Boiling strings with a little vinegar added

[Stuball48]

Any of you ever boiled old guitar strings in vinegar to bring back and almost new sounding strings? Lots of folks didn't have the money or accessibility to get new strings. I had a friend who did this but I didn't/don't know enough to say it works or not?

 

[davismanLV]

Any of you ever boiled old guitar strings in vinegar to bring back and almost new sounding strings? Lots of folks didn't have the money or accessibility to get new strings. I had a friend who did this but I didn't/don't know enough to say it works or not?

Not sure, amigo... but I have a drawer full of strings. Do you need some? I'll send them.... <3

 

[Stuball48]

No, I do not need any strings but a friend who is deceased, who played an electric, did. I was reminded of that by his younger brother - thank though.

 

[James Hart]

I use to LIVE for fresh stainless rounds on bass, changed them weekly for YEARS. I would sometimes boil in water or vinegar in the 80s/90s to bring the zing back. I've found always having clean hands and a quick wipe with denatured alcohol on a cotton ball will brighten them just as much.

 

[twocorgis]

I used to boil the old Rotosound strings on the P-Bass I've owned since I was a kid with some success, I think. Probably was too broke to do anything else back then.

 

[johnreardon]

I tried it in the 60s on electric and it did nothing at all. Strings were still dead, once they dried out. Easier to buy new ones

 

[Maguchi]

I don't think that's much of a practice anymore with inexpensive strings widely available. But I think I read about Chet Atkins or Carl Perkins having to do something like that when they were young. As well as tying strings together after they broke. Not sure how you'd do that, maybe tie a square knot and avoid the fret or the area where the knot is with your fretting or picking hand.

 

[Stuball48]

I don't think that's much of a practice anymore with inexpensive strings widely available. But I think I read about Chet Atkins or Carl Perkins having to do something like that when they were young. As well as tying strings together after they broke. Not sure how you'd do that, maybe tie a square knot and avoid the fret or the area where the knot is with your fretting or picking hand.

My friends brother sent me a picture of the "e" string he did on his Les Paul Studio. Said he did it from memory of the way his brother did it and, "it's holding so far."

 

[johnreardon]

I don't think that's much of a practice anymore with inexpensive strings widely available. But I think I read about Chet Atkins or Carl Perkins having to do something like that when they were young. As well as tying strings together after they broke. Not sure how you'd do that, maybe tie a square knot and avoid the fret or the area where the knot is with your fretting or picking hand.

I did that occasionally, with top E or B, in the 60s depending where the string broke. If near the bridge or on the headstock, I could often just tie a reef knot and hope it lasted me for the rest of the gig.

Back then, I only had one guitar, so it was often easier to tie the string rather than change a string & break it in.

These days, I just take a spare guitar

 

[RBSinTo]

I learned of the "boiling to re-new old strings" trick when I was a teen in the 60's, and tried it at least once.
As I remember, the result didn't impress me enough to become a habit.
I can't recall if the boiling was done in water or included vinegar to pickle the strings and improve their flavour.
For me, the cost of new strings creates no financial hardship, so I just change them as I feel the need to.
RBSinTo

 

[GGJaguar]

I can't recall if the boiling was done in water or included vinegar to pickle the strings and improve their flavour.

Just add a pinch of dill and some whole mustard seeds.

 

[Neal]

I’ve tried this a few times, and, yes, the strings do have a bit of extra life after boiling.

Not enough extra life to justify the time spent removing, boiling, wiping down, restringing and retuning.

If you really want to go cheap with strings, buy a dozen sets of Musicians Gear strings from Musicians Friend for $30.

 

[James Hart]

I'm a bassist, we are talking significant more money... I just restrung my main bass last week, the set cost me $100

 

[walrus]

I'm not making this up. Years ago, a guy at an open mic I was at used a lot of his alloted time talking about the fact that he boiled his strings and why we should do it, too. Then he played a song and his dead strings sounded like $hit...

 

[adorshki]

When I first heard of it, it was told it worked 2 ways: removing grime/oxidation, and that somehow the heat of boiling would serve to "rejuvenate" the metal through a softening/cooling process. ( Cryogenically treated strings were just being brought to market at the time, too.)

Never tried it, was still playing a nylon-string guitar at the time, but I didn't buy into the "metal rejuvenation" thing (temps were too low) and noted nobody ever addressed the issue of fret notching on strings, which I think does more to dull the sound of strings than grime or oxidation.

And the only guys who did it were under-employed musicians who didn't take chemistry in HS.

 

[Opsimath]

No, I do not need any strings but a friend who is deceased, who played an electric, did. I was reminded of that by his younger brother - thank though.

I'm sorry about your friend.

 

[adorshki]

I'm sorry about your friend.

Yep. Who knew pickled strings were toxic?

 

[gjmalcyon]

And if you use gut strings, you have a delicious boiled snack also. Just remember to salt the water, too.

 

[adorshki]

And if you use gut strings, you have a delicious boiled snack also. Just remember to salt the water, too.

And the same effect can be achieved without all that costly energy input by simply putting 'em through the same fermentation process used to make Kim Chi.

Works great on coateds, too!

 

[Westerly Wood]

In case anyone was wondering, I am never doing this. I mean that is just crazy...This is the line I am not crossing.