Best Mandolin Strings for Sweaty hands

[MandoMan1]

I normally use D'Addario J-74 strings, but I find that my sweaty hands kill the strings quickly. Current set has only been on my mandolin for two weeks, and they already sound dead. I am interested in trying possibly D'Addario EXP mandolins strings or Elixir Nanoweb strings. I would appreciate any feedback. Do the coated strings hurt the tone? I want to change strings less without sacrificing tone.

[mandolirius]

I like the tone of EXP's and they last about three times as long (for me) as J-74's.

[Folkmusician.com]

I don't think the coated strings sound quite as good initially, but the longer they stay on the bigger the advantage they have over non-coated. I might lean toward the Elixirs in your case, simply because the entire string is coated where the EXP has the winding coated.

[Loudloar]

Nickel wound strings are another option, and they tend not to corrode as fast as bronze. Of course they will sound different. The "pure nickel" strings have solid nickel windings, whereas "nickel" strings have nickel plated steel windings. I'm not sure if the plated strings are more subject to corrosion or not.

Just to clarify coated strings: Elixirs are coated after the string is wound, but with EXPs the winding material is coated, then wound onto the string. Because of this I find EXPs squeak more when sliding. They should both resist corrosion equally well.

Steve

[llg]

I have very acidic sweat (I think) as I can corrode strings very quickly if I don't wipe them down often. That maybe true for you as well. Elixirs will definitely last longer. I have recently tried EXP j75 and they seem to sound better quicker than elixirs, and they seem to be lasting about as long. To clarify...coated strings don't sound as good to start with and that's why a lot of folks don't like them. But if you give them some time--week, or more they seem to settle in well and hold up much longer for me. In fact, I will leave them 3 months or so, then when the AA and EE start to lose intonation, just change them. (you can pick up plain steel singles at many places.) So I can get another 3 months or so out of the GG and DD before changing the whole set.
This works well for me---others may disagree, but I guarantee you not everyone ruins normal strings as fast as sweaty palmed gorillas like myself. One other thing that I swear by...wipe them down after you play, every time (I use WD40 and it works great for me. I know some are scared of that but I've been doing that on all my guitars (electric and acoustic ) and a very nice Stiver mandolin for several years, and it works well.
At first I was scared of the extra cost of coated strings, but they more than pay for themselves for me anyway. Hope this helps

[SkitownPicker]

I find the coated strings do last a little longer but the A and E strings seem to go pretty quick...never thought about changing them before the whole set. I've only tried EXPs. I like J74s and end up sticking with them....changing them about every 2 weeks, sometimes less than that. Our band plays out 5 or 6 times a month and we rehearse once a week. I've never heard of the WD40 trick....might be worth a try...do you carry around a can of that stuff?

[Ron McMillan]

Elixir Nanos are the answer to similar problems for me. I am perfectly happy with the sound they give, and if I use Fast Fret two or three times a week, the strings last forever - easily three times longer than regular D'Addarios or Martins, which were rusting out in under a month.

rm

[MandoMan1]

Thank you for all the advice. I think I will try the Elixir strings.

[mandroid]

Monel is a corrosion resistant non ferrous alloy. but the other 4 strings are still carbon steel
as are the core wire of the wound strings. no way around rust.

Satchmo always had a cloth with him, to wipe off sweat.. you might do that
wipe down the strings, your hands and forehead too .. more frequently ..

[Lukas J]

My hands are probably near the extremely sweaty end of the spectrum, and by the end of two shows in one weekend (5 hours) I noticed some oxidation slowing up my fingers on the A and E strings on my EXPs, even with frequent wipe-downs. On my starter mandolin I used string lubricants, but I'm not introducing anything like that to my Weber.

For me, EXP-74s will last near a month in terms of tone quality, but comfort is also a big factor in terms of ease of playing, so rust isn't such a pleasant thing. I had some Elixirs on a while back and they sounded and felt great for 2 months after a 2 day period of being really, really bright. they still felt great when I took them off, but tonally they were diminishing. for the extra 3 bucks, greater comfort and double the string life, my next string order will Elixirs. Not everybody or every mandolin responds positively to them, but it definitely merits a try. Good luck!

