTW, I hate the sound of new strings).

 

[Plain Old Barry]

I boiled a few times, went back to replacing them when I wanted brighter sounds.

It's not a new idea...

 

[the harp unstrung]

I’ve been doing it for decades and like to think I have some degree of sense. Rust has never been an issue. I boil in a mix of water and vinegar for around two minutes and then dry the strings off. I will boil each set between eight and ten times before retiring them.

I figure boiling has saved me quite a bit of money over the years.

I, too, would like to think that I have the sense that gawd gave a goose.

I, too, use a splash of vinegar in the water...and I have done so for most of the last 50 years.

As a weekend warrior, I’ve never gotten anywhere near 8 to 10 trips to the stove...more like 4 or 5.

They (Dean Markley Blue Steels have been my go to since I subscribed to Bass Player in the early 80s) sound ‘zingy again’ for another 12 to 16 hours...a coupla weekends.

I, too, figure I’ve saved a Bunch of money, without sacrificing tone, over the course of decades.

You pretty much hit it on the head, bass12.