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Is it a good idea to sand down your strings?
- Thread starter mastershake
- Start date
Applying my flame suite right now...
I have a good friend, guitar player who uses WD40 on his guitars. Yup, I said it!
He sprays a small amount on a cloth and wipes it down on both the neck and the finger board. He claims that it reduces drag on his hand as he slides up and down the neck and also, reduces string noise.
He's been doing this for years, with some pretty high end guitars, with no evidence what so ever of damage to his finger board or neck finishes.
Fishheadjoe
That seems like a bad idea. Why not use a product that is specifically designed for guitars like Fast Fret or Finger-Ease?
I saw Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo do this at a Sonic Youth gig. "EVOL" tour, if memory serves.
You know, I asked him the same question and his response was " a can of Fast Fret cost 3 times as much as a can of WD40 and I can get WD40 anywhere"
I also thought is was a bad idea, but he has been using it on a $2500.00 Jackson Soloist for nearly a decade and should you pick up that guitar, you would not be able to find any evidence of harm or foul play.
Fishheadjoe
Considering that about 50% of WD-40's chemical makeup is a solvent similar to kerosene, I'd say he's been lucky.
I thought that maybe there were some small burrs left over from the manufacturing process that you could get rid of with a couple swipes of emery cloth. Then I found some images from an electron microscope of a new guitar string. I didn't really see any burrs or anything else to lead me to believe that sanding the strings would make any difference. The windings aren't exactly baby butt smooth, but they're nowhere near as "wooly" looking as I thought they'd be under a microscope.
Pics here: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Pics here: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Maybe, but to date as I said, no ill affect on any of his three guitars or his Rock Bass.
I asked him where he learned of this WD40 thing and he told me he was at a bar and noticed between sets that the guitar player was using WD40 on his Tele. He asked the guy (who by my buddies account was a great country guitar player) what he was doing. The guy told him he does it every time he picks up his guitar and had been doing it for 20 years! No ill affect on the Tele.
Now to be sure that you are not getting the wrong impression here, my friend uses only a small amount on a dry cloth and wipes his guitar down... he does not spray the WD40 directly on the guitar.
Kinda makes you wonder doesn't it? Maybe I should start a thread on this in another area, perhaps the Luthier area and see what some of those folks think?
WD 40 - the poor mans Fret Ease!
LOL
Fishheadjoe
Ya know...it just now occurred to me that, since WD-40 does dispel moisture well (its original intent), wiping the strings could be similar to boiling out old strings as far as getting the misc junk out of the grooves.
As long as you use silica sand, you will be fine.
Just load up a pressure cooker with vinegar & water. Close off the release valve, increase pressure over the course of 12 hours.
Then use silica sand in a sandblaster.
Note: If the pressure cooker starts to explode, don't worry. Just make sure you are ready with the silica.
Just load up a pressure cooker with vinegar & water. Close off the release valve, increase pressure over the course of 12 hours.
Then use silica sand in a sandblaster.
Note: If the pressure cooker starts to explode, don't worry. Just make sure you are ready with the silica.
MikeBass
Supporting Member
- Nov 4, 2003
- 11,943
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- Endorsing artist- Suhr basses, PedalTrain, GHS, Ultimate Ears
The TI "Jazz" strings may be what you are looking for.
They use a silk inner winding that really tames a roundwound string, but doesn't put you into total flatwound mode.
what makes these different from every other flat? I went to the official website and found nothing but a vague description.
My first thought on what the OP was saying was that he was just talking about getting rid of that initial "sharpness/gritiness" that new strings can have, rather than some attempt to turn roundwounds into flatwounds.
I've had rounds that were like this, with some makes. I think I used a dry abrasive scouring pad on them (just a bit). Made them much better. No doubt playing them in would have done the same thing eventually.
Aw yeah, that's what I was thinking too. Then someone mentioned lard. That would work wonders too. Get the funk going.
Hey even the pros do this.
YouTube - ‪Sweet Soul Cookin' With Shonna Tucker‬‏
Putting in the time to learn proper technique is your best defense against this issue. Great players who have invested time into learning proper technique can make any strings sound great. Really great players are always asked what strings they use, what the settings are on their amps, etc...etc... Knowing all the while that the secret is all the hours of hard work they put into their craft.
Sorry to resurrect a zombie thread, but for those saying it won't work, I just did it, with good results. I took an old e string, and went at it with some 100 grit sandpaper (while off the bass, of course), then gave a few wipes with 220. Took a lot of wiping down afterward to remove all the black gunk left over, but it worked. Not perfectly flat, but made it smooth enough that I'm having a hard time not overshooting the notes on slides. Plus it really is thumpy and woody sounding now. Actually, now I understand what that woody tone sounds like after hearing this. Took about a half hour, but was worth testing out. Try it, I bet you'll like it.
Btw, i resurrected this thread for future people who are thinking about doing this...
Btw, i resurrected this thread for future people who are thinking about doing this...
