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Post by LeftyMeister on Dec 16, 2021 18:27:44 GMT -5
I broke a string tonight for the first time in a couple of decades. In fact, I can't even recall the last time it happened. Admittedly, the strings were at least a year old, maybe two, but that's common for me. It took me completely by surprise and I looked at it in disbelief.
It got me to wondering about the rest of y'all.
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Post by Auf Kiltre on Dec 16, 2021 19:53:52 GMT -5
I went with "very rarely". I was quite the string breaker back in my gigging days until I switched to 11's. These days I'm back to 10's and have so many guitars its a rare occurrence. I think the last few were vintage tuner restringing incidents after doing fret work and such. With a band I was kind of a Lennie and the guitar was my puppy.
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Post by ninworks on Dec 16, 2021 21:24:20 GMT -5
I went with Very Rarely as well. I used to break strings back in my gigging days as well if I didn't change strings about every 3rd or 4th night. Many years later I had a tech work over the saddles on my bridge and I don't remember the last time I broke one. I don't beat the guitar as hard as I used to though.
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Post by Riff Twang on Dec 16, 2021 23:08:14 GMT -5
Very rarely for me too. I could even say extremely rare, as I've always had a fairly light touch.
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Post by Sharkie on Dec 17, 2021 9:27:30 GMT -5
“Very rarely” also and I like to bend. I keep all the contact points smooth and lubed up and probably change the strings too often; but there’s nothing like the sound of fresh strings. IMO
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Ayns
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Posts: 767
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Post by Ayns on Dec 17, 2021 11:52:44 GMT -5
I don’t think I’ve ever broken a string playing live in over 40 years. Of course I’m bound to break one next time we play now. ;-)
I use 9s.
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Davywhizz
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"Still Alive and Well"
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Post by Davywhizz on Dec 17, 2021 12:06:13 GMT -5
I had a spate of string breaks in the mid 70s and also tuning problems on a Gibson SG. I changed the tuners, eased off the nut slots and smoothed the bridge saddles. Also started using smaller picks. No more prob!ems. After that, I only ever broke one, a 4th string on a Tele, a few years back. There was no obvious reason for it, but it speeded up a decision to upgrade to a Callaham bridge.
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Post by LeftyMeister on Dec 18, 2021 14:13:27 GMT -5
'Very Rarely' is uncontested. lol! I'm somewhat surprised.
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Post by funkykikuchiyo on Dec 18, 2021 14:43:12 GMT -5
Very often!
... but only when I'm working on guitars. Tuning up and down and back up again over and over is way harder on strings than playing them. I broke a high E on one of my strats about six months ago, and it was the first time I've broken a string while playing in a very, very long time. Come to think of it, it might have been because it was the set I had on there when I set it up most recently.
Most string breakers I see are doing something strange, like never changing strings and thinking a few months old is practically new, or trying to use 10s on an acoustic and playing like an animal.
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Post by Peegoo 🏁 on Dec 18, 2021 15:13:40 GMT -5
Maybe once every year or two. I'm quite ham-fisted as a player and tend to beat the guitar like a rented mule.
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Post by rdr on Dec 18, 2021 16:50:12 GMT -5
I haven't broken one in years. I always wipe them down after playing. I have a 335 with at least 10 year old strings that sounds fine.
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Post by cedarchoper58 on Dec 18, 2021 17:10:40 GMT -5
Since I use to break them every gig but since i set my strat up like SRV Renea Martinez style with the tubes thru the saddle holes and lube i have not broken one if 15 years and have on ocasion left strings on for two years just to see if one would break. My guitar gets used with bends at least 8 hours a week
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Post by reverendrob on Dec 19, 2021 13:23:51 GMT -5
Very rarely - the notable exceptions are when I run the seven string in the original tuning (high A instead of low string) or while changing strings.
Other than that, it's literally been a decade or two.
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Ragpicker
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I'm playing it in a different key
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Post by Ragpicker on Dec 20, 2021 9:17:26 GMT -5
Last time I broke a string it as an 8 which was the octave string on a 12 string. Then broke another when i tried to replace. Had to do some saddle work.
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DrKev
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It's just a guitar, it's not rocket science.
Posts: 418
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Post by DrKev on Dec 21, 2021 12:04:47 GMT -5
Very rare. I think I broke one in the last five years. If I break a string there are two reasons - 1) I didn't change my strings when I should have, or 2) there is a sharp edge or burr on the saddle or tuning post.
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Post by Auf Kiltre on Dec 21, 2021 19:31:08 GMT -5
Years back at a basement jam I was handed someone's pointy Floydy thing strung with 8's. Within the first minute I broke 2 strings at the same time. It was like it was strung with Angel Hair pasta. I was playing 11's at the time.
The light touch it takes to play 8's just doesn't compute to me. I should probably set up one of my guitars with them just to learn.
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gbfun
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Post by gbfun on Dec 25, 2021 6:41:18 GMT -5
Huh. No kidding ?
I just broke 9 strings in the last 5 weeks on 4 different guitars and I slide instead of bend most of the time.
