Playing Gigs in SE Asia. How do I stop or reduce how quickly my strings rust out

[GravityOrange]

Hey guys. I'm playing gigs in Thailand and my strings are rusting out very quickly (obviously).. even Elixirs. I also use fast fret before and after every gig. Any other tips? Was thinking maybe a dehumidifier in my guitar case or something?

[BallisticSquid]

Originally Posted by GravityOrange

Hey guys. I'm playing gigs in Thailand and my strings are rusting out very quickly (obviously).. even Elixirs. I also use fast fret before and after every gig. Any other tips? Was thinking maybe a dehumidifier in my guitar case or something?

How quickly is quickly? When I was regularly gigging, I was changing my strings every 3 weeks. My hands sweat a lot so my strings corrode pretty quickly.

To get mileage from them, I keep a cloth dampened with Dr. Duck's Axe Wax in my guitar case. At the end of any playing session or the end of a set, I wipe down each string. It gets the crud off and lubricates the string. If I didn't do this, I would have been changing my strings every week or two...no joke.

For this reason, I'd use less expensive strings and keep a lot of sets on hand...the low end Martin strings on my acoustic and Ernie Ball Regular Slinky's on my electrics.

[GravityOrange]

Never heard of that stuff.. but sounds interesting. Why would you wet the rag though if you are applying a wax? I will try and find some. I use fast fret and it really doesn't do anything. Thanks for the great tip

[Shadowfox]

Originally Posted by GravityOrange

Hey guys. I'm playing gigs in Thailand and my strings are rusting out very quickly (obviously).. even Elixirs. I also use fast fret before and after every gig. Any other tips? Was thinking maybe a dehumidifier in my guitar case or something?

I'm wondering if a better case that will keep humidity low would help? Not like a Glieb case, but something like a Hiscox.

[BallisticSquid]

Originally Posted by GravityOrange

Never heard of that stuff.. but sounds interesting. Why would you wet the rag though if you are applying a wax? I will try and find some. I use fast fret and it really doesn't do anything. Thanks for the great tip

It's not actually wax, it's an oil. It acts as a solvent that get the crud and moisture off.

[Brent Hahn]

I used to work a lot with a record label out of Barbados, and all of their artists had rust issues. On everything, not just strings. You'd pick up a guy's Stratocaster and the whole thing would be coated with Vaseline. Their only recourse when it came to strings was to only buy the kind that come in sealed plastic, and change them constantly. I wish I had better news.

[L20A]

Try a set of Martin Retro strings. They don't rust.

[bufflehead]

Originally Posted by L20A

Try a set of Martin Retro strings. They don't rust.

Either Retros or any other monel strings.

[GravityOrange]

Thanks for the tips guys. Never heard of those strings.. but in my opinion, everything i've seen so far rusts. How are these different? I usually get max 3 gigs out of a set.. and then "ping" they start snapping like elastics.

[bufflehead]

Originally Posted by GravityOrange

Thanks for the tips guys. Never heard of those strings.. but in my opinion, everything i've seen so far rusts. How are these different? I usually get max 3 gigs out of a set.. and then "ping" they start snapping like elastics.

Monel is an alloy made up mostly of nickel and copper. Very little iron. Even seen a rusty nickel?

We use monel on sailboats in a high-rust environment where stainless steel isn't sufficiently rust-resistant. For example, raw water strainers can be made of monel, because stainless seawater strainers only last a few months. If you use staples on boats, you should always use monel staples.

Nice thing about Martin Retro strings, they sound great, especially on mahogany guitars.

[M Hayden]

Or nickel strings, if not Monel. It won’t protect the cores or the plain strings, but it’ll make the wound strings last longer.

Or maybe the new Martin titanium strings.....