Are old but unopened strings still good?

[gfspencer]

Originally Posted by Glennwillow

If the strings are wrapped in plastic, then they are probably good. The old strings I have wrapped in paper often have corrosion on the unwound high E and B strings after a while. Then again, I do not live in a dry climate, my relative humidity is typically 40-60%.

- Glenn

+1 to what Glenn said.

I have some "special" hard to find Martin strings for my 12-string baritone. I put them in zip lock bags and sucked the air out of the bag. The strings seem to be fine.

[Steve DeRosa]

In theory, strings kept in their original wrappings in a low-moisture environment (no basements, attics, garages, or case humidifiers here, guys...) should last almost indefinitely: back in the '90s MandoBros was selling a museum-quality '43 Epiphone Emperor, with original case/case candy and a complete set of half-century-old factory strings in the storage compartment that, in Stan's own words, "look[ed] like they were purchased this morning" (Side note: this puppy was so squeaky-clean I thought it was a refin, and passed on it; turns out it wasn't, and I should have grabbed it at the $3895 asking price - it went within 72 hours of being listed for sale, and I'm surprised Stan didn't keep it for his personal stash)...

In practice, it doesn't always work out this way: IME dark spots (not gritty rust) on plain strings and discoloration on the wound ones (I find PB the worst offender) can be polished out with a bit of Nevr-Dull, without losing tone to any appreciable degree; I've also pressed some strings with actual rust into backup service - a couple swipes of 0000 steel wool, some Nevr-Dull, and a bit of Finger-Ease will make then serviceable in a pinch - better than nothing, but fresh strings are always the best bet...

[rmp]

Originally Posted by Glennwillow

If the strings are wrapped in plastic, then they are probably good. The old strings I have wrapped in paper often have corrosion on the unwound high E and B strings after a while. Then again, I do not live in a dry climate, my relative humidity is typically 40-60%.

- Glenn

Gibson Masterbuilt's are in a sealed plastic wrapping.

Gibson ended Masterbuilts maybe 4 years ago, could be 5? not sure

I used them a lot before Gibon deep sixed em.

I found two sets last year and figured, NICE! Lets try them

These were dead the moment I tuned em up.

[Yrksman]

I have 3-400 sets of strings at any one time. Some don’t get used for years. As mentioned above, sometimes there’s a hut of corrosion in strings 1 or 2 but otherwise they play fine.

[EZYPIKINS]

I have allot of paper wrapped, cardboard boxed strings from years ago.

Glad Rotosound and others began sealing in film wrapper.

Now those old paper and cardboard boxes are collectors.