[llg]

Skitown: Yes I keep a little wd40 in my case...I know many of you may find that appalling but it works well for me. I actually got the idea from my wife (a non-musician) that attended a business meeting sometime back and the speaker started with a little light hearted list of things wd40 can be used for. I had never tried that until then, but have been doing that ever since.
If you are afraid to try it on a quality instrument, try this....take an old, preferably rusty string and wipe it down with a dry rag and then with WD40 rag and witness the difference yourself.
I like Elixirs too, but I think I like the EXP sound a little better. I used Elixirs for years and just recently tried EXP on my Martin and Stiver and so far I think I like the tone better for both guitar and mandolin. Both Elixirs and EXP last substantially longer for me than anything else.
Again, some people probably don't have the type of sweat to need coated strings, but they really work for me, and many others from the sound of other comments I've read.
I agree with prior comment that the plain strings are not coated but I swear the elixir and EXP plain strings seem to last longer to me too...but as I said before, I just change them out sooner, so I usually get 6 months out of the wound DD GG strings and 3 months out of EE AA strings, changing them once before changing the entire set. Again not every one will agree but it works for me.

[Phil Goodson]

Cleartone strings are coated and sound good to my ear. I've used them mostly on guitars for several years. They FEEL less coated to my fingers than some of the other brands, but last a long time for me.

[grassrootphilosopher]

I think it´s a question of cost efficiency. The D`Addariio J-74 (or 75) are good strings. Coated strings are a lot more expensive. I tried coated strings and found that they do not sound good when new. The have a "dead" sound, as if you have non coated strings on your instrument that are a couple of ...(whatever) old. Over a short period of time you don´t notice the "dead" sound anymore because that is the sound you´re used to from your non coated strings. But I think that coated strings don´t last as long as to make up for the higher cost.

I had a sorry experience of having worn out a set of (uncoated) guitar strings in a show where I played the guitar for only 4 songs (what a drag... I was stunned... never thought this could happen). This is just to show that I´m a "ruster".

In guitars I go bulk strings now. I use phosporic bronze strings and the cost efficiency is great. I haven´t found this in mandolin strings. If anyone knows of bulk mandolin strings, let me know! So far I´m still using D`Addario J-75s.

[Mike Bunting]

Are these guys of any use to you?
http://www.hotworship.com/euphonon/index.html

[bmac]

I might also ask if you are on any kind of powerful blood pressure medication.... I was on lots of thinner and found that my medication went right through my skin and caused my strings to turn black and filthy... Amazing really... Later when the medication was eliminated there was no problem. i don't know if it was some kind of corosion of the strings or a coating but something chemical was taking place and it was awful. I did not notice a tonal difference... but I was new to mando at the time.

[Justus True Waldron]

I used to have this problem a lot more when I started playing and got nervous a lot more, leading to sweaty hands and ruined strings. Now I hardly evern have that problem, but I still stick with coated strings. I've tried both elixers and EXPs for several years, before finally settling on EXP75s for my string of choice. Not sure if it's still the case, but as late as a few months ago the E and A strings in the Elixirs were still uncoated... those are the ones I care about the most because it's where I do the most of my slides! All the strings are coated in the EXPs, and I've had my last set on for almost 2 months now, which is pretty much a record for me (I was changing every 2 weeks or so before). I'd also like to go against a fair amount of the posters here and say personally I PREFER the sound of coated strings. They are very bright for the first day, but they settle in nice. I'm convinced a fresh set of EXPs actually has a really awesome "PING" to them I don't get out of any other strings (I think the EXP75s sound slightly woodier and more natural than brand new Elixers). I'm also pretty sure fresh elixers is part of the "modern" mandolin sound (think sierra hull, chris thile's non traditional stuff)... I know young kids that can play like that and they are practically addicted to their elixirs, changing them almost every day or so!

