Vaseline

[duck_arse]

".... he's too busy hitting the vaseline" - kate bush, I think from hammer horror. she's not a member here is she?

[nocentelli]

Wow

[alanp]

I have vague memories of reading, in an amp-fixing thread, to not use WD40 on anything smaller than a tractor.

I don't even replace my strings until they're a couple years old, and they never get cleaned. (Some people seem to secrete hydrochloric acid or something instead of sweat, I do not, my strings last ages )

[amptramp]

I am waiting for someone to give a review of using KY Jelly as a string cleaner.  C'mon, I can't be the first one to have thought of that! 

[PRR]

> not use WD40 on anything smaller than a tractor.

Why a tractor??

WD-40 will stop a squeak for a short time. It evaporates, you have to use it again, and again, good business.

IMHO, it has ONE "good use". You neglected your spark-wires, it's wet, your engine won't spark. A spray of WD-40 will displace the water in the rubber cracks so you can go to NAPA and buy new spark wires.

OK, it may be good for those long-abused H-P 200AB oscillator shafts that have seized-up. It may seep in and soften the 1953 oil-gum, and then evaporate out so you can apply GOOD oil. Didn't work for me though.

[pinkjimiphoton]

Isn't Vaseline a song by Bush?

There was one by Elastica...

that was the good one.

[Puguglybonehead]

Vaseline is a petroleum based product, and as such it could potentially harm the finish on your instrument. I'm not sure how well nitrocellulose holds up against oil-based stuff, but I have seen some of the synthetic water-based coatings (Target Coatings and Grafted Coatings being the 2 biggies used in current guitar production) get easily damaged by oil-based products. This is still nothing to say of what it's effect on unprotected rosewood fretboards could be, or how it could even potentially seep through to damage the actual glue used to make the instrument.

I agree with what many others have said here. When it's time to change your strings, change them. That, or remove them and do the old boiling pot-of-water thing. As far as coating your strings, wouldn't you be better off using wax? Motocross racers and mountain-bikers who ride in desert areas use paraffin to lube their chains, instead of oil. It is far less prone to attracting dirt and grime. Of course, I would also advise against paraffin for musical instruments, but bee's wax would be a good choice for coating strings. (just don't tell your vegan friends you used it. I always avoid telling them about how I use only hide glue for installing fretboards)

[bwanasonic]

I don't even replace my strings until they're a couple years old, and they never get cleaned.

I tried that once as a sort of science experiment, but regardless of anyone's sweat, metal fatigue will assure that strings older than about five weeks will not play in tune. Whether or not or you can tell (or care) you are out of tune is another story. I am a big fan of many an early blues and R&R recording where the guitarist's strings are of questionable provenance and intonation. But for me personally, I like the option of actually being in tune, so I try not to inflict old strings on anyone. If you really want to get into ring-mod territory, try a two year old set of flatwounds!

[MrStab]

i scored some Vaseline a coupla months ago for the treadle on my CryBaby. it didn't really seem to get between the grooves and stop squeaking until a good while using it. temperature also affected its effectiveness. i put some on some guitar saddles a few weeks back, but luckily managed to isolate it to the bridge. i can't really say if it's helped or not, but i see strings as disposable anyway so i don't expect wonders.

fun fact: WD-40 was first used to prevent ICBMs from corrosion. in keeping with the phallic/lube imagery.

[pinkjimiphoton]

beeswax would be too sticky.

if you REALLY need lubrication, a lot of old school guys use talcum powder. it doesn't mess the guitar up.

don't put oil on your fingerboard. it will eventually make the wood get punky and rot.

as for old strings...

steve howe, who obviously sucks on many levels (that i couldn't ever begin to get even close to) doesn't change his strings unless they break.

his intonation is killer, and he plays his ass off.

the strings on my strat... which gets the shit beat out of it 2-5 nites a week... have been on there for a couple years at this point.

nickel wound strings (real ones... good luck finding 'em) will last for years. i had a set on a les paul by a curious brand called big marty for almost a decade before i broke one. i can see why they went out of business.

i don't change 'em until they've all broken at some point. i don't worry about it too much, playing thru the amount of fuzz i do it doesn't really matter all that much.

i'll take "dead" strings that stay consistent tonally and stretch uniformly any day of the week. i hate having to deal with tuning issues.

if i pull my strat out, and wiggle the stick a couple times, 9x out of 10 i don't even need to tune it.

ymmv

[Jdansti]

I am waiting for someone to give a review of using KY Jelly as a string cleaner.  C'mon, I can't be the first one to have thought of that! 

I think regular KY is mostly glycerine. Now, that KY that's suppose to get hot...

[mac]

Now, that KY that's suppose to get hot... icon_eek

I highly recommend the Hot KY lubricant 

mac

[Pojo]

I'm one of those guys that secretes acid in my sweat....and it will make a new set of strings feel like 'playdough' in a matter of a couple hours. Solution? I use only coated strings and leave it at that. The cost is well worth it considering I get like 4x or 5x the life of normal strings.

[Ice-9]

I don't clean my strings, honestly I must be lucky, I only ever have to clean my strings or neck after some else has played my guitar. It's amazing, my brother could pick up my guitar and play for 10 mins and the back of the neck and strings would feel like they been bathed in acid then baked in jam. I can play for months and the back of the neck is still smooth, ok after a long time the strings loose tone but still feel clean.

I guess my sweat is good

[deadastronaut]

Yep, im the same, my strings last forever, till someone else decides to play upside down on my lefties ...some people are full of it..

sweat that is..

[haveyouseenhim]

Yep, im the same, my strings last forever, till someone else decides to play upside down on my lefties ...some people are full of it..

sweat that is..

Well some of us aren't fortunate enough to be able to live in the vacuum of space.    Damn elitist..... 

[deadastronaut]

^ yeah, well it took me ages trying to find a decent nazi rocket engineer to help get me up here after that bastard 'project paperclip'  nicked all the best ones..

but in the end i managed it with a total cost of £3.76p. bargain...

[MrStab]

i'd say (tiny amounts of) WD-40 or Vaseline on my saddles add something like 10% to my string longevity. i've tried all sorts - including wild goose chases for burrs - but throughout the years i've come to accept that through my strumming style (or lack thereof) and/or sweat acidity and/or general stupidity, strings will just die on me after a month or so. even if my sweat's not that caustic, it probably doesn't help to be literally dripping after a set under stage lights. i think it's good practice to re-string before more or less every gig anyway, though. i've never done any conclusive tests, but i seem to snap strings marginally less in summer. a floating bridge probably makes temperature:tension ratio even more of a probem, but i like the feel of FR's more than what they're actually made for.

i think a group buy of litmus paper is in order, in the name of science. or not. lol

[bwanasonic]

Regardless of your skin PH or any string cleaning products, metal fatigue ensures your strings are not playing in tune after a month or so, even if you don't touch them. Whether you notice it (or care) or is another story  .

[MrStab]

breaking strings after a month or so (on numerous guitars through the ages) is more my issue, but i do notice decreased tuning stability as well over time. floating bridge + weakened string integrity = pain in the lower large intestine.