Reviving Bass Strings in a Hot Air Oven

[Jay2U]

I've been baking out strings in an oven for a few years already. The result is stunning and lasts for quite some time. As a set of bass strings is expensive, it's worth the effort.

 

[Gasman]

Do you need to remove them from the bass first?

[binky_bass]

38 minutes ago, Gasman said:

Do you need to remove them from the bass first?

No, put the whole bass in and it has the added affect of giving you a lovely roasted neck at the end.

 

An extra tip: Chuck it in while cooking your Sunday roast for that baked in delicious chickeny aroma! 

[sandy_r]

It WoRkS!!!!

 

...just tried this (strings only, of course, Gasman!)

 

It's totally transformed my black nylon flats into shiny new metal rounds...

 

(and I've got a completely new Teflon-like layer on the oven-floor: win - win!)

 

Edited September 24, 2023 by sandy_r

[sandy_r]

Apologies @Jay2U - joking aside, heat tempering of steel may be related to de-embrittlement action in restoring a certain ductility to the steel in the strings

 

[JoeEvans]

If you like that played-in sound from old strings, can you get new ones and put them in the freezer?

[sandy_r]

4 minutes ago, JoeEvans said:

If you like that played-in sound from old strings, can you get new ones and put them in the freezer?

 

Definitely not! ...would have to move the bodies first!

 

[Reggaebass]

I won’t be trying this, it’s taken me 20 years to get my flats sounding worn in 😁

[Jay2U]

51 minutes ago, sandy_r said:

Apologies @Jay2U - joking aside, heat tempering of steel may be related to de-embrittlement action in restoring a certain ductility to the steel in the strings

 

Yes, that's why this treatment lasts so long. Vibration and tension change the structure of the metal.

[Jay2U]

1 hour ago, sandy_r said:

It WoRkS!!!!

 

...just tried this (strings only, of course, Gasman!)

 

It's totally transformed my black nylon flats into shiny new metal rounds...

 

(and I've got a completely new Teflon-like layer on the oven-floor: win - win!)

 

Melting teflon takes temperatures well over 300 °C. There is, however, a warning regarding coated strings in the description of the video. 😁

[Hellzero]

Do the maths, I think this is cheaper and better for your health (all this heated gunk in the oven is just disgusting): https://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_valuestrings_bassguitar_medium.htm

 

That said I preferred the tone before the "ovening".

[sandy_r]

20 minutes ago, Jay2U said:

Melting teflon takes temperatures well over 300 °C. There is, however, a warning regarding coated strings in the description of the video. 😁

 

"...new Teflon-like layer..."

 

but, in general, never let reality stand in the way of off-the-wall humour 😉

 

[Jay2U]

2 hours ago, Hellzero said:

Do the maths, I think this is cheaper and better for your health (all this heated gunk in the oven is just disgusting): https://www.thomann.de/gb/harley_benton_valuestrings_bassguitar_medium.htm

 

That said I preferred the tone before the "ovening".

Math done! The oven draws less than 1 kWh during the process. Despite electricity being rather expensive over here in The Netherlands, it still costs me less than half a Euro.

Apart from this, I think a low-cost sets show inconsistencies. I'm using 10 Euro Warwick sets on my cheap P-Bass. Sometimes one of the strings is dead, straight from the package. Sometimes intonation is poor, due to inconsistencies over the length of the string.

The tone before and after treatment, is a matter of taste and/or requirement.

[Marky L]

Ooh! I'll try that when I get home later.. though his microwave looks a bit different to mine.

[Hellzero]

15 minutes ago, Jay2U said:

Math done! The oven draws less than 1 kWh during the process. Despite electricity being rather expensive over here in The Netherlands, it still costs me less than half a Euro.

You didn't take the price of the oven into account, the time it takes to take the strings off and on, the time you'll spend cleaning that oven from the non healthy residues including the burnt silk and the useless local warming, which is nowadays priceless.

 

Didn't you notice that your strings are marked at the frets location when you do such "rescue" leading to intonation and false harmonics issues: It's just the usual cheapskate maths you've done here.

 

If your strings are dead (to your taste), change them, recycle the old ones and save time, money and the planet.

 

Won't make friends, I know.

[Jay2U]

1 hour ago, Marky L said:

Ooh! I'll try that when I get home later.. though his microwave looks a bit different to mine.

Don't use microwaves on metal! 😬 Just use hot air. 

[Marky L]

2 hours ago, Jay2U said:

Don't use microwaves on metal! 😬 Just use hot air. 

 

Maybe I should have put a big winking grinning emotie at the end of that 😁😉

[sandy_r]

2 minutes ago, Marky L said:

 

Maybe I should have put a big winking grinning emotie at the end of that 😁😉

 

noooo - much more funner thisaway!!!

 

[BigRedX]

Just buy some new strings.

[Bolo]

22 hours ago, Hellzero said:

Won't make friends, I know

Or friends that accept that you tend to be wrong about certain things. 

 

Production of new strings take account material, packaging and transport, way less environmentally friendly.

 

Still, this revival attempt is not for me, I've never had much luck with the homebrew cures.

[JoeEvans]

On 24/09/2023 at 09:58, JoeEvans said:

If you like that played-in sound from old strings, can you get new ones and put them in the freezer?

This was obviously a joke, but thinking about it, I seem to remember that metal fatigue develops more rapidly at low temperatures, so potentially if you froze your strings then put them back on quickly and played them, then repeated the process over and over again, they might acquire the played-in sound more rapidly...

[SteveXFR]

I tried this using a Dutch oven. Now my strings smell bad and the tone stinks but I can hit the brown note now

Edited September 25, 2023 by SteveXFR

[Jay2U]

2 hours ago, SteveXFR said:

I tried this using a Dutch oven. Now my strings smell bad and the tone stinks but I can hit the brown note now

Being a Dutchman, I could have warned you, but didn't. 😁

[mr4stringz]

4 hours ago, JoeEvans said:

metal fatigue

I got this at Download once.

[Waddo Soqable]

12 minutes ago, mr4stringz said:

I got this at Download once.

You didn't get Dutch ovened at Download I hope..😉