Aging new flat-wound strings

[greentext]

I've seen a fair few players reference deadening there new flat-wound strings by using moisturiser or other creams. I know Sean Hurley mentioned he uses Vaseline to achieve the same thing.

 

Has anyone actually ever tried this and is it worth trying? Im totally happy to dead my string by playing as I always have but think this is an interesting approach. Part of me feels weird taking my new strings and slather them in anything.  

 

Here is a link to Danny Sapko Youtube Short on the matter 

 

[Guest]

This is the post you want:

 

Eucerin skin cream

 

[Paolo85]

I have tried Eucerine cream. It works. I have no way of saying whether the resulting sound is worse/better than it would have been with natural aging though

[PaulThePlug]

Arn't all those creams meant to be Anti-Ageing... to make an old set sound like new...

 

[chris_b]

Just play them.

[Reggaebass]

 or don’t buy bright sounding flats, I asked Sean Hurley about his strings once and he does use Vaseline to dull down new flats 

[TheGreek]

String mutes?

[pfretrock]

32 minutes ago, Reggaebass said:

 or don’t buy bright sounding flats, I asked Sean Hurley about his strings once and he does use Vaseline to dull down new flats 

Someone should market string gunk, as James Jameson said "The Gunk keeps the Funk".

[Saul Panzer]

Interesting, I had no idea that was even a thing.

Personally I'd go with the sponge mute while they aged through playing but mine have been on over a year now so I doubt I'd see much change from trying this.

 

Guy Pratt was on SBL chatting away recently and mentioned Lee Sklar telling him about slapping some gaffer tape over the bridge to deaden harmonics...wonder if that'd have the same effect as moisturiser or a sponge, one I'll try when I get some new strings.

[James Nada]

I've used lip balm (vaseline brand) to achieve this when trying to 'age' a single string to match the rest.

[greentext]

5 hours ago, chris_b said:

Just play them.

yh as per my original post, I do, I was just curious on the science if it worked or not

[greentext]

3 hours ago, Saul Panzer said:

Personally I'd go with the sponge mute while they aged through playing but mine have been on over a year now so I doubt I'd see much change from trying this.

yh same for me, id love to try the aging method but considering the Thomastik strings are like £40-50 a pop I'd feel very reluctant, my strings have been on my bass for about 2 years

[Dan Dare]

Take them up to tension, slacken, up to tension again, slacken, rinse and repeat. Should speed up the fatiguing of the metal. 

[Maude]

I wouldn't want to smear anything oily/greasy over my strings but if you must then surely eating chips while playing is the best way. Two birds with one stone, dead strings full chippy belly. 

[Bassfinger]

4 or 5 hours playing time usually does the trick for me. That's 2 or 3 days of home practicing. It takes that long for them to take up the stretch and settle down anyway.

[Downunderwonder]

I expect tuning them up a couple of steps overnight would pretty well do for any zing. Could equally make them dead as doornails so no warranty expressed or implied.

[Grahambythesea]

Seems pointless changing the strings 🥴

[Paolo85]

20 hours ago, pfretrock said:

Someone should market string gunk, as James Jameson said "The Gunk keeps the Funk".

I would buy it. Seriously. It would probably be hand cream under a different name and at double the price

[Dan Dare]

3 hours ago, Paolo85 said:

I would buy it. Seriously. 

 

I'll sell you some of my dead skin and bogies if you like. That seems to be what strings end up covered with 🤢

[Dad3353]

3 minutes ago, Dan Dare said:

 

I'll sell you some of my dead skin and bogies if you like. That seems to be what strings end up covered with 🤢

 

Reported. Should be in the 'Marketplace' section. Mods, please move..? 

[Sibob]

I had Chromes on my P for a couple of years, started bright, died off nicely as you'd expect. I replaced them with La Bella flats and they instantly sounded like the worn in Chromes, straight out the pack. Lesson? Buy La Bella flats for Precisions  

 

Si

[Paolo85]

30 minutes ago, Dan Dare said:

 

I'll sell you some of my dead skin and bogies if you like. That seems to be what strings end up covered with 🤢

Thanks for the kind offer! Though I was thinking more of the sort of stuff made by people in white lab coats, wearing gloves and not putting them in their nose

[wateroftyne]

Give them a good rub with a cotton t-shirt to tone down a lot of the initial clank.

[BlueMoon]

Even within the population of flats there is a world of difference in the degree of zing (or lack of) among those on the market. Personally, I prefer GHS Precision flats on my P bass. 
 

I haven’t used vaseline or creams on flats, preferring to wear them in naturally.

[wateroftyne]

1 hour ago, BlueMoon said:

Even within the population of flats there is a world of difference in the degree of zing (or lack of) among those on the market. Personally, I prefer GHS Precision flats on my P bass.

^^^^ These are also my preference.