how do you maintain your strings from rust?

marijuana_kills · #1 11-20-2009, 01:18 AM

??I have a AC in my room and i keep my s series in a jimi hendrix guitar bag and it seem to pick up a little bit of rust on the strings?! whats up with that! I dont have central AC btw.......

Timbaline · #2 11-20-2009, 01:49 AM

How much do you play your guitar? Sometimes the sweat, and oils from your hands can cause the strings to rust. Do you wipe your guitar strings after you play?

Homebake · #3 11-20-2009, 01:57 AM

i restring every 2-4 weeks and i always play with clean hands and wipe the strings down after i play. it would take ages before i'd get any rust.

Max Dread · #4 11-20-2009, 12:11 PM

Yeah, you need to wipe them strings down after use. In fact, you can get string cleaners/lubricants that will help protect the strings and make them last longer.

The other option is to give Elixirs a go.....

smooth55 · #5 11-20-2009, 12:37 PM

Wash hands before playing, wipe the strings down afterwards. I'm not really into the lubricants and other cleaners. I don't know if they work or how much they really prolong the fact that your strings are never going to sound as good as they do the first few days, even the first week or two, after you change them.

Emericavox · #6 11-20-2009, 12:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by marijuana_kills

??I have a AC in my room and i keep my s series in a jimi hendrix guitar bag and it seem to pick up a little bit of rust on the strings?! whats up with that! I dont have central AC btw.......

would storing it in gig bag/case expedite rust or does it really not matter if its open in the air or in storage? huh.. i never had problems with my strings getting rust on them. (tho i do wipe down every other day =p)

6fingers · #7 11-20-2009, 01:17 PM

I change them in about 1-2 weeks deppending on how many gigs or how many hours I played.

littlephil · #8 11-20-2009, 08:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Emericavox

would storing it in gig bag/case expedite rust or does it really not matter if its open in the air or in storage? huh.. i never had problems with my strings getting rust on them. (tho i do wipe down every other day =p)

Dont keep it in a bag. I used to with my guitar and it makes the strings rust way faster.
Wipe them down after playing, and if they start to get a bit dirty, wrap a thin cloth around them individually and wipe them down. I use an old glasses cleaning cloth, works fine for cleaning them once they get a bit dirty.

spudler_t · #9 11-20-2009, 10:27 PM

I have never had my strings get rusty Ever. I don't really change them that often either maybe every other month or less. I do wash and dry my hands before I play. I wipe down the strings and fingerboard after each use. I use Tone Finger Ease BY Chem-Pak oh Id say about once a week maybe. I have more of a problem with my Rosewood fingerboard getting dirty then I do with rusty strings. I also store my guitar on a stand not in a bag or case so it is always out in the open. I have to clean the guitar alot more when it is in the open. I don't mind cleaning and polishing it 1-2 times a week its kinda fun actually. I have to worry about dust sticking to it more then moisture causing rust.

warmregards · #10 11-29-2009, 11:25 PM

Depending on how often you break strings, you should try Elixirs. I can them off **** at a decent price and I only change strings once or twice a year. Obviously if you are hard on the strings it might be better to just change more often with conventional sets.