Three breaks caused me to smooth the saddles. The other 6 broke in the middle because I don't change strings until they break !(odd, eh ?)
But the curious part was, why all the sudden ?
Well... every year when we hit monsoon season in the Fall, every dang guitar goes sharp.
And then goes sharp again...and again. It's been two months or more and I STILL have to tune them down !
Perhaps the extra tension on the strings is causing the weak one's to fail each Fall ?
If so, I now know when to order up some new strings !
And make them 10s I guess.
And Auf Kiltre...I still can't forget your flawless guitar work on one of your demo pieces. I don't say so then, so I'll say it now...it was AWESOME !
Now back to your regular programming...
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matryx81
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I think I know the reason but I can't spell it.
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Post by matryx81 on Dec 25, 2021 9:27:29 GMT -5
I used to be bad about it until about 7 years ago when I discovered the joys of lighter strings, lighter touch, and a lower action. In that time, I have only had one string break.
(Note: I am also a bassist who thinks that 40-100 is heavy. I am in the camp of let the bass choose at least the gauge, so 35-90 is where I start and move up if necessary. Only 2 of my basses wear 40-100 sets, and one is because it is 35 inch scale length. 40-95 is the heaviest I tend to prefer these days if tuning in standard.)
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Post by reverendrob on Dec 25, 2021 16:18:44 GMT -5
Heh, I'm he-main big strings on bass. The only "lightish" I uses is on the Bass VI, where I have 95s in Labella stainless rounds.
Everything else is 105 stainless flats!
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Post by saltyseadog on Dec 28, 2021 22:12:56 GMT -5
I was going to check the never box but then remembered I did break a string many years back. I think this is mostly down to playing with my fingers using 11's tuned down a half step or 10's tuned to standard.
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matryx81
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I think I know the reason but I can't spell it.
Posts: 771
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Post by matryx81 on Dec 28, 2021 23:27:19 GMT -5
Heh, I'm he-main big strings on bass. The only "lightish" I uses is on the Bass VI, where I have 95s in Labella stainless rounds. Everything else is 105 stainless flats! You are tougher than me. Then again, most bassists probably use a gauge heavier than I do (but not all - lighter sets are made so someone is buying them). I discovered lighter strings thanks to a bass that had a stripped truss rod nut (I did this, and I eventually had the nut replaced so that problem is gone). I initially tried a set of 30-110 strings and found I could only not get along with the 30. Everything else was fine. I bring this up to say that if you want to go lighter, I would perhaps stairstep down. If 8s were giving you fits, perhaps 9s would be better?
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Post by jazzguy on Dec 29, 2021 0:46:34 GMT -5
I use 13-56 and rarely break strings though once when I was playing in a very high energy band and was really digging in I'd break one every month or so.
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twangmeister
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Post by twangmeister on Jan 11, 2022 18:22:32 GMT -5
When I considered myself a "lead guitar player" 45-50 years ago I broke an unwound string every month or so. My guitar case held a bunch of nearly dead used strings as emergency back up. I tried to keep down expenses by limiting myself to one pack of fresh strings a month. Beer was cheaper than strings.
After playing bass for a few decades I returned to guitar and noted I seldom broke strings anymore. Not that my guitar playing technique had changed much either.
I had the same thing happen with picks. Back in the old days I played with those clunky triangular celluloid picks because I broke at least one pick a gig. The alternative was using Hercos which seemed to lack snap
Better manufacturing techniques? Better materials? I don't know
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Post by langford on Jan 12, 2022 15:07:29 GMT -5
Very rarely, and that's too often. I hate changing strings. I asked for a roadie at Christmas, but no dice.
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Post by archiestone on Jan 12, 2022 15:15:36 GMT -5
Every couple of months. Seems when I break one I'll typically break more within a short span... Humidity changes, perhaps?
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gbfun
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Posts: 463
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Post by gbfun on Jan 13, 2022 5:55:56 GMT -5
I'm thinking I probably break so many strings because I'm still using the cheap strings from MF that were ordered in individual tubes.
I don't think they sell them anymore.
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Post by samspade on Jan 15, 2022 11:34:45 GMT -5
used to break them at the bridge and usually the 4th (D), might have been saddle issues. Now, surprisingly if I do break a string, it's the high E and in the middle, I think just old strings on guitars I haven't played in a while. I've also had issues with strings unravelling at the ball end on Jags and Jazz Masters, maybe due to the top load bridge? happened at least four times.
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Post by HenryJ on Jan 15, 2022 16:16:15 GMT -5
I suspect the reason "very rarely" is in such a big lead is that most of us play 9s, which have less tension and thus less likely to break. ICBW, but probably not.
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Post by reverendrob on Jan 17, 2022 6:48:34 GMT -5
I play 10s on everything, fwiw - that is a six-string geetar that's not a Bass VI.
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Post by LeftyMeister on Jan 17, 2022 8:33:47 GMT -5
I suspect the reason "very rarely" is in such a big lead is that most of us play 9s, which have less tension and thus less likely to break. I played 11's for decades and switched to 10's about 5 years ago.
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