Have you ever boiled your bass strings?

[john_g]

I did that very same thing too...LOL!!!

 

[2manynotes]

No. I simmer them after I make a dark roux. Wit some skrimp.

 

[Killing Floor]

Of course. A little Old Bay and they're Dee-licious.

 

[Bikeguy57]

Used to, now I've got one of those Ninja Air Fryers. They come out nice and crispy in no time!

 

[pbass74]

It's quicker to throw your bass into the back of your pickup and run it through the car wash. No unstringing and restringing required! I've never boiled them, but have done the ultrasonic cleaner method a couple of times and it worked for me.

 

[Tom Gallo]

I have, but I also found that the rejuvenation was short-lived.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

It's an old idea. I just make sure I wipe everything down as soon as I'm done playing.

Me too. When they are dead, they get replaced.

 

[Jerry Ziarko]

You can always give them a soak in denatured alcohol. Agitate them a bit and it removes a bunch of gunk. (oil dead skin etc) Non corrosive and it dries fast. It won't extend their life, but will put some zing back in.

 

[alack]

I’ll echo what others have already said. When I was younger and favored bright sounding round wounds I would boil them after about two weeks of play. The cleaning returned much of the brightness. I would even boils them a second time to try and get another few weeks from them. Rust was never an issue since I would replace them long before rusting would start.

 

[drumvsbass]

I post this all the time. Looks like voodoo but it honestly works in a pinch.

 

[Yahboy]

I prefer Ethanol rather than boil. Much better cycles re-use.

 

[vvvmmm]

I only boil other people's bass strings.

I post this all the time. Looks like voodoo but it honestly works in a pinch.

Like new in 2 minutes? Why is it a 5+ minute video? (Can't wartch right now - no time - I'm boiling other people's bass strings).

 

[Wesley R]

I did in 1969. The gunky that came off of them was ugly, real ugly. The other bass I had used tape wounds. I switched to tape's in 1969 until about 2013, when my then GF now wife bought me an SR500 that came with round wounds. It has had tape wounds for around years.

 

[Hounddog409]

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.

I change my rounds twice a year.

Too many folks spend waaaay to much time worrying about strings.

Play what feels best for you.

All round sound the same live. Old rounds? Use the freaking dials on your amp. Dont like new round zing? Turn the freaking dials on your amp.

 

[CarpeBasso]

Water causes rust. Think about it for a minute. Why would anyone with any sense put bass guitar strings into a corrosive liquid?

So does sweat, and I'll bet it's even more corrosive than water. I'd use distilled water and not worry.

 

[reep]

In the mid-seventies, I bought a 1963 Gibson EB3 from the original owner. He had been boiling and reusing the same strings for over a decade. I ended up in a band with a guy that was his next door neighbour who shared the story with me. I was a bit incredulous, but I tried it and found the results quite eye-opening. A couple of years later I replaced the original strings with a set of round-wound Rotosounds. They sounded quite clattery and overly bright and I regretted not having saved the original strings...If I had thought to keep them, I probably would have reinstalled them.

 

[Kendescending]

My hands get very sweaty and sticky, so I started using Fast Fret years ago. It also keeps the strings fresh sounding for a very long time.

FWIW, my friend and I boiled his bass strings at his house when we were kids (1985 or so). His Mom wasn't very happy that we boiled metal strings in her new pot when she came home from work.

 

[Manticore]

Ancient idea originally and continually superseded by buying new strings.

 

[mambo4]

I did it once, a long time ago. I think it made difference. But not such that I took to regularly doi g it.

 

[drumvsbass]

I only boil other people's bass strings.



Like new in 2 minutes? Why is it a 5+ minute video? (Can't wartch right now - no time - I'm boiling other people's bass strings).

2 minutes per string and you don't have to take them off the bass.