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Cleaning
upright bass strings
Cleaning your (metal wrapped) upright bass strings is a good way
to keep them sounding good for a longer time. Even with our low
prices....bass
strings are still not 'cheap'! One way to help your upright
strings last a little longer is to wipe them off after playing. The
best way (and only takes a little more time), is to individually
grab one string, and run a dry cloth up and down. Some player's
skin can be so acidic that it can wear out a string in just a 2
or 3 short months.
Another way to rejuvenate old bass strings: Loosen one
string, (for example: loosen the G string down to an 'F').
I loosen the string a little so that I have enough working space
that I can get under the string and wrap a cloth to squeeze it
firmly with my thumb and first couple of fingers. Then just put a dab
of Vaseline or mineral oil on the cloth. Run the cloth (with
your fingers and cloth wrapped around the string) up and down
firmly, a
few times) with a fairly good amount of friction and pressure.
This should span about an inch from the bridge, up to the nut. Then
tighten the string back up and go to the next string.
If you have too much rosin caked up on the string or dirty 'gunky'
strings, you can first use a
light steel wool or a copper scouring pad on it. You will notice,
that the cloth will definitely turn black from all the soil on the
strings, not to mention the burn from the friction! You can finish this cleaning by carefully moistening the same cloth
with a little rubbing alcohol. (You can also use this to clean the
fingerboard underneath and around the string. I clean the whole
board this way and have never had a problem. Take special
care to keep the alcohol away from the bass varnish. I actually moisten
the cloth I am using in another part of the room, so that I
won't knock or splash
any alcohol on the bass varnish. This will leave a spot (and
will not go away!) so be careful.
When you are all finished, give your old (now clean) strings another
try! This should bring back some new life to your old strings
and actually make the bass feel much more comfortable and easier
to play on. Even cleaning the fingerboard will help the string
vibrate more freely. If you have dirt or gunk underneath the
string on the board, that can only impede the way the string
vibrates near the board. Cleaning your strings actually makes
the bass easier to play on. A clean string will vibrate much
easier too (less work!) This will help squeeze just a little
more life out of a string for a while, but when a string is "played"
out....it's 'new' string time! |
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