Oh, and for me EXP74s are flabby and next to useless! I'd MUCH rather play with Elixer mediums than them. I tried two sets and literally took them both off the same day. I lost a ton of volume even after I cranked up my bridge to counter the flabby action, the guys I play with were like "where'd you go???". Not sure if I got two bad sets... but those strings were NOT GOOD in my opinion. The EXP75s? string heaven... not sure why that is.

[Pete Martin]

Monels work well (Gibson Sam Bush strings).

The advice to wipe after playing is good. Will give you much longer string life.

[Pete Braccio]

I used the Sam Bush strings for years. About a year or so ago, for some reason, the EXPs started to sound better to me so I've been using them since then on my mandolins and acoustic guitars. On the bouzouki and mandola, I've made up sets of D'Addario nickel wound loop ends that I get in 5 and 10 single packs from First Quality. For electrics, I use D'Addario Nickel wounds.

Phospher Bronze uncoated strings last about two hours with me. Don't know if they actually die, but they turn black. That's enough of an indicator for me. The nickel and coated strings can last for months. The plain steel strings, not as long.

[JonZ]

Is there a scientific basis for a particular body chemistry damaging strings? I used to think my fingers were corosive, but it turns out my hands were just dirty. I would get to the practice studio at the end of the day, move cases, microphones and old furniture and beer cans around, and my hands would get pretty filthy. No sink around, so my strings got crudy.

Now I wash my hands (with soap!) before I pick up an instrument, and I wipe the strings (and tail piece) down with Dunlop Formula 65 cleaner when I'm done. My strings last forever.

Even if you sweat a lot--there's a big difference between clean sweat and dirty sweat.

[Pete Braccio]

I wash my hands a lot during the course of the day. It's the sweat, not the dirt.

[Wayne Bagley]

I not sure what strings are the best as I am a new mandolin player and I am still discovering the different chararistics of strings. I have a lot to learn.

I have a different approach and I can suggest a possible solution for your sweaty hands issue.
Purchase a can of no aroma anti-persperant and spray your hands before playing.
This works great for sweaty feet also.

[greg_tsam]

On the last thread for coated vs. uncoated strings I bought several of the top coated strings and a couple uncoated. I have corrosive sweat, I think, but I live in the middle of a swampland environment and if I'm not the one killing them then the 100% humidity is. Uncoated strings don't last very long and lose their tone the quickest. I've used and loved Elixir mediums for a few years.

Tried Cleartones and was not impressed. One E string broke at the loop but I re-looped it and it was fine. Then I had a G loop break and replaced it with another set from EXP and a D string came out of the package looking oxidized and 3 shades darker than any of the others.

Loved the feel of flatwounds but not the volume.

Currently using the EXP's and like them although they are a little flabby I might just like that but sound weaker than Elixir's volume but don't flake like the Elixir which is my only complaint with them.

The perfect string for me would be a flatwound that sounded and performed like an Elixir that was coated on all four courses.

[TJe153]

I put new Med Elixir's on last weekend (14th or 15th) and I played a 3 hour jam last night. My A and E strings are absolutely shot, visibly tarnished and difficult to slide on, and the coating is even coming off in some places. And after reading this thread, it will be the last set of Elixir's I buy for my mando. Garbage....

Honestly? If you have sweaty hands like mine, and you like to play frequently, no amount of lube, fast fret, grease, or wd-40 will help. Get a few sets of J74's from Amazon ($5.76) and change them frequently. That's my new mantra, next to grip it and rip it.

[John Flynn]

Another string you might try is JS-74's. Basically J-74's in stainless steel. Pretty similar to the Gibson Bush Monels, which are great also.

[Polecat]

I find cleaning strings regularly does help a lot - if your E and A strings are tarnished after playing, Nevr-Dull is very effective at removing it. Remember, though, that the gunk gets all over the strings, and if you only rub them from the top, you're not going to achieve a lot - its important to get a cloth between the strings and the fretboard and move it from side to side to clean the muck out from between the windings. I find that helps string life (at the moment I use FT74s) a lot.