Strings oxidizing D'addarios vs Ernie Balls

tyt921

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Apr 3, 2014
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Hi,

Not sure if you guys know what I am talking about, but my strings, brand new, are starting to oxidize. They are turning black, texture feels very coarse to glide. In fact I can no long slide my fingers smoothly anymore. I only put on the strings brand new on there for like 3 days. The oxidation only occurs certain parts of the string. The more frequent areas that I play on. These are .11's ernie balls. I like the feel of them at first. They somehow feel less abrasive to the D'darrios .10's which i didnt like at all. Maybe I should go back to using D'addarios but try gauge 11s?

Should my solution be just wiping down the guitar everytime i play? or store the guitar? because i leave it in the open of my room. and where I live, its very humid and moist...hope that helps you to solve my problem. thanks!
 
There's nothing wrong with what's happening, it's just your body chemistry.

First, always wipe down your strings after playing; that will extend their life. Second, keeping the guitar cased does buffer it against temperature and humidity changes, and these are accelerated when you leave the guitar out.

However, you simply may have more corrosive sweat and oils in your hands. Pro players change strings for every show. I find that pure nickel (as opposed to nickel plated) strings tend to give me longer life.

But if my hands were truly corrosive, I'd use coated strings. Granted, the tone of an uncoated string is a little bit more present, but the coated strings are very good these days, and they may solve your problem. Since I hate changing strings, I'd go that route.

Come to think of it, my acoustic PRS came with coated EXP D'Addarios, and that's what I use on that guitar because I like the way it sounds. Strings last for months. But my hands are pretty dry, so you may not get that kind of wear out of them.
 
Well, similar thing happened to my D'addarios on my PRS, however, the oxidation on the D'addarios were mostly cosmetic-wise and didnt actually affect the way I played, and the oxidation were very very limited, and only a few spots were generally turning black and it also started to turn black after a day that they were new as well. I have kept the guitar in the gig bag though everytime after playing. Right now, the PRS are still smooth. On my starter guitar ESP, I just leave it out in the open, the Ernie balls oxidized almost covering 3 full frets on each strring. Gliding is difficult, because the string sticks to my finger like rubber and thus messing up the traction. thanks for the reply!
 
Do you guys buy strings by the bulk? I get them usually for 5 bucks per a pack of strings. D'addarios a bit more exp. I like ernie balls sound and texture better. And d'addarios arent that far behind its just difficult when I play. the strings themselves feel like blades cutting into my skin.
 
I'm anal about washing my hands before I play. I get a little OCD when a friend comes over and wants to play one of my guitars without washing their hands first. That may help and as the others have said, always wipe down the strings and neck after playing, I even do so periodically as I'm playing.
 
My brother has what we call "acid hands". He's rusted every string he has ever played, including coated ones. He finally figured out that keeping a rag damped with 3in1 oil and wiping the strings down actually prolonged the life of them. He's tried just about everything else, including prescription creams and pills. I guess it's just body chemistry.
 
I'm anal about washing my hands before I play. I get a little OCD when a friend comes over and wants to play one of my guitars without washing their hands first. That may help and as the others have said, always wipe down the strings and neck after playing, I even do so periodically as I'm playing.

I've become this way too! It started many years ago when I played with a guy who's sweat was so bad he wreck a set of BASS STRINGS in one 3-set evening. He'd pick up my guitar, play it for about 5 minutes, and I would need to restring it. Over the years I have just gotten to the point where I wash my hands every time I play, and if someone else picks up one of my guitars I can literally feed the oils they left behind on the strings.
 
My brother has what we call "acid hands". He's rusted every string he has ever played, including coated ones. He finally figured out that keeping a rag damped with 3in1 oil and wiping the strings down actually prolonged the life of them. He's tried just about everything else, including prescription creams and pills. I guess it's just body chemistry.

A colleague / former co-worker of mine had/has pretty well the same hands (been a long while since I've seen him, maybe he's changed). Whenever we had a jam session and he played one of my guitars, he handed me $10 for a new set of strings, because by the next morning they would be visibly corroded and unplayable, no matter how much we wiped them down during/afterwards.

On the other hand (no pun intended), I have strings on guitars that have been there for years. If I haven't played in a while it takes about 5 min of scales or similar uniform activity to rub off a thin oxide layer, but then they play just fine (not brand new, but as good as a month-old set).
 
Well, similar thing happened to my D'addarios on my PRS, however, the oxidation on the D'addarios were mostly cosmetic-wise and didnt actually affect the way I played, and the oxidation were very very limited, and only a few spots were generally turning black and it also started to turn black after a day that they were new as well. I have kept the guitar in the gig bag though everytime after playing. Right now, the PRS are still smooth. On my starter guitar ESP, I just leave it out in the open, the Ernie balls oxidized almost covering 3 full frets on each strring. Gliding is difficult, because the string sticks to my finger like rubber and thus messing up the traction. thanks for the reply!

Yeah, well, you need to change the strings more often is all.

Part of the price of doing business with guitar. I'd still try coated strings if I were you.
 
Ernie Ball strings turn black an' crusty for me too, I can get a little more life outta strings with some Gibson string cleaner and some Fast Fret, but still change 'em before every show... You gotta Best Buy in your area? I have been getting packs-o-strings for less than $4 there.
 
Les, you just reminded me of something. Stock strings on my PRS didnt corrode! I been playing that guitar at least a month after i bought it and the strings were still awesome and shiny. Only reason i had to change them was to match the ones for my beginners guitar which had .11's! But thanks for the advice guys, i will use my microfiber cloth I already have to give it a good wipe down and wash my hands next time....!

Sergio: I have a few bestbuys around my area, I didnt know they sold strings!? lol. I will do some research, I never heard of that brand before.
 
Strange, I usually stick with EB Super Slinky, and have never had a problem with them oxidizing. I did put some D'addarios on my acoustic yesterday, did a few hours of playing, and noticed oxidation on them today :(
 
Les, you just reminded me of something. Stock strings on my PRS didnt corrode! I been playing that guitar at least a month after i bought it and the strings were still awesome and shiny..

The stock strings are pure nickel wrap, as opposed to nickel plated steel wrap; I'll bet that's why.

The plating wears off steel quickly, and then the steel rusts. Pure nickel just tarnishes, and is also easier on the frets, since it's a softer metal.
 
Wellpz, that figures it. Pure nickel it is. The sticky rusted surface makes playing for a beginner from hard to harder. Will report back when I get em. And I will know immediately, because they rust within hours lol!
 
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